Green Bay Packers v. Falcons: 5 Big Questions Heading into Monday Night
By Paul Bretl
Will Julio Jones play?
As I’ve already said, don’t be fooled by their record, this is a potent Falcons’ offense that the Packers will be up against. Through three games, Atlanta is averaging 419 yards of offense, which is the seventh most in the NFL, their 330 passing yards per game is third, and the Falcons’ 30.3 points per game is the sixth-best in football.
Last week against a stout Chicago Bears’ defense that ranks sixth by DVOA, and without Julio Jones, the Falcons posted 26 points along with 371 total yards. Jones would miss the game with a hamstring injury, and whether he will play or not Monday night is unknown at the moment.
Now, I certainly don’t need to go into great detail about what Jones’ presence on the field means for this Falcons’ offense. With Matt Ryan under center and Calvin Ridley – who we will get to shortly – on one side of the field, adding Jones to the mix is going to make life much more difficult than what it will already be for this Green Bay Packers’ secondary.
Could this be a trap game for the Packers?
We’ve all heard about the dreaded trap game before, and when it comes to this matchup between the Green Bay Packers and the Falcons, all of the elements are there.
Green Bay is coming off a big road win in what was their toughest test of the year, they have their bye week after this game, and it could be easy to overlook an 0-3 Falcons team. However, as has already been discussed, this is a very good offense, and without a win, this is also going to be a desperate group coming to Titletown.
If the Packers go about their business during the week and prepare diligently – which there is no reason to think that they won’t – they’ll likely come away with the win. I mean, they are the better team after all. But with several trap game elements in play, I thought this was worth talking about.