2017 Atlanta Falcons Schedule Preview (Weeks 14-17)

            Week 14 vs. New Orleans Saints (Dec. 7 / 8:25 ET / NBC/NFLN)

The Falcons end their three-game home stretch at home against their new look division rival New Orleans Saints. The Saints have added a few key pieces during the off-season. After trading Brandin Cooks, New Orleans signed former Panther’s star Ted Ginn Jr. Safety Jairus Byrd is no longer with the team after signing a lucrative six-year, $56-million-dollar deal in 2014.

With over $28-million guaranteed the Saints felt it was time to move on and released Byrd with the lack of production he exhibited. They also signed future Hall of Famer Adrian Peterson who looks to be ready to lead a crowded backfield. It seems that Sean Payton and New Orleans are looking to make a small change and try to be a little more balanced to keep their below average defense off the field. 

This is a scary game for the Falcons despite playing at home, because they will be playing on four days rest. Thursday night games have been widely criticized by NFL players citing safety and the lack of recovery time. Luckily for the Falcons, they will be playing at home against an opponent that they are very familiar with. 

            

Week 15 @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Dec. 18th / 8:30 ET / ESPN)

When the Falcons travel to Tampa to take on an up-and-coming Buccaneers squad they'll know what's at stake. There isn’t much separating the 2016 NFC South Champion Atlanta Falcons and the Tampa Bay Bucs; this was evident in last season’s series that ended with a split.

Tampa Bay will come in with a high-powered offense, accompanied by a very opportunistic secondary that was 2nd in the NFL last season in interceptions (17). The Bucs were a middle-of-the-road offensive team last season based primarily because of injuries at the running back position. If healthy, they have the potential to be one of the NFL’s best offenses.

One glaring concern for Atlanta is that Bucs QB’s threw for over 600 yards and 8 TD’s to just 1 INT last season. The Bucs were whipped on National TV the last time these teams played and will be looking to make a statement early and often.

            Week 16 @ New Orleans Saints (Dec. 24th / 1:00 ET / FOX)

            Atlanta and New Orleans will meet again just a little over two weeks apart from their first matchup of the season, but this time in New Orleans. The Falcons will have to limit big plays and get red zone stops. Drew Brees can throw for 400 yards if he wants, but if Atlanta forces the Saints' offense to settle for field goals they will come out on top.

The Falcons did a very good job of taking care of the ball in last season's matchup. They didn’t turn the ball over once, which is a staunch comparison to 2015 when Atlanta committed 5 turnovers in their week 17 game with New Orleans.

The Saints defense will have to improve this season to even have a chance against the Falcons, regardless of the venue. New Orleans gave up 28.4 points per game in 2016, good enough to put them as the 2nd worst scoring defense in the league. There’s only so much you can expect out of the Saints this season if they’re defense doesn’t step up. Nonetheless this is a heated rivalry and will be a grind.

Week 17 vs Carolina Panthers (Dec. 31st / 1:00 ET / FOX)

            Atlanta will end the season facing division foes in 5 of its last 6 matchups. Depending on who you ask, that can either be a good or bad thing. In my opinion, it’ll be a pivotal time in the season that will truly define this team. Divisional rivals either bring out the best in you or they highlight your weaknesses. This matchup will have the NFC’s representative from the past two Super Bowls as well as the NFL’s last two MVP’s. Expect this to be a very physical and nasty game in which you will have the Panthers fighting for a wild card position in the NFL playoffs.

If Carolina can get better offensive line play, I fully expect Cam Newton to bounce back and have a great year. I’ll go out on a limb to say Matt Ryan and Julio Jones will not be breaking their records that they posted against Carolina in 2016. What I took away from the final matchup between the two in 2016 was the adjustments that Carolina made to it’s secondary.

Although they would go on to lose 33-16 at home, it wasn’t a bad performance by Carolina’s defense. It had more to do with the spotty offensive line play and bad decision making that led to costly turnovers from Cam. With so much expected to be at stake in this regular season finale, this game will go down to the wire.

Michael Thomas: @ChosenOne_MT10