The Atlanta Falcons and Miami Dolphins face off on Sunday in a cross-conference NFL showdown at Hard Rock Stadium. When these two teams faced off in 2017, Miami came away with the 20-17 victory.
The Atlanta Falcons come into this game with a 2-3 record overall, and they are coming off a victory against the New York Jets in the last game. The Falcons defense did struggle in the 4th quarter, but they were still able to come away with the seven point victory. The Falcons are averaging 21 points per game while their defense is giving up 29.6 points per game. Matt Ryan has had a good season throwing for 1,332 yards, 10 touchdowns, and three interceptions. Wide receiver Calvin Ridley is dealing with a personal matter and it’s unclear if he’s going to be able to go in this game. Cordarrelle Patterson has had a big season as a running back and out wide. He has rushed for 173 yards and caught 25 passes for 295 yards.
On the other side of this matchup is the Miami Dolphins who sit with a 1-5 record and in their last game they were defeated by three points against the Jaguars. The Dolphins offense is averaging 16.5 points while the defense is giving up 29.5 points per game. The biggest issue with the Dolphins has been a balanced attack on offense. They are averaging only 71.5 yards per game on the ground. Under center for the Dolphins is Tua Tagovailoa and he has thrown for 544 yards, three touchdowns, and two interceptions.
The Falcons are 9-3 against the spread in their last 12 games against teams with a losing record. The Dolphins are 4-1-1 against the spread in their last six games played in Week 7. The under is 5-2 in the Falcons last seven road games. The favorite is 3-1-1 against the spread in the last five meetings.
Tagovailoa isn’t the answer for Miami and the Falcons are going to get another big game from Matt Ryan. Look for the Dolphins to score only 13 or 14 points and that will lead the Falcons getting the job done. Back the Falcons to win this game and cover the spread.
AUTHOR: Shane Mickle
