From ESPN Insider
ESPN Insider says....
This game features two of the league's most explosive players in Falcons QB Michael Vick and Chargers RB LaDainian Tomlinson. It also serves as an important head-to-head match up between the two franchises that swapped their repective draft rights. San Diego could have selected Vick in the 2001 draft, but it traded the top pick to Atlanta for the fifth overall selection, a second-round pick and WR Tim Dwight.
The Chargers used the number 5 pick on Tomlinson and the second round on QB Drew Brees. Although San Diego and the Falcons have endured similar hardships since the 2001 draft, Vick and Tomlinson have both emerged as stars while Brees has recently flashed signs of improvement. Sunday's game will serve as a litmus test between these two upstart teams and reveal which one made the better decision that fateful April day three years ago.
When The Chargers Have The Ball
Rushing : San Diego's offensive line has played beyond expectations at this point and is coming off a strong performance against Jacksonville in which it paved the way for the teams 159 rushing yards. The Chargers' front five is by no means a dominating group, and in some ways it appears better than it actually is because of Tomlinson's ability to make people miss.
That said, it should only improve now that OC Jason Ball is back in the line up. Ball is an upgrade over the inexperienced Nick Hardwick. He will bring a sense of leadership to a group that has been lacking in that area at times and San Diego needs him to make all of the right line calls this week.
Atlanta's defense will try to confuse the Charger offensive line by throwing a number of different looks at it. If there are any breakdowns in the blocking scheme, San Diego won't be able to exploit a Falcons defense that had some problems stopping the run last week. Despite their struggles from last week, the Falcons are currently ranked atop the league in run defense. It should have success slowing Tomlinson if the Charger front five fails to adjust to the Falcons' agressive schemes. In addition, expect the Chargers to give Tomlinson 20-plus carries. Staying committed to the run will limit Atlanta's ability to bring pressure on obvious passing downs.
Passing: With the way Brees is playing and the success the team is having of late, it seems as though the controversy surrounding the QB situation in San Diego has subsided. Brees has looked much more comfortable and has played accordingly, completing 61 % of his passes for 893 yards and 8 touchdowns. His favorite target has been TE Antonio Gates, who is coming off a two- touchdown performance against the Jaguars and leads the team with 31 receptions.
Gates, who also has a good combination of size and speed, benefits from attention Tomlinson and the running game receives. He should continue to play a big role, especially if SS Bryan Scott (concussion) pulls up lame. Scott has been a big part of what the Falcons have done defensively and his ability to match up with a receiving tight end like gates will be sorely missed. With out him in the lineup, Atlanta will have to back off and play its safeties deeper, as SLB doesn't have the speed to run with Gates downfield.
However, Brees' decision making cannot regress and he must avoid turning the ball over if the Chargers are to continue having success throwing the ball. He needs to do a good job of dumping the ball off or throwing it away if the offensive line struggles in pass protection. Atlanta's defense does a great job of mixing things up, so staying alert and recognizing where the pressure is coming from will be critical to Brees' success.
When The Falcons Have The Ball
Rushing: For the first time all season the Falcons failed to get their running game going last week against Detroit, rushing for just 94 yards on 27 carries.Once Detroit stopped Vick from scrambling, an Atlanta weakness was exposed. That flaw was the offensive lines inability to consistently open holes for RB's Warrick Dunn and TJ Duckett. While the front five has been playing better under new coach Alex Gibbs, this group is still far from being a finished product. It hasn't helped that both Vick and Dunn have had problems protecting the football, which has prevented the Falcons from getting in any sort of rhythm on the ground.
The Charger Defense has been stout against the run this year, holding three of its five opponents under the century mark and it will have to have another strong performance against the Falcons. To win this game, San Diego must limit Vick's scrambling abilityand the seams it creates for the other backs. Unlike the rest of the NFL, the Chargers have an added advantage against Vick - defensive coordinator Wade Philips. Philips is formerly of the Falcons and has experience of working against the elusive QB in practice. He may unveil a couple of new wrinkles to help keep him contained.
Passing: While the Falcons lost to Detroit, a couple of positive things showed up on film that may lead to this Atlanta passing attack being much more productive. For starters, Vick completed just 18 of 29 passes for 196 yards, but it is important to note that he did a good job of finding his checkdown receivers throughout that game. He also managed to avoid forcing any throws, with his lone interception the result of an errant throw.
The first step in becoming an effective West Coast passer is making the right decisions, and this type of progress remains hidden from the stat sheet. What offensive coordinator Greg Knapp must be careful about is eliminating Vick's desire to take off and run, as his athletic abilities are what separate him from the rest of the league. To deny him that ability to improvise would be to take away the specific skills that make him so special.
Last week Vick looked hesitant to make plays with his feet, rushing five times for just 29 yards. He was also sacked six times and fumbled twice. For this Atlanta offense to be operating at full capacity, Vick mustmust make better use of his extrordinary athleticism and pressure the Charger defense on the perimeter. As a result look for more bootleg and sprintout packages from the Falcons offense.
Scouts'.com Edge
This game will be decide by two superstars in Tomlinson and Vick. Both teams have been inconsistent on offense and both have defenses that are currently overachieving. As a result scoring opportunities should present themselves throughout this game and the winner will be whichever superstar can overcome the weaknesses of his supporting cast to exploit them.
The Chargers will keep this game close because of the matchup problems Gates creates off of play-action. However, Atlanta should have some success putting Brees in obvious passing situations, allowing them to eventually pull away. With so many questions along San Diego's offensive line, the result should be some poor decisions and a couple of momentum-shifting turnovers from Brees. In the End, Atlanta's defense will put Vick in some better situations than San Diego's defense will for Tomlinson.
