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Jake Matthews has been relatively quiet for a rookie who began the season making mistakes, but that's exactly what you want from him. Several weeks of the Matthews, Blalock, Stone, Asamoah, and Schraeder combination has given stability to Atlanta's offense. Falcons fans rejoice!
The 6th overall pick in the 2014 NFL Draft is someone we don't have to worry about on a weekly basis. As long as he plays, we can assume Matt Ryan's blindside is accounted for. It will have to be on Monday night, as the Green Bay Packers are one of the league's most explosive offenses when playing in front of their home crowd. Atlanta will need to score a good chunk of points to claim victory, and it all starts with Ryan's protection.
Jake will be facing off against his cousin Clay Matthews and a very decorated pass rusher in Julius Peppers. After being moved to Inside LInebacker, Clay might not compete against Jake as much as he would have at OLB, but there's no doubt that when they do, both will be giving it their all. Jake, along with the rest of our 1st place Falcons, will need to play lights-out to bring a "W" back to Atlanta.
How will our Matthews fare against the Green Bay pass rush?