Vikings at Falcons
THE STORY: With four wins in their past five games, the Atlanta Falcons are in the thick of the NFC playoff race, but they have to take advantage of every chance to pick up a seemingly easy win. The next such chance comes Sunday, as the struggling Minnesota Vikings visit the Georgia Dome – likely without star running Adrian Peterson. Peterson suffered a high ankle sprain in last week's loss to Oakland and was still in a walking boot Wednesday. Coach Leslie Frazier said if Peterson couldn't practice Thursday, he would not play Sunday.
TV: FOX, 1 p.m. ET. LINE: Falcons -9.5, O/U 44
ABOUT THE VIKINGS (2-8): The Vikings have lost two straight since going into their bye on a winning note. They made a furious rally in the fourth quarter of last week's 27-21 home loss to the Raiders but fell short. Rookie QB Christian Ponder threw three interceptions – two near the Oakland goal line. If Peterson can't go, it will put a lot of pressure on Ponder, because the Falcons boast the league’s No. 2 rushing defense (85.4 yards per game).
ABOUT THE FALCONS (6-4): Atlanta stayed within a game of NFC South leader New Orleans with last week's 23-17 win over Tennessee, though the Falcons made things interesting by allowing rookie QB Jake Locker and WR Nate Washington to hook up for two second-half touchdown passes. Like Minnesota, Atlanta also could be without one of its top offensive weapons in rookie WR Julio Jones, who is dealing with the lingering effects of a hamstring injury. Jones was expected to return to practice Thursday to test out the hamstring. He has emerged as one of QB Matt Ryan's favorite targets along with WR Roddy White and TE Tony Gonzalez.
EXTRA POINTS:
1. Ryan is 23-4 at home in his career with 41 touchdown passes and 17 interceptions. The Falcons are 19-0 when he has a rating over 100.
2. Ponder has passed for 190 or more yards in all four of his starts, and he had a career-high 71 rushing yards last week.
3. Falcons RB Michael Turner had 100 rushing yards last week for his fifth 100-yard game of the season. When Turner has 23 or more attempts, his teams are 21-1.