The Kansas City Chiefs and Pittsburgh Steelers may have better records, but the New Orleans Saints remain the hottest team in the NFL. The Saints have won a league-best nine straight games, including three straight without quarterback Drew Brees. In his absence, Taysom Hill has stepped up as the team’s starting quarterback and led New Orleans to a 21-16 victory over the Atlanta Falcons in Week 13.

It took the 30-year old Hill three games, but he finally recorded his first career touchdown pass against the Falcons, completing 27 of 37 passes for 232 yards and two touchdowns while adding 14 carries and 83 rushing yards on the ground. With the win, the Saints moved up to 10-2 and are on track to finish with the NFC’s best record with four games remaining on their schedule. One of those games is a Week 15 clash against defending champion Kansas City Chiefs, which could be a potential Super Bowl preview.

But before they take on Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs, the New Orleans Saints will visit the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 14 in the hopes of winning their 10th straight. The Eagles have lost four consecutive games and are coming off a 30-16 loss to the Green Bay Packers in Week 13. Earlier this week, Eagles head coach Doug Pederson announced that rookie Jalen Hurts will start at quarterback against New Orleans, taking over from starter Carson Wentz, who has struggled this season. Here are four predictions when the Saints visit the Lincoln Financial Field on Sunday to take on Hurts and the Eagles:

1. Taysom Hill will have a receiving and rushing touchdown

While Brees has returned to practice this week, it’s likely that Hill will still be the team’s signal caller against the Eagles. The BYU product has not only performed well as a starter, but has also proven that he is capable of being the team’s franchise quarterback in the future once the 41-year old Brees retires. In three games, Hill has completed 54 of 76 passes for 543 yards including two touchdowns and one interception while also adding 34 carries for 176 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns.

Despite their measly 3-8-1 record, the Eagles remain one of the best teams when it comes to defending the pass, giving up an average of 217.2 passing yards per game, which ranks seventh in the NFL. This should provide more of a challenge to Hill, especially after facing the Falcons in two of his three games as a starter, as Atlanta ranks 30th in the league pass defense. But Hill should still be able to find one of his receivers in the end zone at some point in the game as he has gotten more comfortable as a passer with each passing game.

Hill should also be able to take advantage of the Eagles’ run defense, which gives up 129.9 yards per game, which ranks 25th in the league. Not only will the Saints quarterback add to his two touchdown passes this season, but should also pick up another rushing touchdown to add to the four that he already has as a starter.

2. Alvin Kamara has a big game and scores a touchdown

Kamara is coming off a strong performance against the Falcons, as he had 15 carries and 88 rushing yards and a score while adding two receptions and nine receiving yards in the New Orleans Saints win. The 25-year old running back has made a leap this season, emerging as one of the NFL’s receiving leaders with 70 receptions and 655 receiving yards through 12 games. But that wasn’t the case in New Orleans’ most recent games, as Kamara has just three receptions on six targets and a total of seven receiving yards in the Saints’ last three games.

But despite the dip in his production in the passing game, the three-time Pro Bowler has continued to do damage against opponents on the ground, and should be able wreak havoc against the Eagles defense that ranks 25th in rushing yards allowed per game. Kamara is tied for third in total touchdowns this season with 14, with nine rushing touchdowns and four receiving touchdowns. His involvement in the Saints’ passing game may not be the same as it was earlier this season, but the running back should be able to find the end zone against the Eagles and add to his impressive numbers this season.

3. The defense forces an interception on Jalen Hurts

Hurts is set to make his first career start against the Saints after taking over late in the Eagles’ loss to the Packers in Week 13. Pederson, however, is aware that playing against New Orleans, the NFL’s best defense, could be an uphill battle for the 22-year old signal caller.

“This is the number one defense, it's no easy task,” Pederson said, via Sports Illustrated. “Obviously, he's facing a really good opponent this week. It's our job as coaches, it's my job as a play-caller to try to help him that way and get him into the flow of the game, and then we'll see what happens from there.”

The Saints rank among the best in almost every defensive category, including yards allowed per game (288.8 yards, second in the NFL) and passing yards allowed (212.8 yards, fourth in the NFL). New Orleans has also forced their opponents into committing costly turnovers, and is tied for third in the league with 13 interceptions.

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JC Latham (Alabama), Chris Braswell (Alabama not Jaguars), Cornelieus Johnson (Michigan) in action behind a New Orleans Saints logo with a 2024 NFL Draft background.

Dylan Bruton ·

The New Orleans Saints defense also ranks among the best at getting to opposing quarterbacks and disrupting offenses, with 36 total sacks, which is tied for third and defensive end Trey Hendrickson being one of the league leaders with 10.5 sacks, which is tied for third. Despite playing well during his brief stint against the Packers last week, Hurts will face a much tougher challenge in the Saints, which will hound and pressure the rookie quarterback all game long and force him into throwing an interception.

4. The New Orleans Saints pick up the win and go up to 11-2

After back to back losses to the Las Vegas Raiders and the Pacers in Weeks 2 and 3, the Saints have regained their form and have shown no signs of slowing down since. The almost seamless transition from having Hill as quarterback in the place of Brees proves that Saints head coach Sean Payton remains one of the best in the league.

The New Orleans offense remains deadly with Hill under center and weapons like wide receiver Michael Thomas and Kamara at his disposal, while their defense is currently the league’s best, which could give Hurts a rough welcome to the NFL in his first game as a starter. The Eagles could make things interesting like the Falcons did in Week 13, but in the end,

The New Orleans Saints should pick up their 10th straight win to move up to 11-2 and gain momentum heading into their highly anticipated battle against the Mahomes and the Chiefs in Week 15.