Why bother showing up?
The Falcons (5-7) are set to face the Green Bay Packers (9-3) as prohibitive underdogs at historic Lambeau Field with a chance to open up a lead in the NFC South race. Some of the lines in Las Vegas have installed the Packers as 13-point favorites.
By winning, the Falcons can take a game lead over the New Orleans Saints (5-8), who were thrashed by the Carolina Panthers (4-8-1) on Sunday in New Orleans. But no one seems to give the Falcons a puncher’s chance against the Packers.
“We have been the underdogs this whole year,” Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones said. “As long as we play to the best of our abilities we’ll be happy at the end.”
The Falcons have been underdogs six times this season and are 2-4 in those games. They have posted a 3-3 record when favored.
The Falcons are 4-0 against the spread as double-digit dogs and this game is just the third time since 2002 they have received 13 points, according to oddshark.com.
After suffering a rash of injuries early, the Falcons rebounded in the third quarter of the season, posting a 3-1 mark. They are coming off their most impressive win of the season, a 29-18 pasting of the Arizona Cardinals.
But they are huge underdogs because the Packers have been nearly unstoppable at home. The Packers are also coming off a huge victory against the New England Patriots. They are fashionable pick to win the Super Bowl.
Jones is coming off one of his best games in the NFL. He led the Falcons with 10 catches for a career-high 189 yards and a touchdown against the Cardinals.
The Falcons are ticked about the point spread and by comments made to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel by an anonymous NFL personnel official, who questioned their viability as a playoff team.
That sent wide receiver Roddy White into one of his digital rages on twitter.
“Nothing (ticks) me off more than people who don’t like to put (their) name on things. I wonder what his team’s record is,” White tweeted.
Jones seems to concur with White.
“You just have to go out there and show the world how good you are,” he said.
The Falcons appear set to catch a break with the weather. Game-time temperatures could be above freezing.
“The cold is just a mental thing,” Jones said. “They have to be in it, too.”
Jones knows the offense must perform at an optimum level. The Packers average 31.7 points per game. If the game turns into a shootout, the Falcons must do better than the 1 of 5 they registered inside the red zone last week.
“We are an up-tempo team,” Jones said. “We have to start fast and finish strong. Once we do that, we just have to go out there and consistently hit plays. Once we do that, we’ll be fine.”
Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, playing at a high level, has NFL-record streaks of 360 consecutive passes at home and 31 touchdown passes in a row without an interception (his last pick at home came in 2012). The Packers have scored 134 points in their past three games at Lambeau.
The Falcons have concentrated on staying engaged with plays longer as Rodgers is especially dangerous when extending plays with his scrambling.
“He’s really good at that,” defensive end Osi Umenyiora said. “You can’t have the (defensive backs) out there covering for seven or eight seconds with him running around in and outside of the pocket.”
The Falcons have 14 sacks, which ranks 31st in the league. They were elated to get 11 hits on Cardinals quarterback Drew Stanton last week.
The Packers have given up 26 sacks, which ranks 18th in the league.
“At some point, we have to cut it loose and not be afraid to attack,” Umenyiora said. “You have to go in there and be conscious of him escaping, but that can take away from the aggressiveness.”
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