By Joseph Gunther
The Minnesota Vikings enter another difficult game. This time they get the Atlanta Falcons, who last played on Thursday. The Vikings (1-2) are coming off a difficult 20-9 road loss at the New Orleans Saints and the Falcons (2-1) are coming off a dominant 56-14 home win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Falcons Record
The Falcons begin the season with a 2-1 record. They have gone 2-0 at home and 0-1 on the road. Their only previous road game came against the very good Cincinnati Bengals.
Falcons on Offense
Matt Ryan is second in the NFL in passing, but his team leads the league. Ryan is 13 yards behind the league leader, Nick Foles of the Philadelphia Eagles. As a team, the Falcons lead the league by 23.4 yards per game over the Eagles.
Julio Jones and Roddy White form one of the top wide receiver duos in the NFL. In last Thursday’s contest, Jones became the league’s leading receiver with a 161 yard performance against the Buccaneers with White not playing due to an injury. White is expected to play Sunday against the Vikings.
The depth behind the duo is a little thin with Harry Douglas hobbled by a foot injury suffered in Thursday’s win and Devin Hester contributing more on special teams than on offense.
The Falcons rushing offense isn’t too bad, ranking 16th in the league. Stephen Jackson gets the bulk of the carries, but the other three backs get involved as well. Jacquizz Rodgers gets a few more carries as the backup. Antone Smith and Devonta Freeman are slightly more involved in the pass than the other two.
The offensive line has performed very well allowing just four sacks. First round draft pick Jake Matthews has been very good as their starting left tackle.
Falcons on Defense
The Falcons defense wasn’t all that good in their first two games of the season, but gave up nothing to the Buccaneers. They rank in or near the bottom third in both rushing and passing defense. That comes after allowing less than 64 rushing and 153 passing yards to the Buccaneers on Thursday.
Linebacker Paul Worrilow is among the league leaders in tackles. He is a strong, run stuffing inside linebacker that is a sound tackler. He is not great at deny completions in coverage, but does not allow yards-after-catch.
Cornerbacks Desmond Trufant and Robert Alford have been good this season, despite the team statistics. They have combined for seven passes defended.
Falcons Players to Watch
Wide receiver Julio Jones. Jones is arguably the best wide receiver in the NFL. He proved it Thursday with a nine-catch, 161-yard, two-touchdown performance against the Buccaneers despite being the one great weapon in the passing game.
Linebacker Paul Worrilow. The Falcons found a gem in Worrilow. He is emerging as a leader of the Falcons defense after signing as an undrafted free agent from the University of Delaware in 2013.
Outlook
Most people expected the Falcons to bounce back after having a bad season in 2013. They have one of the most explosive offenses, which was ravaged by injuries last season, and a decent defense that can make just enough plays.
The Vikings have their work cut out for them. The Teddy Bridgewater era begins as a one-dimensional offense that does not have a running game nor a consistent offensive line. The Falcons do not have a good pass rush, especially off the edge. This is a matchup Matt Kalil needs and he needs to perform well. The Falcons had no sacks in their first two games before getting three last week. Kalil has progressively regressed since making the Pro Bowl as a rookie in 2012.
The Vikings need an effort similar to what they got in the Week 1 win over the St. Louis Rams in order to get the season back on track. It needs to happen this week.
For more Vikings news and updates, visit Vikings Central.
Joseph Gunther is an avid fan of Minnesota sports, including football, hockey and baseball. He covered a wide variety of sports while attending Hastings College in Hastings, Neb. While at Hastings College, he was a part of the first collegiate media group to broadcast a national tournament via television, radio, internet and newspaper at the 2004 NAIA Division II Women’s Basketball Tournament. He grew up in the Twin Cities playing three years of varsity football in high school. Joseph is a freelance writer covering all things NFL. His work can be found on Examiner.com.
