Falcons at Eagles Game Preview & Pick

I am really surprised that the NFL did not cancel Saturday's Divisional Round playoff game between the No. 6 seed Atlanta Falcons and the No. 1 seed Philadelphia Eagles since just about every so-called football expert with a published opinion has already advanced the Falcons into the NFC Championship Game as a lock to win this game.

Ever since Carson Wentz was lost for the season with a torn ACL and Nick Foles took his place at quarterback, the Eagles were destined to be a 'one and done' team in the postseason even if they were the top seed in the NFC. When you add in the fact that Atlanta had little problem last Saturday on the road knocking the Los Angeles Rams out of the playoffs, it is pretty obvious that Philadelphia is bound to suffer the same fate this Saturday afternoon at Lincoln Financial Field.

I picked the Falcons to beat the Rams, but it was more about Los Angeles not playing up to expectations as opposed to Atlanta being an unbeatable force heading into these playoffs. Last time I looked, the Falcons were 10-6 in regular season with losses to Buffalo and Miami at home early in the year and to Carolina and New Orleans on the road in the second half of their schedule. Atlanta ended the regular season ranked 15th in the NFL in scoring with an average of 22.1 points per game and it was tied for 23rd in turnovers with 12 interceptions and six fumbles.

On the other side of this matchup is an Eagles' defense that was ranked fourth in the NFL in both yards allowed (306.5) and points allowed (18.4). There is no doubt that Atlanta's Matt Ryan is one of the better quarterbacks in the league, but this game could fall squarely on his ability to move the ball down field through the air against a defense that was first in the league at stopping the run.

When it comes to the Eagles' offense, you cannot expect Foles to fully fill the shoes of a quarterback that was on his way to winning league MVP. However, he also has the luxury of handing the ball off to a trio of backs that were part of a ground game that averaged 132.2 rushing yards per game, which was the third-highest total in the league this year.

It is going to take a total team effort from Doug Pederson's squad to prove all those experts wrong, but if I had a team that could run the ball and play shutdown defense while playing in the luxury of one of the most hostile environments in the NFL in mid-January against a dome team, I would like my chances of getting it done.

The link below to SportsBettingStats.com is my complete game preview and official pick for Saturday's NFC Divisional Round tilt.

LINK: ATLANTA FALCONS AT PHILADELPHIA EAGLES FREE NFC PLAYOFF PICK - BETTING ODDS