Every week before the Falcons game, I'll be selecting one player to keep an especially close eye on. This week, it's defensive end John Abraham.
Tough decision this week, but in the end I had to go with Abe.
An ineffectual pass rush will doom the Falcons today. The Falcons' pass rush has largely been predicated on John Abraham's ability to get to the passer. I'm not saying that the rest of the defense offers no value in this regard, but Abe's been the only one who has been able to consistently close those plays out.
And let's face it, this defensive line needs Abraham. Maybe Lawrence Sidbury will turn out to be the second coming of #55, but he looked largely lost against the Rams. The line needs Abraham to work his voodoo and free things up for Jonathan Babineaux, Peria Jerry, Kroy Biermann and the rest of the band.
Given the questionable tag for this one, Abe's worth watching. If he gets in the game, that's true ten times over. If he manages to put Aaron Rodgers on his back a couple times, or at least put the fear of Football Jesus into him, the Falcons will have a much easier time of it.
I don't know about you, but an easy win sounds great to me.
ENJOY WITH ABSOLUT RESPONSIBILITY®