METAIRIE, La. — If the New Orleans Saints want to make a real run at a playoff berth after their poor 1-3 start, which they obviously think they can do, no one need tell them that they must do it against the toughest stretch of their schedule.

And, no one has to tell them — once again — that they’re going to have to do some damage on the road. Already 0-3 this season away from the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, the Saints (2-3) will come off their bye Sunday hoping to snap that disturbing trend against the Detroit Lions (4-2) in Ford Field.

The Saints are 2-0 at home and have claimed 19 consecutive games in the Superdome with coach Sean Payton on the sideline, but proving they can do it on the road with games at Detroit and the Carolina Panthers sandwiched around a home game with the Green Bay Packers will tell them a lot about their team.

The matchup signals the Lions is the start of an important and challenging nine-week stretch in which seven of the Saints’ opponents have a winning record with the other two at .500 going into the Week 7 slate of games.

The bye week gave Payton and his coaching staff a chance to take a long look at their 2-9 record away from home — counting a 1-1 mark in the playoffs last January — since beating the Atlanta Falcons and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in their first two road games of 2013.

“Yes, we will try to look at everything, but I think the road thing goes into playing better football,” Payton said before the bye week. “It’s not so much that we are playing somewhere else.”

As an example, Payton pointed out the Saints’ 38-17 road loss to the Dallas Cowboys in Week 4 — a game in which his team fell behind early and never recovered.

At home one week later, the Saints had to rally from an 11-point fourth-quarter deficit to defeat Tampa Bay in overtime — proving they can struggle in front of their raucous fans as well.

“We could have played the Dallas game here (in the Superdome), (or at) old Tulane Stadium and the result would have been the same,” Payton noted. “The point being is generally when you’re playing good football and able to reduce turnovers and create them, and you’re running the ball well, that travels pretty well. If you are not, that does not travel well.”

Whatever the reason for it, the Saints have to find a way to correct it against a Lions team that has struggled a little on offense, surprisingly, but has been solid defensively.

The Lions lead the NFL in fewest yards allowed (270.7 yards per game), pass defense (197.2), scoring defense (13.7) and sacks (20). They also rank second against the run (73.5).

All of which means the Saints have their work cut out for them — on the road.

NOTES: RB Mark Ingram (hand) returned to practice Wednesday and is expected to be ready for the game. … TE Jimmy Graham (sprained shoulder), who leads team in most receiving categories, did not practice Wednesday and could miss game against the Lions. … Also missing Wednesday’s practice were CB Patrick Robinson (hamstring) and ILB Ramon Humber (ankle).