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Atlanta Falcons at San Francisco 49ers Betting Preview

The Atlanta Falcons head to the West Coast Sunday to take on the San Francisco 49ers in a battle of teams heading in different directions.

Playing for pride paid off for the Falcons last week in their matchup with the Carolina Panthers. No longer playing for a playoff spot didn’t stop Matt Ryan and the Falcons offense from pouring it on as they came away with the 40-20 victory. The 49ers are coming off a win against the New Orleans Saints that put them atop the NFC standings, kicking a field goal in the final seconds to take the lead and the win.

Atlanta and its powerful offense will look to keep things rolling against one of the best teams in the NFL. After a tough 17-14 loss in Week 13, the Niners rebounded by putting up 48 on the Saints in a 48-46 victory. San Francisco is favored by 10.5 headed into the matchup, with an over/under of 47.

Too Little, Too Late

The Falcons of old came back to town against the Panthers last week, especially on the offensive side of the ball, however, even before the Panthers, the Atlanta offense averaged a lot of yards per game. The issue has been finishing it off in the end zone and their defense that’s ranked 21st in the league in opponents yards per game. They give up 366 per game, and it goes up to nearly 390 on the road.

The Falcons’ offense ranks seventh in the NFL in total yards, but only 14th in points scored. The defense ranks 26th in points allowed — not a great combination of stats. On the upside, Ryan and Julio Jones are doing their thing, and Calvin Ridley and Austin Hooper have been great compliments to the Julio-led attack. Ridley is averaging the same number of yards per target as Jones with 9.3.

Real Contenders

As the season has rolled along, the Niners’ schedule gotten a bit harder, and with every win, they’ve solidified their place among the league’s best teams. A disappointing but close loss to the 11-2 Ravens a week ago didn’t seem to slow down the Niners at all, as Jimmy Garoppolo came out and had his best game of the season against the Saints. He did exactly what he had to do to beat one of the league’s perennially high-powered offenses.

Garoppolo completed 75 percent of his passes Sunday for 349 yards, four touchdowns, and only one pick. He finished the game with a passer rating of 131.7. The 49ers’ offense ranks fourth in yards and second in points league-wide. They’re supplemented by a defense that ranks second in yards and third in points allowed.
The Niners also come with the league’s No. 1 passing defense to try and slow Ryan down. Unfortunately, it may be without Richard Sherman, who is questionable with a knee injury.

Playing the Numbers

It’s not far-fetched to believe that the Niners will slow the passing attack of the Falcons down and beat them, yet still not cover the wide spread. Ryan has picked apart many great defenses in his time in the league. That being said, Atlanta is one of the league’s worst teams against the spread this season at only 5-8. San Francisco comes into the contest 8-4-1 against the spread. The Niners are 3-2-1 against the spread at Levi’s Stadium, but 5-1 at home straight up. I’m still calling this the exception to the rule. Atlanta keeps this one a shootout and covers the 10.5 points.

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