Atlanta Falcons defensive line needs to feast against the Vikings
By Matt Siegman
Week one of the NFL schedule is here and the Atlanta Falcons are gearing up to play the Vikings in Minnesota. The Falcons will be tested this game as the Vikings have a talented roster.
One of the keys to Sunday’s game is the Atlanta Falcons defensive line must harass Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins. The Vikings current starting offensive line from left to right Riley Reiff, Pat Elflein, Garrett Bradbury, Josh Kline, and Brian O’Neill.
The Vikings have one of the weaker offensive lines in the NFL and the Falcons need to take advantage.
One player to watch for the Falcons is DE Takkarist McKinley. Takk is poised for a breakout season and could have a strong performance on Sunday going up against Riley Reiff and Brian O’Neill. He has shown flashes his first two seasons in the league and is ready to take that next step.
Vic Beasley is another player to watch for on Sunday as we will see right away if he is in his 2016 form or 2017-2018 form. Before he was injured in 2017, Beasley had a strong performance in the first two games against the Bears and Packers. In those games, he had two sacks and forced a fumble against Aaron Rodgers that resulted in a touchdown after Desmond Trufant picked up the fumble. Beasley could be a player to watch early on this season.
The rest of the interior of the defensive line needs to take advantage of their size and their opponent. Grady Jarrett is the star along the defensive line and should have a field day as he can over match Josh Kline and take advantage of the rookie Bradbury. Tyeler Davison, Jack Crawford, and Adrian Clayborn should also be able to generate plenty of pressure as rotational pieces.
This is a great test for the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday. The Falcons have not beaten the Vikings since the 2011 season. They match up well to the Vikings as they have plenty of offensive weapons to use against a good Vikings defense. The main key to the game is the Falcons defensive line feasting on the Vikings offensive line.
Next. Falcons must prove they can win on the road. dark
Expect a big performance from this defensive line as they will sack Kirk Cousins five times on Sunday.