Atlanta Falcons Will Beat Out the New Orleans Saints to the NFC South Title

The Atlanta Falcons' come-from-behind victory in the final seconds last Thursday over the Baltimore Ravens told you all you need to know.

Lady Luck is smiling on these Dirty Birds in 2010 and they won't lose more than two games the rest of the way. By season's end they will have knocked the New Orleans Saints off their perch in the NFC South.

It's Matt Ryan's year.

Just like the Gambler, he's made a living out of reading people's faces and knowing what their cards are by the way they hold their eyes.

Ryan knows when to hold 'em and knows when to fold 'em. Knows when to walk away and knows when to run.

He stared down one of the best defenses in football, led by Ray Lewis, with the slyest poker face in the building.

Atlanta has a one-game lead over the Saints with two games remaining against the woeful Carolina Panthers.

Kind of like "Tiger in his prime" with a two-shot lead in the clubhouse at Augusta National.

The Falcons' sternest test besides a December 27th matchup with the Saints is a November 28th game against the Packers. Both contests will be at the Georgia Dome, giving Atlanta a reasonable shot at running the table.

The Saints have games remaining at Dallas (no gimme after the Cowboys' performance on Sunday), at Baltimore on December 19th and at Atlanta on December 27th.

Atlanta's biggest challenges are all at home. The Saints' toughest foes are all road contests.

There is always a chance that the Falcons could turn in some New York Giants-like clunker performances but it's unlikely. Barring the unforeseen, the Falcons will finish 13-3 or 12-4, forcing the Saints to run the table.

Atlanta gained the upper hand in September in a 27-24 win and has never looked back.

The Falcons outplayed the Saints that day in the Superdome but the Saints could have stolen it had Garrett Hartley made a 29-yard field goal in overtime.

Hartley missed and the Saints have been playing catch up ever since.

Losing an NFC game to the lowly Arizona Cardinals did nothing to help their cause.

Tough Odds

Since the wild-card system began in 1970, only nine wild-card teams have advanced all the way to the Super Bowl. Of those, five won the Super Bowl. Only three of those wild-card teams—the New England Patriots, Pittsburgh Steelers and New York Giants—won three games on the road to make it to the Super Bowl. (Source: Pro Football Hall of Fame)

Yeah, the odds are long for a wild-card's determined run-from-behind.

But this is New Orleans—home to the International Shrine of St. Jude, the patron Saint of Hopeless Cases, located not far from Marie Laveau's tomb.

And you just never know what will happen in a city where the Ghosts race toward the light.