Teams have used the "no respect" mantra since the beginning of sport. It empowers them. Us against the World, nobody believes in us. These are the battle crys that have led to many a championship and the Atlanta Falcons can play that card more than any other team remaining in the playoffs. They are the No. 1 seed and playing at home where they are 20-4 since 2008. They beat the Green Bay Packers just seven weeks ago yet they are merely a 2..5 point favorite. It's widely considered that home teams get three points in Vegas so they are saying the Packers are a better team. It's happened all season for the Falcons but 13 wins later, here they are. How do the experts think they'll do this Saturday?
Source | Winner | Notes |
CBS Sports | Falcons | Only Dave Richard is picking the Packers against the other four experts who like the Falcons. |
Fanhouse | Falcons | Chris Burke: You can expect this to go down to the wire -- but let's give a slight edge to Atlanta, if only because of home-field advantage. Falcons 24, Packers 21 |
What If Sports | Packers | The Packers won over 53 percent of the simulations with an average score of 22-20. |
Sports Illustrated | Packers | Peter King: Packers 24, Falcons 21. This will be a close game throughout, and Atlanta has a huge edge in conditioning, playing at home with 13 days' rest against a team on the road for the second straight week on a short week. I just like the difference Starks can make in the balance between two close teams. |
USA Today | Split | It's a hung jury at USA Today with four experts picking the Falcons and four others picking the Packers. |
Sporting News | Split | It's a 2-2 split though three experts have yet to make their selections. |
Arrowhead Pride | Packers | Joel Thorman: Atlanta is a two point favorite but I'm taking Green Bay and their offense. I think Rodgers outperforms Matt Ryan and Green Bay moves on. |
It's close. It's very close but the experts have given the Falcons an 11 to 10 advantage. Can they still play the "no respect" card? Of course they can. They are the No. 1 seed hosting the No. 6 seed at home and the experts are almost evenly split. This game will likely be overshadowed by the higher-profile AFC games but that works for Atlanta. The experts keep picking against them and they'll keep winning.