Every week there's a rush of information in the days leading up to game day. Bloggers, TV analysts, reporters, fans … everyone has an opinion, and in the age of hyper-speed new media, everyone's got a chance to share it.
But sometimes it's tough to focus through all the noise.
Here we examine three storylines entering Week 10 that you'll surely hear all about. We present the flipside — the ideas from inside the walls of team headquarters — to suggest what the Atlanta Falcons are thinking of the popular headlines.
What they will say:The Rams, at 4-5, are a young, inexperienced and overachieving team that the 7-2 Falcons should have no problem with.
What we're saying:By now everyone should know Atlanta doesn't take any opponent lightly. They respect every opponent and play each game like it's the Super Bowl. More importantly the Falcons will hear "overachieving" and say they see a little of themselves in the Rams.
What they will say:The Falcons are the best team the Rams have played all season and against them St. Louis will fall back to earth after flirting with first place in the NFC West.
What we're saying:The first thing out of every Falcons player's mouth will be St. Louis is 4-1 at home. At the Edward Jones Dome they've beaten Washington, Seattle and San Diego as well as the Panthers. They'll also point out the Rams' toughness, sharing that they've not lost back-to-back games all season.
What they will say:Against an opportunistic defense like Atlanta's the Rams offense won't have much of a chance. The Falcons defense has faced talented offenses like the Steelers, the Saints, the Eagles, the Bucs and the Ravens.
What we're saying:The defense the Falcons will be talking about is the Rams'. They held the Raiders to 16 points and the league's best offense, the Chargers, to 17. The Rams are ranked sixth in the league in points allowed, are tied for the most sacks and are second in fumbles forced.
The Falcons are taking a defense like that seriously.
