Philadelphia set their sights on Atlanta this past Saturday when the Falcons beat the Rams in convincing fashion, 26-13. I predicted Atlanta to come out with the W but did not expect it to be that lopsided. Although a large part of the loss was due to terrible special teams play by LA, Atlanta showed that they were a complete team.

What was most impressive in Atlanta’s win over LA was their suffocating defense. They flew all around the field and look just as fast as the NFL’s highest scoring offense. They were able to keep a Rams team that put up almost 30 points a game this season, to a measly 13 points. Although Gurley had over 100 yards and posted an impressive 7.2 yards per carry, the Falcons’ offense applied a lot of pressure that forced Goff to throw the ball 45 times. Traveling to Philadelphia, here are a few things to pay attention to in this edition of Know the Enemy.

When you think of Atlanta, the first thing that should pop into your head is Julio Jones. This is a man among men, a manimal, a freak of nature, a…well you get the point. Although people are pointing to Jones having a down year, he was still able to post 88 receptions with 1,444 yards and 3 touchdowns. If you count that as an off-year, that tells you all you need to know about this receiver. Julio had his way with the Rams’ defense, pulling in nine catches for 94 yards and a game clinching touchdown in the fourth quarter.

The worst part is, Julio has the Eagles’ number. In four career games against Philadelphia, Jones has a staggering 428 receiving yards which is the most he has outside of any NFC South opponent. The last time he played the Eagles was last year where he caught 10 balls for 135 yards. Just to show you how good great Julio is, here are a few more plays he made in big games.

This ridiculous grab in the NFC Championship game against the Niners.

Julio with a game-clinching interception in the playoffs against Seattle.

This ridiculous game ending touchdown grab over arguably the best linebacker in the NFL to hand Carolina their only loss for the 2015 season.

And here are just some bonus circus grabs that are unbelievable:

Jones makes more adjustments on this catch than Jason Garrett at halftime.

Jones showing the Giants that OBJ isn’t the only receiver that can use one hand.

Even with Atlanta trailing huge, the machine won’t stop.

There’s nothing you can do to stop this guy.

No need to fear because we may have a silver lining. The Falcons’ offense have been incredibly inconsistent this year because their old offensive coordinator, Kyle Shanahan, left to be the head coach for San Francisco. Although Atlanta is loaded with talent on offense with Julio, Sanu, Gabriel, Hoopers, Freeman, Coleman, and Matty Ice behind center, it has not translated into much production. The Falcons finished the season averaging 22.1 points per game which is only middle of the pack (15th) which is a huge drop off from 33.8 in their historic season last year. Even in their win over LA this past Saturday, Atlanta settled for 4 field goals, two of which came from inside the red zone.

Matt Ryan has traveled to Lincoln Financial Field four times so far in his career so far and his record is…1-3. In his last trip to the Linc, Ryan was only able to throw for one touchdown and a pick. Although I consider Matt Ryan one of the top quarterbacks in the NFL, it is easy to see that it’s tough to come to Philly and leave with a W.

Now I’m not delusional. I understand that Atlanta has a huge chip on their shoulder after being a walking meme by blowing a 28-3 lead in the Super Bowl. They’re playing pissed off football and out with something to prove, but I don’t want to be the bearer of bad news, but that’s Philadelphia in a nut shell. Even before Carson went down, people continued to doubt this team. Year in and year out, this team gets mocked for never winning a Super Bowl. Although Atlanta is out to prove that their Super Bowl loss is behind them, the Eagles are out to prove that they belong in the playoffs. It’s nice to be considered the underdog because now, we can shock the world.

Now I’m sure all of you are tired of hearing about how this will be a historic game for all the wrong reasons. This is the first time where a number one seed team will be an underdog in the divisional rounds, and you know what? That’s just the way I like it. This is Philadelphia; nothing is handed to us. We don’t expect other people to root for us, heck, I don’t even care if they like us. I’m tired of feeling bad for ourselves with Carson going down. No one is going to give us pity points and let us advance in the playoffs; we have to rally around this team and do what Philly does best: overcome the odds. Lets see Matty Ice make accurate throws with Graham breathing down his neck. Lets see Freeman break out a run with Cox stuffing every imaginable hole. Lets see how this team responds to the media not giving us a chance. My prediction: 24-21 Eagles.

Fly Eagles Fly.

By: Tommy Yu