To get you ready for week 11, FanHouse is previewing all 16 NFL games. Here is the Atlanta Falcons/Tampa Bay Buccaneers preview.2007 Records:
Atlanta Falcons: 3-6 (4th in NFC South)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 5-4 (1st in NFC South)
Last Week:
Falcons 20, Panthers 13
Buccaneers 17, Cardinals 10
Why We Care: No one in the NFC South is very good, but one thing that does mean is that every division game is an important one. The Panthers' season is circling the drain, the Saints may have taken a big step back with a loss to the Rams last week, and the Falcons are Team Disarray. But when the best team in the division has a 5-4 record, even the 3-6 Falcons still have a slight chance of winning the division, and a win over the Bucs would actually help them get into the thick of the division race.
When the Falcons have the ball: Falcons coach Bobby Petrino wants to start Byron Leftwich, Joey Harrington's back-to-back wins be damned. And after Leftwich worked through his third straight practice on Friday, Petrino might get his wish. Leftwich has a stronger arm than Harrington and the offense has a much better big play potential. Whoever gets the start, they'll be handing off a lot to Warrick Dunn. Dunn has mysteriously gotten a lot more carries than the more explosive Jerious Norwood, but Norwood is banged up so the Falcons have no choice this week. The Bucs should be able to take advantage of a banged-up Falcons offensive line--Todd Weiner will become the Falcons fourth left tackle of the season.
When the Bucs have the ball: Tampa Bay won't feel sorry for the Falcons offensive line injuries--the Bucs running back situation has been just as bad. Cadillac Williams, Mike Alstott and Michael Pittman have all been hurt. Now fourth-stringer and former practice squadder Earnest Graham is banged up just at the time that Pittman is ready to come back. But whoever the Bucs have put back there has managed to move the chains--the Bucs are averaging 4.0 yards a carry. And that running game has been effective enough to keep teams from focusing on shutting down Jeff Garcia, who's going through what must be his fifth career rebirth. The Falcons defense is actually pretty good. Defensive end John Abraham and cornerback DeAngelo Hall are good enough to give the Bucs problems.
The Edge: Atlanta has won two straight, but they're still a team with plenty of problems. Tampa's balanced offense should be enough to outscore Atlanta and end the Falcons' feeble playoff hopes.
