Atlanta Falcons vs Tampa Bay key matchups to watch for

The Atlanta Falcons look to extend their current win streak to three as well as their current win streak against Tampa, which sits at five.

The Atlanta Falcons are one of the hottest teams in the NFL right now, outscoring their past two opponents 55-12. A loss this weekend for the Atlanta Falcons to the Buccaneers will erase any momentum this team has garnished over the past couple of weeks. Fans will start to question if the changes actually will work in the long run as other teams adjust.

The Falcons defense will have their hands full this coming Sunday. The Bucs will be coming to Atlanta with the league’s fourth-best passing offense.

Running back by committee

This game will likely feature a total of five running backs. Not a single running back featured in this game has broken 100 rushing yards in a game this season. Look to see both teams use multiple running backs for short yardage.

However, both teams have multiple running backs that have the capabilities to bust a long run to open up the passing game.

Only twice has any running back featured in this game rushed 20+ times in a game. Brian Hill in week 10, Peyton Barber in Week 2.

Leagues best passing game

This game will feature two of the league’s best passing offenses. The Atlanta Falcons currently sit third while Tampa Bay is one spot behind in fourth. However, these numbers can be heavily inflated as both teams have been forced to continuously play from behind and lack a solid rushing attack.

Julio Jones and Calvin Ridley both have stats that are comparable to the Bucs standout receivers Mike Evans and the speedy Chris Godwin.

Guarding Mike Evans is never an easy task because he is one of the tallest receivers in the league at 6’5″. The Falcons did an excellent job last season containing Evans to only 164 yards on 10 receptions. Only twice his entire career has he had more than 90 yards against the Atlanta Falcons; the last time was in 2016.

The difference-maker in this game will be the young Falcons receivers. While Evans and Godwin both average more yards per catch the Jones and Ridley, there is a major drop off after these two. Jameis Winston‘s third-best option is backup tight end Cameron Brate. So far, Brate has 224 yards on 25 receptions.

With the Falcons being without standout third, fourth, and fifth receiver, Gage and company will need to step up and fill the void. The Buccaneers possess the league’s worst passing defense, allowing more than 290 yards per game through the air. It should be of no challenge for Gage and Hardy to have a season’s best performance.

The Tampa Bay defense has allowed 29 passing touchdowns,10 more than the Falcons. Also, they only have six interceptions on the season.

Atlanta Falcons defense

Yes, the offense needs to score points to win this game, but how the defense performs will decide if this game will be a shootout or not.

Turnovers are key. Jameis Winston leads the league by a very wide margin in interceptions;  Winston enters Week 12 with 18 interceptions. Winston’s interception percentage (4.4%) is a near-identical to his touchdown percentage (4.7%).

The past five games alone Winston has thrown a total of 13 interceptions. Nine total all year when facing an NFC South opponent.

If the Atlanta Falcons defense can force at least two interceptions, then they can roll to a solid win. On a related note – Winston has thrown two or more interceptions in five games this season.