The Atlanta Falcons (3-2) are set to play the New England Patriots (4-2) at 8:30 p.m. Sunday at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass. in a matchup of the Super Bowl LI teams.
Here are five things to know before kickoff:
1. Revenge sought in rematch. Not only did the Patriots take the Falcons Super Bowl ring, but then trolled the entire franchise by putting up the 28-3 partial score on their scoreboard before their ring ceremony. Classless act, but what do you expect from a team who's owner Bob Kraft supported Donald Trump? This is not just another regular season game for the Falcons despite the mis-direction and half-truths they've been telling the media all week.
2. Where to watch and listen to the game. NBC has the game and Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth and Michele Tafoya will call the game.
3. Series record. This is the 14th regular-season meeting. Patriots lead the series 7-6. The Patriots defeated the Falcons in Super Bowl LI in overtime in February. The Patriots trailed 28-3 before storming back to a 34-28 victory. The Patriots have won the last five meetings with the Falcons.
4. Key matchups. For the football purists, the battle between Falcons defensive tackle Grady Jarrett and Patriots right guard Shaq Mason will be fun to watch. Those two battled during their ACC days at Clemson and Georgia Tech, respectively. Jarrett had three sacks over Mason in Super Bowl LI.
5. Plan for stopping Gronkowski. The Falcons need a better plan to stop Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski than the one they used to try to stop Buffalo's Charles Clay, who finished with five catches for 112 yards.
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