With a close win this past weekend over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Atlanta Falcons have taken the division lead in the NFC South with a 4-3 record. With the Buccaneers and Saints behind by only one game, the race for the division championship looks to be hotly contested, as the Carolina Panthers are the only team who is essentially out of the running as they sit at a lowly 0-6 record thus far. It’s been since 2016 since the Falcons have been NFC South division champs; and with expectations rising after a solid start to the season, the team looks to continue on this positive momentum this weekend against head coach Arthur Smith’s former team, the Tennessee Titans. While the Falcons have pleasantly surprised their fans, the Titans look to be continuing in the downward slope that have been in since the end of their dominant 2021 season. Sitting at 2-4 and last place in the AFC South, a win for the Titans here would be crucial in getting their team back on track.

Slated to kick off at 1pm eastern time this Sunday the 29th in Nashville, the Falcons and Titans match up pretty well against each other as they are fairly similar teams in terms of both play calling and personnel. Both teams are extremely run-heavy, with Atlanta utilizing a two-headed rushing attack of rookie standout Bijan Robinson and Tyler Allgeier, giving the Falcons a lightning and thunder presence in the backfield. The Titans utilize dominant running back Derrick Henry in a large portion of their plays, with rookie Tyjae Spears looking impressive in his limited role as a change-of-pace back. Before being the head coach for the Falcons, Arthur Smith was the offensive coordinator for the Titans under head coach Mike Vrabel, and despite his departure from Tennessee being years ago at this point, the Titans offense remains mostly the same as when Smith coached it.

Outside of the running game, both teams possess talented weapons, but struggle to get them the ball consistently, with Kyle Pitts and Drake London for the Falcons and DeAndre Hopkins and Treylon Burks for the Titans. I predict this game to be largely dominated by the running game, but if one team can get themselves moving down the field quickly with the passing game, they could easily find themselves controlling the pace of the game.

Defensively, both teams are very solid this season thus far, with Atlanta and Tennessee ranking out as the 9th and 11th in the league for fewest points allowed per game. Run defense will be the key on the defensive side of the ball, with both teams possessing skilled interior defensive lineman who will without a doubt be focused on shutting down the opposing teams backfield threats. The Falcons sport an accomplished duo of Grady Jarrett and Calais Campbell, who wreak havoc on offensive lines; whereas the Titans have one of the best defensive lineman in the league in Jeffrey Simmons. Whichever team is able to be effective in stuffing the other team’s rushing attempts will gain a monumental advantage due to both teams relying so heavily on that aspect of their game. Atlanta’s secondary has been nothing to scoff at either though, as star safety Jessie Bates III and cornerback A.J. Terrell provide excellent coverage ability over their opponents top weapons. The Titans secondary is largely very young and inexperienced, and although they have plenty of promising young defensive backs who look to have high potential, they are not there yet as a unit, and Atlanta could potentially take advantage of the weaker pass-defense. 

With both the AFC South and NFC South being two of the least competitive divisions in football, this game could have large implications for both teams depending on the outcome, for better or for worse. The Falcons look to continue to ride their momentum and maintain the division lead, and the Titans look to get a key win to boost morale and get their season back on track, whichever team ends up winning this weekend, you can be sure that we will see a lot of old-school, run-heavy football.