Sharp group moves Chargers-Saints line on ‘Monday Night Football’

Sharp bettors are backing the Chargers over the Saints on “Monday Night Football.” New Orleans dropped to a consensus 7-point favorite Monday at Las Vegas sportsbooks after the line was as high as 9.

“We had a sharp group take 7½ with us, which got us to 7,” Westgate sportsbook vice president of risk Jeff Sherman said. “There were respected wagers on the Chargers.”

The line move was mostly because of the status of Michael Thomas. The Saints wide receiver was questionable to return from an ankle injury before he was ruled out of the game Sunday after reportedly punching a teammate (safety C.J. Garnder-Johnson) in practice.

“I’m sure it was a combination of sharp money and information on Michael Thomas pulling his best Evander Holyfield,” William Hill sportsbook director Nick Bogdanovich said.

While the Westgate needed New Orleans in the game as of early Monday afternoon, Bogdanovich said his book will still need Los Angeles. He said the line move was similar to Sunday’s Dolphins-49ers game, when sharp money on Miami drove the line down from 9 to 8 but the betting public still backed the favorite.

“When the Dolphins line went down, we still needed the Dolphins,” he said. “This game’s the same as all those teams that go down. All that does is allow the public to lay better numbers.”

The Saints are 2-2 straight up and ATS and the Chargers are 1-3 SU and 3-1 ATS, with all four of their games decided by seven points or less.

“The Saints haven’t looked that great and that’s a big number for a team that’s looked shaky at times,” Sherman said.

The consensus total is 49½ after opening at 52. New Orleans has a 4-0 over-under record and LA is 1-3.

Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com. Follow @tdewey33 on Twitter.