Falcons-Saints matchup has lost its luster, as both languish below .500

FLOWERY BRANCH — In a battle for last place in the NFC South, the reeling Falcons (3-7) are set to face a well-rested Saints (2-8) squad at 4:25 p.m. Sunday at Caesars Superdome.

Before their bye week, the Saints hit the Panthers with a couple of big plays and some strong defense to pull out a 17-7 win Nov. 9 in Charlotte.

Rookie quarterback Tyler Shough connected with wide receiver Chris Olave for a 62-yard touchdown and with tight end Juwan Johnson for a 30-yard touchdown. Shough, in his second start in the NFL, completed 19 of 27 passes for 282 yards and two touchdowns. He finished with a passer rating of 128.7.

Spencer Rattler started the first eight games and was benched after a 1-7 start.

“Tyler’s got a couple of games under his belt before the bye week,” Saints first-year coach Kellen Moore told the New Orleans media Monday. “You kind of utilize that information, collect what happened over the course of those two games. We felt good where things were trending, coming out of the Carolina game. Hopefully, we’ll continue to progress there. I thought Tyler has had a good couple of weeks.”

The Falcons-Saints rivalry has seen better days. The Drew Brees-Matt Ryan era is over. The teams have returned to the roots of their rivalry, when both of the teams were longtime losers.

“Yeah, they had a big-time win versus Carolina,” Falcons coach Raheem Morris said. “It’s a young team with a young coach, and they’ve gotten better throughout the course of the year. One of our bigger rivals. We’ve got to go down there and get a win.”

Morris said he was impressed with Shough, who was drafted in the second-round (40th overall), after playing at Oregon, Texas Tech and Louisville.

“He’s a young kid,” Morris said. “He went out there and played well. … Tyler Shough has done some good things, getting them a win.”

This will be the 112th regular-season meeting. The Saints lead the regular-season series, 56-55. The Falcons won the only playoff meeting back in 1991.

The teams split the series last season. The Falcons won at home 26-24 on Sept. 29, and the Saints beat the Falcons 20-17 on Nov. 10. It was the game where Kirk Cousins suffered a shoulder injury that derailed the season.

Moore is new to the rivalry.

“Definitely one that we’ve talked a lot about. This will be my first experience,” Moore said. “I’m excited about this opportunity. We know the importance of — certainly your division games, certainly with these guys, the history of this game.”

Shough’s key weapons are running back Alvin Kamara, Olave and Johnson.

Kamara, the former Norcross High star, leads the Saints in rushing. He has 128 carries for 460 yards and a touchdown.

Olave has 60 catches for 664 yards and four touchdowns. Johnson has 43 catches for 491 yards and three touchdowns.

“I felt like our run game, I felt like there was some consistency in that (against the Panthers),” Moore said. “I thought that was awesome. … I thought the offensive line was coming off the ball. Alvin and the backs, there was some physicality in that run game.”

The Falcons give up 138.5 rushing yards per game, which ranks 27th in the league.

“I feel like the run game is starting to come alive,” Moore said. “We’ve got to progress there so that we build that opportunity where we can play in this run game, action game and movement game on first and second down. That’s what we want to be.”

The Saints defense is held together by veteran linebackers Demario Davis and Pete Werner. Davis has 91 tackles and Werner has 60. Cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry has 36 solo tackles and two interceptions.

“Our defense played well (against the Panthers),” Moore said. “We did a really good job of keeping a roof on it, preventing the big plays. I thought our guys played really fast and physical football.”

Saints owner Gayle Benson, in an exclusive interview with Jeff Duncan of the Times-Picayune, admitted the team was in rebuilding mode.

“I think our guys are growing,” Moore said. “That’s an important aspect of this thing. It’s always important to see a team grow together. Different ages and situations for all of these players. For our veterans to continue to battle the way they’ve battled. … Then you flip to the other side and see some of these younger guys who are having opportunities to play, battle and grow each and every step of the way. To see them kind of take those little steps each week is exciting for me.”