Friday, Jan. 14, 2011
12:30 p.m.
By Ray Didinger
CSNPhilly.com
The Falcons are the No. 1 seed in the NFC and they have a formidable home field advantage, but the Packers come into this game with momentum and confidence. While the Falcons coasted down the stretch, the Packers played three elimination games to get here. They had to defeat the Giants and Chicago to get into the playoffs then they had to win last Sunday in Philadelphia to advance to the divisional round.
The Falcons defeated the Packers in the Georgia Dome in Week 12, but it was a close game (20-17) decided on a late field goal by Matt Bryant. The Packers are playing better now than they were then. Linebacker Clay Matthews, their defensive catalyst, played on a bad leg in that game and did not register a sack. He is healthy now. Also, the Packers are better because they found a running game in rookie James Sparks who ripped through the Eagles for 123 yards in the wild-card game.
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The best way to slow down the Green Bay offense is to put a heavy rush on quarterback Aaron Rodgers, but the Falcons arent a great pass rushing team (31 sacks). A key matchup is defensive end John Abraham, Atlantas best pass rusher, working against the rookie tackle Brian Bulaga.
Packers 30, Falcons 24