The Green Bay Packers travel to Atlanta to take on the Falcons this Sunday, and you don’t have to be an expert in NFL predictions to see this as a potential preview of this year’s NFC Championship game.
This contest looks to be a bruising, old-time, NFC battle between two teams fighting for the same opportunity: a birth in Super Bowl XLIV. Both teams are evenly matched, and playing well as they enter the home stretch of the regular season. In such a closely contested game, turnovers, special teams, and penalties could end up being the difference.
When the Falcons Have the Ball: in the ATL they do whatever they want on offense. You want a big play? Fine, toss it over the top to 1000-yard receiver Roddy White, an athletic, high IQ wide out with incredible speed and catching ability. Want to slice a defense across the middle? Look no further than 10-time Pro Bowler Tony Gonzalez. Feel like pounding the ground and racking up time of possession, just hand the ball to Michael Turner and get out the way. All those weapons, all under the control of Pro Bowl QB Matt Ryan, have made Atlanta one of NFL’s best offenses this season.
How the Packers will try to stop ATL: the Pack have relied on the big-play talents of sack master Clay Matthews and Defensive Player of the Year Charles Woodson to come up with sacks, interceptions, and fumble recoveries all year long, things that have contributed to the 2nd best scored-against average in the NFL. Against Atlanta, they’ll need to speed up the game on the edges and force mistakes, hopefully preventing the kind of clock-killing drives the Falcons specialize in. If anything, the Packers sometimes struggle against a power running attack, and that might lead them to crowd the line of scrimmage and dare Atlanta to beat them deep, using physical bump-and-run coverage to mess up Atlanta’s timing-based passing game.
When the Packers Have the Ball: the Pack looked to be just as stacked as ATL when the season began, but injuries to their starting RB and TE have deprived of what was once a well-rounded attack. Minus a consistent running threat, the Packers have been forced to rely as much as ever on the throwing arm of Pro Bowler Aaron Rodgers. And while they sometimes go through stretches of ineffectiveness, the last few weeks have been spectacular displays of offensive prowess. Even though teams know it’s coming, they haven’t been able to stop the Pack’s passing attack. The reason? Aaron Rodgers might be the best in the game right now.
How the Falcons will try to stop GB: Atlanta has had an up-and-down defensive year, and they have a propensity to give up huge passing numbers. But while teams have had their way through the air, Atlanta has also shown a knack for making a big play down the stretch, intercepting 15 passes so far this season. So while teams can pass against the Falcons, it has rarely translated to big point totals, giving Atlanta the league 7th best scored-against defense. But against a team who wants to pass (and rarely looks to run), the Falcons will be pressured to come up with turnovers this Sunday. If their season averages hold up, they might be in for a long afternoon against Aaron Rodgers and the Packer’s passing attack
Super Prediction: this one will come down to the stretch and by decided by a few big play, but Atlanta’s home field advantage and ground attack takes just enough air out of the ball to allow the Falcons to squeeze by Green Bay by a score of 27-23.