Scouting Report: Falcons at Panthers

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. -- Momentum can be the ficklest of football companions. It has a tendency to change masters quickly and without warning.

Given last week's win over the San Francisco 49ers and the state of the NFC South, however, the Falcons (2-6) are looking to keep this most recent spark on a short leash.

Enter the Carolina Panthers (4-4), who are in the middle of a two-game slide, winless at home this season and facing a true quarterback conundrum.

It is with those major story lines the Falcons board the plane for Charlotte, N.C. en route to a second meeting with the Panthers, who won 27-20 at the Georgia Dome in Week 3. Atlanta's keeping focus by doing what the team does best -- concentrating on football.

“We know our defense is going to have to come in and stop the run," Head Coach Bobby Petrino said when asked about the Panthers. "If we have to do two things it’s stop the run and try to slow down Steve Smith because he’s certainly a good a player as there is out there. That’s what our defense is really focusing on.”

The Falcons are also thinking back to this season's first meeting with the Panthers.

“We played them well the first time," defensive end John Abraham said. "We just slipped up at the end and lost the game.”

A win Sunday and the Falcons move into better position in the division, which features a trio of four-loss teams.

“I have been criticized through my career for being too optimistic and too confident in our team," quarterback Joey Harrington said Wednesday. "This team, like I said from the beginning, has all the talent to go win football games. Hopefully all we needed was a spark, a platform, a springboard, something to get us rolling... We’re going to try to use that San Francisco game as just that.”

ON THE GROUND: Petrino -- and his players -- talked at length about the Panthers running game this week. Conversation didn't go far before DeShaun Foster's name came up.

Foster rushed for 122 yards and a touchdown against the Falcons in Week 3 and has had a knack for running well against the Birds. He's an important part of the Panthers offense with 529 rushing yards on the season.

“DeShaun has run the ball effectively against a lot of people," Panthers head coach John Fox said Wednesday. "He’s run the ball well this season. Offensively, I think we’re (11th) in the league in rushing. That’s something that we’ve been consistent with. Fortunately that’s a big reason why we’re 4-4.”

The Falcons are preparing for a heavy dose of the run game.

"We definitely have some new wrinkles that they didn’t see the first time around," safety Lawyer Milloy said. "Just him, as a runner, I think he’s probably having the best year of his career. It’s going to take all 11 guys. You can’t focus on just him. We have to worry about Smith on the outside. We have to worry about the atmosphere and the crowd. We have to be ready to play good, solid football.”

"Solid" football could include a continued emphasis on the Falcons run game. The team rushed for a season-high 155 yards against the 49ers and would love to continue the trend.

“A lot of times you have success when you keep pounding," Harrington said. "It’s almost the theory if you keep beating on the door pretty soon it’s going to fall over. When you keep running the ball, yeah, you may get stuffed once or twice early but after a while you’re going to wear them down and that’s when you’re going to break those big runs. We need to continue to run the ball well to be successful the rest of this year.”

Veteran Warrick Dunn led the team with 100 yards last week and is just 147 yards away from 10,000 for his career. An injury could limit Jerious Norwood, giving Dunn more shots at carries.

Defensively, the Panthers counter with a big defensive line and the play of rookie linebacker Jon Beason, who leads the team in tackles. The unit took a hit last week, however, when veteran leader Dan Morgan was placed on injured reserve.

THROUGH THE AIR: Throwing the ball could be an issue for the Panthers because of an injury-plagued group of quarterbacks. Jake Delhomme is on injured reserve and backup David Carr suffered a concussion last week. The team signed veteran Vinny Testaverde, who led the team to a victory at Arizona but has also been slowed by injury.

That leaves third-string quarterback Matt Moore, who joined the team after training camp, as the team's only completely healthy option.

So, the Panthers could use the running game to mask difficulties under center.

“He’s a good running back," Petrino said of Foster. "They ran the ball well on us in the fourth quarter the last time we played them. I know our guys are fired up for that challenge. They have quarterback issues, so the first thing you do when you have quarterback issues is try to run the ball better.”

The team still has a strength at receiver in Smith. He is on track for another 80-catch season and has proven himself effective deep over the middle or off a quick receiver screen.

When the Panthers do drop back to throw they'll contend with Abraham, who has a history of success. In the last three games against Carolina the Pro Bowler has registered four sacks, two forced fumbles and two passes defensed.

“It’s difficult," Panthers left tackle Travelle Wharton said. "He’s one of the best defensive ends in the league. He’s a fast guy and is quick off the ball. He also plays the run very well, too. For us, it’s really just staying focused the whole game, taking it one play at a time and doing our job to the best of our ability.”

The Falcons must contend with a big-name defensive line led by Julius Peppers but the Panthers haven't been putting up massive numbers in the sack department or putting as much pressure on opposing quarterbacks this season. The team has just seven sacks. Peppers has 1.5.

Atlanta also has recent success through the air against the Panthers. Harrington threw for 361 yards and two touchdowns in Week 3 with a 110.1 rating.

The Panthers secondary is led by safety Deke Cooper's team-high three interceptions. Entering 2007, Cooper had just three interceptions in his five-year career.

SPECIALTIES: Special teams have emerged as a strength for the Falcons in recent weeks as Norwood has moved into the NFL's elite group of kickoff returners and Adam Jennings has turned fair catches into punt returns.

A tough task awaits this weekend, however.

“Our special teams will be challenged," Petrino said earlier in the week. "They’re very good in special teams as we were last week. I really felt like we got better on special teams last week. We got some real nice punt returns, Michael Koenen had some critical punts and kicks in pressure situations. We just need to keep building on that and keep getting our young guys who are contributing on special teams better.”

Reserve fullback Corey McIntyre moved into the lead in special teams tackles (5) after two jarring hits last week against the 49ers. He and others should stay alert for some trickery, however, as the Panthers have been known to insert Smith as a return man.

SHUFFLING THE CARDS: It's been a week for recovery for the Falcons, who could get Pro Bowl tight end Alge Crumpler in the lineup for the first time since Oct. 15. Crumpler has battled knee and ankle injuries this season but practiced this week.

Todd Weiner (knee) also got extensive work on the practice field and is expected to be ready for a second-straight game.

• RELATED:  Falcons-Panthers Injury Report

TALE OF THE TAPE: Some stats to consider as the Falcons pack their bags for a trip to Carolina.

NUMBERS, NOTES AND COLORS: Some integers, factoids and shades to process for the Panthers game...

• The Falcons will wear white jerseys and pants Sunday.
• Atlanta leads the overall series with the Panthers 15-10, but Carolina has won four of the past five games.
• The Panthers are 11-3 all time when cornerback Chris Gamble records and interception.
• The Falcons have had eight double-digit tacklers this season -- Michael Boley (four times), Milloy (three times) and Keith Brooking (once).
• Kicker Morten Andersen needs just four more points to reach 2,500 for his career.
• Charlotte is also known as "The Hornet's Nest," thanks to a quote from occupying general Charles Cornwallis during the American Revolution
• Distance that separates the Georgia Dome and Bank of America Stadium? A short 243 miles. It's the closest NFL stadium to Atlanta, with Nashville's LP Field just further away (248 miles).
• The Falcons have never been shutout by the Panthers. Atlanta has held Carolina scoreless twice.
• The Panthers are 0-3 at home this season.
• Entering this year, Testaverde and Andersen had a combined 46 years NFL experience (596 games). That's enough game time -- excluding overtime -- to play football for 1,490 straight days (more than four years).