Coming out of a thrilling overtime victory over the Panthers in Week 8, the Falcons found themselves alone in first place in the NFC South, but after their Week 10 loss to Carolina, Atlanta finds themself in a much different position.
A two-game skid has the Falcons sitting at 4-6 and second in the division behind the Buccaneers. While Tampa Bay is just 5-5, the fact that they’ve won two in a row could be a sign that Tom Brady and his bunch have found their footing.
Thursday night’s no-show against the Panthers places a premium on the Falcons’ upcoming stretch of games where stacking wins is paramount, beginning with Sunday’s matchup at home against the 3-7 Chicago Bears.
If the Falcons hope to win their first division crown since 2016, they cannot afford a slip-up over the next three weeks facing Chicago, Washington (4-5) and Pittsburgh (3-6) before heading into the bye week.
Post-bye, a trip to the Big Easy awaits Atlanta with the Falcons needing the even the season series against the Saints after the disappointing loss to open the 2022 season. After traveling to Baltimore and hosting the Cardinals, the Falcons will welcome the Bucs to Mercedes Benz Stadium to end the regular season. For that game to mean something, the Falcons need to do their job over the next few weeks while simultaneously hoping for a few Bucs losses along the way.
Following their bye, Tampa is at Cleveland, home against the Saints, on the road in San Fransisco, home versus the Bengals, at Arizona, and they’ll host Carolina before the finale.
A win over the Bears this Sunday will be no easy feat for Atlanta as Justin Fields is starting to find his groove with 100+ rushing and passing yards in each of his last two games. Meanwhile, the Falcons are sticking with Marcus Mariota despite the calls for rookie Desmond Ridder in recent days.
