Saints vs Chargers Odds, Picks, How to Watch & Who’s Playing?

• The New Orleans Saints and LA Chargers wrap up preseason Week 1 on Sunday afternoon
• The Saints opened as 2.5-point favorites but now the Chargers are laying a field goal
• See the latest Saints vs Chargers odds and betting splits, plus pick and details on how to watch

The New Orleans Saints (1-2 in 2024 preseason) head west to visit the Los Angeles Chargers (1-2 in 2024 preseason) in the final game of preseason Week 1 in the NFL on Sunday afternoon. The Saints and Chargers will kick-off at 1:05 pm PT/4:05 pm ET at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood.

No point spread moved more over the course of the week than the line in Saints/Chargers. New Orleans opened as a 2.5-point road favorite. By Wednesday, the line was a pick’em. Now, the Chargers are favored by as much as 2.5 points.

Go to: How to Watch | Odds | Probable Starters | Picks

How to Watch Saints vs Chargers

Sunday’s Saints/Chargers game will be broadcast live on the NFL Network, preceded by the only other Sunday game: Dolphins vs Bears. Viewers can also stream the game live on Fubo TV, and SBD readers can get a 30-day free trial of Fubo TV by following the preceding link.

New Orleans Saints vs LA Chargers Odds

As of Sunday morning, the Chargers were 2.0 to 2.5-point favorites depending on the sportsbook. The best ATS price for LAC at the moment is -2.0 (-110) at any of bet365, BetMGM, Caesars. Saints ATS bettors can get +2.5 (-110) at FanDuel. On the moneyline, DraftKings and FanDuel both have New Orleans at +120, which is the best available number. The longest odds on the LAC moneyline are at Caesars, where the Chargers are -130 to win straight-up.

The game total shows a half-point range (38.0 to 38.5). Over bettors should take O 38.0 (-110) at either Caesars or BetMGM. Under bettors can get 38.5 (-115) at either FanDuel or Draftkings.

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The Chargers already saw preseason action in the annual Hall of Fame Game on August 31, where they demolished Detroit’s glorified practice squad (34-7). QB3 Trey Lance – the #3 pick in the 2021 draft – was borderline brilliant, going 13-of-20 for 120 yards and two TD passes, good enough for a 114.6 passer rating.

Fifth-round rookie KeAndre Lambert-Smith was the standout receiver, with two receptions for 43 yards, including a 15-yard TD catch.

NO vs LAC Odds Movement & Public-Betting Splits

When the preseason Week 1 odds were first released last Sunday, the Saints were field-goal road favorites. Three days later, the line had moved to a near pick’em. As of Sunday morning, the spread had completely flipped with the Chargers favored by 2.5 (and potentially more by kickoff).

Sunday’s NFL public betting splits align with the odds movement: the public is absolutely hammering the Chargers, both against the spread and on the moneyline. The Chargers are currently getting 90% of ML handle (on 72% of bets) and 94% of ATS handle (again, on 72% of bets).

The public also has a strong take on the total, putting 91% of O/U handle and 84% of O/U tickets on the over so far.

Saints vs Chargers: Probable Starters

Lance, currently #3 on the LAC depth chart, will give way to QB2 Taylor Heinicke as starter on Sunday. After Lance’s solid performance in the HOF Game, the pressure is on Heinicke to answer back. The Old Dominion alum was a starter in Washington in 2021 but only threw five passes total as Justin Herbert’s backup last season. He should still have a firm grasp on Greg Roman’s offense from a year of practice.

On the New Orleans side, the second-year pro Spencer Rattler (who made six fairly unimpressive starts last season) will get the nod to begin with. But Rattler is in an open competition with second-round rookie Tyler Shough, and the latter will also see ample playing time tonight, as will third-string Jake Haener, a 2023 fourth-round pick.

Sunday’s game will be the first as a head coach for Kellen Moore, the architect of the Eagles’ 2024 Super Bowl-winning offense. Moore doesn’t plan on playing the vast majority of his would-be starters in preseason Week 1, which is a significant part of the massive line movement in this game.

Saints vs Chargers Picks & Prediction

• Chargers -2.5 (-110) at FanDuel

The Chargers backups were impressive in their first outing of the preseason against the Lions, and we’ll see a lot of the same faces in Sunday’s matchup against the Saints. There is a lot of well-informed hype about Moore, who’s getting his crack at a head coaching position at the tender age of 37. As brilliant an offensive mind as he is, he had an embarrassment of riches to work with in Philadelphia.

Rattler had an abysmal passer rating of 70.4 in seven games as a rookie, completing just 57% of his passes and throwing more interceptions (five) than touchdowns (four), and Shough will be seeing his first NFL action of any sort on Sunday.

I see the Chargers having a big edge at the QB position, and without stars like Alvin Kamara and Chris Olave to carry the water for the Saints offense, I won’t be the least bit surprised if this one ends in another rout for LAC.