Give well-rested Giants narrow edge over Saints

The NFL schedule shows the Giants played last week, but we know better. The Giants faced the Oakland Raiders in what resembled a scrimmage and rolled to a 37-point win that wasn’t that close.

By halftime, Giants quarterback Eli Manning was resting and Coughlin was planning how to attack the New Orleans Saints.

At this point, the Raiders might be underdogs to the Florida Tuskers of the United Football League.

Terrible matchups litter the NFL lineup every week now. More than half the games are a joke. For example, Jacksonville, which got whipped 41-0 last week, is a 91/2-point favorite over St. Louis this week.

But it’s time to get serious. The Saints are 3-point home favorites over the Giants on Sunday. These certainly appear to be the two best teams in the NFC, and nobody would be surprised if they meet again in January.

Manning and New Orleans’ Drew Brees have combined for 19 touchdown passes and four interceptions. Brees has an abundance of pass-catching weapons, and Manning has wideout Steve Smith, who leads the league with 37 receptions and 481 yards.

The Saints rank No. 2 in rushing offense, and the Giants rank fourth.

The Giants lead the league in total defense, and the Saints rank sixth.

New Orleans had a bye last week — and coach Sean Payton is a tactical wizard, too — but that apparent advantage might mean nothing in this situation.

Similar to several NFL games, the Giants-Saints point-spread result could be a coin flip that turns on one or two critical plays. What’s different is this game will be smartly coached and well played.

By no stretch is this the weekend’s best bet, but I’ll take the points and say the slightest edge goes to the Giants only because Coughlin, for some odd reason, is about unbeatable on the road. He’s an amazing 15-2 against the spread in his past 17 road games.

Four more plays for Week 6 (Home team in CAPS):

• Ravens (+3) over VIKINGS: Good teams normally rebound from a loss, and Baltimore is a good team off back-to-back losses. The Ravens’ defense and quarterback Joe Flacco want to make amends for last week’s mistakes. Brett Favre is 5-0 for the first time in his career. If Baltimore stacks the box and contains running back Adrian Peterson, Favre and the Vikings will take a fall.

• SEAHAWKS (-21/2) over Cardinals: The return of brittle quarterback Matt Hasselbeck has rejuvenated Seattle. The talent is there for the Seahawks to start rolling in the NFC West. Few teams in the league are more unpredictable than Arizona from week to week. The Cardinals look like a bet-against team this season.

• JETS (-91/2) over Bills: Buffalo coach Dick Jauron is lucky to have a job. The Bills did the unthinkable last week by losing a game in which the opposing quarterback, Cleveland’s Derek Anderson, completed 2 of 17 passes. Jets coach Rex Ryan will get his team back on track after two road losses.

• PATRIOTS (-9) over Titans: At 0-5 straight up and 1-4 against the spread, Tennessee is the league’s biggest disappointment. New England has problems of its own. Tom Brady is lethargic and missing wide-open receivers, and Bill Belichick’s defense is getting no pass rush. The Titans are still capable, but their season is lost, and all the motivation is with the Patriots.

Last week: 2-3 against the spread

Season: 12-13

Las Vegas Review-Journal sports writer Matt Youmans can be reached at myoumans@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2807.