STORY LINES: WHO’S AT QUARTERBACK? Frerotte out, Jackson in

At least the Falcons know who they will be facing at quarterback this week.

Last week against Tampa Bay, Jeff Garcia was hurt and Luke McCown was slated to start. But after Brian Griese looked decent at practice on Friday, the Bucs rolled him out to start.

The Vikings will start Tarvaris Jackson, who last week threw four touchdowns. He opened the season as the starter but was replaced by Gus Frerotte.

Frerotte is out with a back injury.

Jackson is more athletic and throws a nice deep ball.

“He’s a young player,” Falcons safety Erik Coleman said. “He had a chance to step back and study. He’s a talented player with a strong arm and makes good decisions. I think he has six touchdowns to one interception.”

SILENCE THAT VIKING HORN

Score, sit ‘em down

The Falcons haven’t gotten off to their trademark fast starts in the past two games.

“We have to score early,” Falcons Pro Bowl receiver Roddy White said. “That’s a loud building and they get into it.”

On the opening drive two weeks ago against New Orleans, the Falcons were on the move and down to the Saints’ 26-yard line before cornerback Jason David intercepted a Matt Ryan pass

Last week against Tampa Bay, they opened the game with a rare three-and-out.

The Falcons are 6-0 when they score on the opening drive. They want to get a lead on the Vikings in order to keep the Metrodome crowd tame and stop them from playing that crazy Viking horn. If the Vikings get rolling, they’ll be hearing that horn in their sleep for the next week.

“Minnesota is an extremely tough environment to play in,” Falcons safety Erik Coleman said.

The closest thing that Ryan has seen to the Metrodome was the game against the Saints in the Superdome, where he bounced back from the interception to throw for a career-high 315 yards.

“It was loud in the Superdome,” Falcons coach Mike Smith said. “I think the Metrodome is as loud or maybe louder. The crowds up there are very passionate, so it’s going to be a big challenge for our offensive group to communicate.”

DID SOMEONE SAY PLAYOFFS!

Postseason possibilities

The Falcons can clinch a playoff spot Sunday under several scenarios. The easiest is to win and have both Dallas and Tampa Bay lose. The Falcons will know the outcome of those games before their 4:15 p.m. kickoff.

Dallas plays Baltimore on Saturday and Tampa Bay faces San Diego at 1 p.m Sunday. Falcons fans root for the AFC teams.

In other games affecting the Falcons’ playoff chances, the Philadelphia vs. Washington game is at the same time. Carolina plays the New York Giants in the Sunday night game. Washington and the Giants are the teams the Falcons fans are rooting for to win.

“I think the focus has been about taking care of our own situation,” Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan. “All we can do at this point is win the games on our schedule. That’s really all that we are focused on this week.”

PETERSON VS. TURNER SHOWDOWN

League’s leaders ready to face off

The league’s top two rushers will be on the field in the Vikings’ Adrian Peterson (1,581 yards) and the Falcons’ Michael Turner (1,421). Both are the key cogs on their offenses.

“I’m sure both of those guys are competitive and want to play ball,” Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan said.

The Falcons contained the run last week against Tampa Bay and held San Diego’s LaDainian Tomlinson to 24 yards on 14 carries on Nov. 30.

Peterson has rushed for more than 100 yards 10 times this season and is coming off a 165-yard effort last week. He was hobbled this week by ankle injury.

“Adrian Peterson is explosive,” Falcons safety Erik Coleman said. “He has tremendous amounts of talent. He can break tackles. He can do it all, pretty much. He can catch the ball out of the backfield. He can shake you up in the open field. He can run you over. He’s a great back.”

Turner has seven 100-yard games and is coming off a 152-yard game against Tampa Bay.

“They’ve got a tough defense,” Turner said. “We just have to be committed to running the football and get some things open.”

STOP THE TURNOVERS

Birds have been lucky

The Falcons have been living dangerously in their past two victories over Tampa Bay and San Diego. They won both games despite losing the turnover battle.

Against Tampa Bay, they had three turnovers (one fumble and two interceptions) to the Buccaneers’ one (an interception). It could have been worse as the Falcons had two other fumbles.

Against San Diego, the Falcons lost three fumbles.

“We’ve been very fortunate to win the two games that we were minus-three in the turnover ratio,” Falcons coach Mike Smith said. “That’s doesn’t happen very often… . On the flip side of it, our guys have handled those adverse situations well.”

MATCHUP

> Favorite: Vikings by 3

> Series record: Minnesota leads 16-9.

> Last meeting: Vikings 24, Falcons 3, Sept. 9, 2007

> Last week: Falcons beat Buccaneers 13-10 in OT; Vikings beat Cardinals 35-14

> Notes: The Falcons have won three of four, but are just 3-4 this season away from the Georgia Dome. … The Falcons have allowed just 14 sacks and only one in the past five games and will face a Vikings defense that is third in NFL with 41 sacks. … The Falcons lead the NFL in explosive plays with 43 runs of at least 12 yards and 62 passes of at least 16 yards. … Atlanta DE John Abraham needs just one sack to break the franchise record (16) set by Joel Williams in 1980. … The Vikings have won four in row and six of seven. … The Vikings need one win or a Chicago loss in the final two weeks to clinch their first division title since 2000 and their first NFC North crown since the NFL realigned in 2002. … The Vikings’ top-ranked run defense will be hindered by loss of Pro Bowl nose tackle Pat Williams (shoulder). Fred Evans will start in his place. … The Vikings are averaging 28.6 points per game over their past eight, third behind Carolina (29.5) and New England (29) in that span. … Minnesota’s Adrian Peterson needs 78 yards rushing to become the fifth player in NFL history to rush for 3,000 yards in his first two seasons.

ON AJC.COM: MONDAY MORNING, GO ONLINE FOR BLOGS, VENTS AND PHOTO GALLERIES.