Early Look at the Detroit Lions 2017 opponents: Atlanta Falcons
By Ash Thompson
After their Super Bowl collapse, the Atlanta Falcons are looking to prove that they are not chokers. Here is a look at the Detroit Lions’ week 3 opponent.
Matt Ryan and Matthew Stafford will always be linked in my mind. Ryan was the first overall pick in 2008, and his first pass in the NFL was a touchdown strike against the Lions. It was the play that really kicked off the 2008 season and set up Lions fans for what was to come. That winless 2008 season was what allowed the Lions to nab Stafford with the 2009 first overall pick and begin the process of getting to the playoffs in Stafford’s third year. Ryan was selected by a good team that had undergone the most bizarre season I can recall. Michael Vick was arrested for dog fighting and their head coach quit in the middle of the season, but their roster was good enough to win their division.
Ryan was selected by a good team that had undergone the most bizarre season I can recall. Michael Vick was arrested for dog fighting and their head coach quit in the middle of the season, but their roster was good enough to win their division. They just lacked leadership of any kind. Enter a new coach, and a first overall quarterback, with the likes of Roddy White, Michael Turner, and Michael Jenkins. Ryan stepped into a solid team and immediately started winning. The Falcons have continually brought in top shelf free agents and spent enormous draft capital to support Ryan.
Stafford, on the other hand, inherited the worst roster that had ever been assembled. He had Calvin Johnson, but no running game and no defense. He was injured in both of his first two seasons. Stafford torched the league in his third year and led a still flawed team to the playoffs. He has had only one thousand yard rusher on the team in his eight-year career. The team has not had a 100-yard rusher in 54 games including playoffs, week 13 of the 2013 season. The two players were thrust into very different situations, and Ryan has been deemed the better player for most of their careers.
In week three of the 2017 season, the Lions will face the Falcons. The two first overall picks, now two of the best quarterbacks in the league, will face off. Here is a look at the Falcons roster, and the matchup with the Lions week three opponent.