Atlanta Falcons: Your Week 14 rooting guide as Birds look to playoffs

With the Atlanta Falcons already done for the week, here is how fans should root during Week 14 as the post season approaches

Thursday Night Football treated Atlanta Falcons fans to an early win as they knocked off the NFC South leading New Orleans Saints 20-17. A last drive attempt by New Orleans ended when linebacker Deion Jones picked off a pass from quarterback Drew Brees, and Atlanta ran the clock down — with some help from Saints head coach Sean Payton via a 15-yard penalty.

Now at 8-5 they sit just a half-game outside of the playoff picture, trailing the 8-4 Carolina Panthers as well as the 8-4 Seattle Seahawks for the two Wild Card spots. They’re also just one game away from the Saints, who lead the South still at 9-4.

While Atlanta plays New Orleans in Week 16, they still would like to secure at least a wild card spot as a worst case scenario. As they hope to get themselves in the post season, here is a Falcons’ fan rooting guide for Week 14.

Seattle at Jacksonville

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Atlanta beat the Seattle Seahawks earlier this season, which makes this the No. 1 game to root for on Sunday. Should the 8-4 Jacksonville Jaguars knock off Seattle — who has to travel across country — Atlanta would be tied with them at 8-5. Thanks to that head-to-head win, Atlanta would have the edge. Let’s go Jags!

Minnesota at Carolina

As mentioned above, the Panthers are just a half-game ahead of the Falcons. Atlanta did lose to Carolina though, so they need to get a little help right now to pass them. The good news is, Atlanta finishes the season against Carolina. However, we still want them to lose, so hopefully the Minnesota Vikings can do what they did to Atlanta and steal a win on the road.

Green Bay at Cleveland

While the two games ahead mean more, the Falcons don’t want to take any chances. Aaron Rodgers could be returning next week for the Green Bay Packers, so let’s root for the Cleveland Browns to get their first win of the year. That loss would drop the Pack to 6-7, making it nearly impossible for Green Bay to unseat the Falcons as they would need one more win in that scenario to ensure the Packers can’t pass them up by some A-Rod miracle (again thanks to the head-to-head win).

Dallas at New York

The Dallas Cowboys are in the same boat as the Packers. They also are sitting at 6-6 and lost to Atlanta. While them coming back is highly unlikely, a win by the New York Giants would all but ensure that no miracle happens. With a new head coach in New York, that’s actually possible.

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Detroit at Tampa Bay

Rinse, lather, repeat. The Detroit Lions also lost to Atlanta and sit at 6-6. They need some crazy stuff to happen to have a shot, but one more loss should bury them. It’s hard to root for Tampa Bay though, so maybe the Lions lose a different weekend? Really though, a win by the Buccaneers wouldn’t be the worst thing here.

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