METAIRIE – Jon Stinchcomb didn’t deny that he would likely watch Sunday’s NFL slate more closely than normal.

Rogelio V. Solis / Associated Press

New Orleans Saints offensive tackle Jon Stinchcomb, left, blocks defensive tackle Brandon Villarreal, right, during morning practice Friday, Aug. 4, 2006, at their football training camp at Millsaps College in Jackson, Miss.

One thing he won’t do, though, is pull out the Algebra book and figure out mathematically what needs to happen for New Orleans to gain a leg up in the NFC Wild Card race.

It’s come to this for the Saints – the old college pastime of scoreboard watching has made its way into the New Orleans locker room thanks to a scheduled Monday night game at Atlanta (ESPN, 7:30 p.m.). At 5-7 and a game out of a tie for the final Wild Card slot, the Saints need some help from around the league.

But relying on other teams right now is not something New Orleans wants to – or even needs to – worry about.

“Right now, we just need to worry about the game against Atlanta,” Stinchcomb said. “There are plenty of people who can figure out what needs to happen. What we can control is how we play against Atlanta.”

Nevertheless, Stinchcomb’s TV set will be tuned into whichever game is on. And he’ll likely have his computer on checking out the up-to-the-minute results of certain games.

Currently, New Orleans sits in a tie with Philadelphia and Carolina at 5-7. Detroit, Minnesota and Arizona all are 6-6. And the New York Giants, at 8-4, control the fifth playoff spot.

The Saints have games remaining against the Cardinals (Dec. 16) and the Eagles (Dec. 23), but still must win out and have some other games go their way.

Luckily for New Orleans, the NFC is fairly weak this year, giving it a chance to remain alive with four games left despite being two games under .500.

“It’s a hot race and I’m glad of it,” Stinchcomb said. “Because with four NFC opponents left, we’re still in the hunt.”

Everything remains in play for New Orleans as long as it wins, though. A loss essentially ends the season for the Saints following their game at Chicago on Dec. 30.

This, the team knows.

“You can’t sit there and worry about whether this team loses,” New Orleans safety Roman Harper said. “All that mathematical stuff, you just can’t worry about all that anyway. Right now, the only thing you can control is to go out and play your best ball and try to get all these wins.

“If we do that, that’s all we can as for.”

Yet, the odds are stacked against New Orleans. Only once in the 30-game history with Sean Payton have the Saints won four in a row – that being earlier this season.

Payton knows, though, that the opportunity is there for New Orleans to sneak into the postseason. It’s still in its hands.

And while he might not be tuned into other NFL game’s this weekend all the time, he’ll certainly be keeping tabs.

“It is the time of the year that all of us begin to pay attention to it but not at the expense of looking past what we are doing,” Payton said. “The interesting thing is that a lot of those teams, including ourselves, are playing each other here in the next few weeks.

“Each week, things seem to get sorted out more and more.”