Falcons-Packers: Will the Falcons' Road Woes Continue?

The Atlanta Falcons will travel to Green Bay to take on the Packers this Sunday at 1:00 PM.

The Falcons come into this game at 2-2. They've beaten the Lions and Chiefs at home but lost to the Buccaneers and Panthers on the road. They will be looking to rebound from last week's loss to the Panthers.

The Packers enter this contest at 2-2 as well. They've beaten the Vikings at home and the Lions away but have fallen to the Cowboys at Lambeau and the Bucs on the road.  They also hope to bounce back from a loss last week to the Bucs.

The Packers' offense is slightly above average, ranking 15th in the NFL.

Quarterback Aaron Rodgers has performed exceedingly well so far, despite all the pressure to succeed levied against him from being Favre's successor. 

He's completed 61.9 percent of his passes for 961 yards and six touchdowns. He's thrown three interceptions, too. But overall, Rodgers is already statistically a top-10 quarterback. He's been a great leader for the Packers' 10th-ranked passing game and good enough to make you forget he's only a first-year starter.

Receiver Greg Jennings, Rodgers' favorite target, is producing at record pace. Through Week Four, he had 25 receptions for 482 yards and two touchdowns. 

Expect Rodgers and Jennings to have big days against a Falcons pass defense that surrendered nearly 300 pass yards and two touchdowns to the Panthers last week. Also look for WR Donald Driver to get in on the action.

Running back Ryan Grant has struggled this season, averaging only 3.4 yards per carry and not being able to find the end zone once. But if there is a time for Grant to get back to his old form, it's this week. 

The Falcons rank 23rd in the league in rush defense. But it's not just that their run defense is bad—it's that it's inconsistent.

They mostly shut the Lions down for a combined 19 carries for 62 yards and a touchdown.

The next week, the Bucs' run offense ripped them apart, collectively gaining 164 yards on 17 carries—a pathetic yards allowed per carry average of 9.65.

In Week Three, the Chiefs ran all over the Falcons, accumulating 166 yards on 32 carries between three different backs.

Last week, Atlanta somewhat tightened up their run defense, but it helped that two of the Panthers' starting offensive tackles, Jordan Gross and Jeff Otah, both got hurt early in the game and didn't return.

In spite of everything, the Falcons still allowed over 100 yards rushing. I expect the Packers to have a field day, offensively.

Green Bay ranks 26th in the league in total defense. More specifically, they rank 26th in rush defense and 15th in pass defense.          

The rush defense is the real problem.

Green Bay averages 5.2 yards allowed per carry. We've seen what Michael Turner can do to a bad run defense—he is clearly capable of rushing for 125 yards and two touchdowns on this GB "D."  But chances are he won't, because the Packers will likely put eight guys in the box to stop the run, due to the Falcons' lack of receiving threats.

The Packers' pass defense won't challenge Atlanta QB Matt Ryan much, much less overwhelm him.  He's a smart field that doesn't force things that aren't there—meaning he will likely negate Green Bay's greatest defensive asset: the ability to pick the ball off (they are tied for the league lead in interceptions with eight).      

Even though they have Turner, an unpredictable back that is just as likely to exploit the Packers' pedestrian run defense as he is to get stopped cold, and Matt Ryan, a smart, accurate QB with a cannon of an arm, the Falcons won't score much in this game, due to a lack of weapons.

Expect the Packers to win this game because they can stop the Falcons' entire offense—Turner and Ryan—by stacking eight guys in the box, and Atlanta certainly won't hold them scoreless.   

This is not a must-win game for either team. But it is more important for the Packers to get a win because they face a tougher schedule for the next month-and-a-half than the Bears, with whom they are tied for first in the NFC North.