The play of Falcons cornerback Desmond Trufant has been a very bright spot on a mostly dark and gray canvass that the Atlanta defense has painted this season.
The second-year cornerback, who has stepped up to some key challenges, will face another on Sunday when the Falcons ask him to spend some time in man-to-man coverage with Pittsburgh’s wide receiver Antonio Brown, who leads the league in receptions (105).
“Antonio Brown is definitely one of the best in the league,” Trufant said.
The Falcons have used Trufant in one-on-one coverage against Baltimore’s Steve Smith, Carolina’s Kelvin Benjamin, Cleveland’s Josh Gordon and Green Bay’s Jordy Nelson. With the 32nd ranked defense in the league, the Falcons have to play a lot of zone coverage, but when they go to man-to-man, Trufant has drawn the opposition’s top target.
While the Falcons feel good about the Trufant-Brown matchup, the Steelers also present problems with quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and running back Le’Veon Bell. If the Falcons are going to take a major step toward securing the NFC South title and playoff berth, the defense’s play must improve the last three games.
“The offense did their part,” Trufant said. “The special teams did their part. We have to do our part. That’s the only way we are going to get to where we want to get.”
It’s almost against human nature to discuss making the playoffs when your team is 5-8.
“We are lucky and blessed to be in the position that we are and still have a chance for the playoffs,” Trufant said. “We have to take advantage of it.”
If Pittsburgh presents a different challenge, Trufant plans to be ready for his role.
“I’m always confident,” Trufant said. “Definitely, with more experience you get more comfortable. I’m always going to be confident out there. I’m just trying to focus on the little details of the game and just let the plays come to me.”
Roethlisberger, who is the fourth-rated quarterback in the league by analytics website profootballfocus.com, presents special problems for the Falcons, who allow 287.8 passing yards per game.
“We know they are very talented,” defensive tackle Corey Peters said. “We know they have a very good quarterback, a quarterback who’s been playing at a high level for a long time. He’s a Super Bowl-caliber quarterback.”
Falcons coach Mike Smith sees similarities between Roethlisberger and Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers, the league’s top-rated quarterback who just put up 43 points and 502 yards on the Falcons on Monday. While Rodgers extends plays by running, Roethlisberger escapes with brute strength.
“He’s a guy that’s very strong,” Smith said. “He doesn’t move like Aaron, but he’s much stouter and tougher to get on the ground.”
Then there is the matter of second-year running back Bell, who is having a Pro Bowl-type year.
“He’s a very, very good back and the offensive line in formidable,” Peters said. “We’re definitely going to have to bring the energy and try to get some good things done.”
Bell has rushed for 1,231 yards, but what makes him more difficult to defend is that he has caught 71 passes for another 693 yards. That accounts for 1,924 yards on 313 touches from scrimmage.
“He’s a workhorse, no doubt,” Smith said.
The Steelers will likely try to use Bell on the same stretch runs to the outside that have been successful against the Falcons all season.
“We have to do a good job of setting the edge to that side and then take care of the cut-back lanes,” Peters said. “A lot of times they get the whole defense running and then they cut back. On the backside of those runs, we have to be alert for that and make sure that we hold the line and be able to make plays when that happens.”
In the passing game, Bell is a unique force at 6 feet 1 and 244 pounds.
“You must have a plan for when they split him out,” Smith said. “You want to make sure that you have the most advantageous match because he is a very good receiver.”
The Steelers like to split him out in various places.
“When they do that, there are multiple guys who are going to have an opportunity to cover him when we play man coverage,” Smith said.
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