Atlanta Falcons vs. Chicago Bears: Three Things Falcons Must Do To Avoid The Upset
By Matt Karoly
The Atlanta Falcons head to Soldier Field on Sunday to kick off the 2017 season. While it appears like a cake walk on paper, here are three things Atlanta must do to avoid the upset.
The Atlanta Falcons open their 2017 season as one touchdown favorites when they head to Chicago to face the Bears. But as is the case with being a Falcons fan, no contest ever comes easy for our beloved Dirty Birds.
Despite this appearing as a relatively easy opening game, the Bears do present some challenges with their personnel. If the Falcons take Sunday’s matchup lightly, they could be in danger of falling victim to the dreaded “trap” game.
Fortunately, Dan Quinn rarely has his teams unprepared and we shouldn’t expect that to change during this revenge tour season. Nevertheless, here are three things the Falcons must do to avoid the week one upset.
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1. Contain Jordan Howard
One of the strengths of this Chicago Bears football team is their rushing attack, which starts up front with their stellar offensive line. Thanks to their talented interior trio of Kyle Long, Cody Whitehair and Josh Sitton, rookie running back Jordan Howard finished second in rushing last year.
The Bears are going to want to feed Howard early and often in an attempt to keep Atlanta’s potent offense off the field. Therefore, it is paramount the Falcons’ defense limits the Bears ground attack early to force third-and-long situations.
If they do so, the Bears offense will have to rely on the arm of Mike Glennon–a favorable outcome for most defenses. Couple that with the injuries to receivers Cameron Meredith and Markus Wheaton and it spells Bad News Bears.
2. Protect Matt Ryan
To be quite honest, keeping Matt Ryan upright can be listed as a key to victory in every game. However, the Bears boast a very underrated front seven so it’s worth emphasizing in this matchup.
Leonard Floyd, Pernell McPhee, Willie Young, and Akiem Hicks are all seven-plus sack caliber players; and Floyd, in particular, is a rising star off the edge with the potential to have a Vic Beasley-esque second year season.
In their linebacking corps, the Bears possess two quality inside guys in Jerrell Freeman and Danny Trevathan; both were free agent targets of the Falcons during the 2016 offseason. The latter, however, is battling back from a patella injury, so it remains to be seen how that affects his play.
If the Falcons can neutralize Chicago’s front seven, then they should have no problem having success in this matchup.
3. Start Fast. Be Physical.
When you open the season on the road as heavy favorites, there’s a lot of pressure to win the game. Throw in the pressure that’s already mounted following last year’s Super Bowl and the Falcons find themselves in a no-win situation on Sunday.
Therefore, it’s critical Atlanta comes out of the gates hot and doesn’t mess around with an underdog on its home turf. Fail to do so and the Bears’ confidence will increase by the minute.
It will also lead to the doubters’ voices growing louder, which is the last thing we want to hear.
Next: 10 Players that will be tough on the Falcons
So do us a favor, oh dear Falcons, and start fast and be physical across both fronts. Because if the Atlanta Falcons do that on Sunday, then they should have no problem making my 31-17 prediction come true.