Atlanta Falcons: 3 Bold predictions in Week 12 vs. Raiders
Bold predictions for the Atlanta Falcons in Week 12 against the Raiders.
With a new week of the 2020 NFL season among us on Thanksgiving weekend, the Atlanta Falcons return back home to Atlanta to host an AFC opponent at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
The Falcons get back to action in Week 12 on Sunday afternoon when they welcome in the Las Vegas Raiders to Atlanta for a cross-conference showdown on CBS.
Atlanta enters the game with a record of 3-7 on the year, most recently coming off of a 24-9 loss to the New Orleans Saints in Week 11 of the regular season last Sunday. Prior to that game, the Falcons had won three of their previous four contests before that ended in a defeat to a NFC South opponent.
In that loss in New Orleans, the Falcons stuck with the Saints for the most part in the first half, trailing just 10-9 going into halftime. In the second half, however, New Orleans and quarterback Taysom Hill took over and outscored Atlanta 14-0 over the final two quarters to take the first of two matchups between the divisional opponents this year.
On the other side of the field in Week 12, Atlanta hosts a Las Vegas squad that is 6-4 overall and holds a record of 4-1 on the road thus far in 2020. The Raiders are coming off of a 35-31 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 11 in Las Vegas, ending the Raiders’ three-game winning streak.
In that game, Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs drove down the field late in the game to overtake the lead from Las Vegas and end up taking down the Raiders on their home field.
With both Atlanta and Las Vegas looking to get back on track this weekend, here are three bold predictions that will take place on the side of the Falcons in the contest.
3. Falcons struggle to contain Raiders ground game
The first thing that will occur in the contest will be Atlanta will have a tough time all game with containing the Las Vegas rushing attack and containing the Raiders ground game that is one of the tops in the NFL.
Through 11 weeks, Las Vegas ranks in the top 10 in the league in rushing stats, going into Sunday’s matchup with a total of 1,342 yards on the ground, the seventh-best mark in the NFL. On 308 attempts out of the backfield (sixth-most in the league), the Raiders have averaged 4.4 yards per carry (tied for eighth-best mark) along with 13 touchdowns on the ground (tied for fourth-most in the league).
Las Vegas has been led mainly by running back Josh Jacobs, who has been one of the top running backs in the NFL going into Week 12. Jacobs has recorded 755 rushing yards (fourth-most among running backs) on 199 attempts (third-most in NFL), finding the endzone a total of nine times on the ground so far in 2020, which is tied for the third-most in the league.
On the defensive side of the ball, Atlanta has done a relatively decent job against the run this season, giving up just a total of 1,065 yards (ninth-lowest in NFL) on 243 rush attempts by opposing offenses. The Falcons have allowed opposing teams to record 11 touchdowns on the ground through 10 games, which is tied for the seventh-most in the league.
On Sunday in Week 12, Atlanta will struggle to contain Jacobs and Las Vegas’ ground game, which might result in the Falcons trying to just outscore the Raiders by the end of the contest in a shootout.