New Orleans-Atlanta: Saints Prepare to Face Suddenly-Confident Falcons

Whether it’s the rivalry feeling, the playoff implications, or the familiarity between teams, there’s something different about divisional matchups.

The Saints host the Falcons Sunday in their first divisional battle of 2010. Despite coming off a Super Bowl win last season, many experts predicted a Super Bowl hangover, catapulting the Falcons to the top of the NFC South in 2010.

Regardless of what the experts think, the Saints still stand in their way, and they’re not taking the Falcons lightly.

“No. 1, they played real well last week and they’re playing with a lot of confidence,” head coach Sean Payton said. “Their team speed is noticeable when you watch them on tape. They have a very good offense.

“Defensively, each year they have gotten better and played exceptionally well last weekend. They do a lot of things. They can certainly bring a lot of pressure. They’re a team that likes to blitz and they do a good job of it.”

The Falcons bounced-back from a 15-9 overtime loss in Week 1 to pound the Cardinals at home 41-7 in Week 2. After struggling in almost every facet of the game to open the season, the Falcons suddenly have momentum.

“This is a tough division,” Saints quarterback Drew Brees said. “Anytime you play a divisional opponent, there’s a lot of familiarity there, and you just know that there are always close games. They’re always fighting. You both know each other’s personnel pretty well."

“I think a lot of it is about who can out-execute the other. It’s not about fooling them with trick plays or anything else. It’s just about lining up and being able to play better. They have a good football team and obviously they’ll be ready to play us. It’s a big challenge.”

The Falcons have not won at the Superdome since 2002 and they lead the all-time series 45-37.

With the Buccaneers at 2-0 and hanging around at the top of the division for the time being, this game could have huge NFC South implications as we creep towards midseason.

The 2-0 Saints host the 1-1 Falcons at the Superdome Sunday at 12:00PM CDT.

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