NFL schedule release: 10 best games of 2017
By John Buhler
1. Atlanta Falcons at New England Patriots
Well, what do you know? We do have a Super Bowl LI rematch on the books for 2017, as the New England Patriots will host the Atlanta Falcons in Foxborough. New England overcame a 25-point deficit to rob Atlanta of its first Lombardi Trophy.
It wasn’t the greatest Super Bowl in NFL history, as it was really a tale of two halves. Atlanta crushed New England pre-Lady Gaga, while New England embarrassed Atlanta in the second half. Either way, this will be the talk of the NFL season until they do meet in Foxborough. Let’s hope Atlanta doesn’t crater like the Carolina Panthers did after their bad Super Bowl loss. It’s not like New England will nosedive any time soon.
This game will have the reigning NFL MVP at quarterback in the Falcons’ Matt Ryan. He will have a tall task of having to go into hostile Gillette Stadium and beat the greatest quarterback in NFL history in Tom Brady. New England will bring the pass rush. Can Atlanta protect Ryan or have the necessary running game to help him out?
On the sidelines, we’ll have the evil genius we’ve come to love in Bill Belichick versus the always energized Dan Quinn. Will Belichick outsmart Quinn in the fourth quarter or will Quinn have his Falcons too fired up for New England to contain? This is the best coach in NFL history versus one of the hot, young head coaches in the league playing chess.
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This game will be played in the dark and under the lights. While both teams aren’t guaranteed to meet in Minneapolis for round three this February, these should be two of the better teams in the NFL in 2017. The Super Bowl LI rematch will be must-see television.