Week 11 Thursday Night Football Betting Preview: New England Patriots vs. Atlanta Falcons

Week 11 of the NFL season kicks off with a rematch of one of the most memorable Super Bowls in the history of the NFL, as the New England Patriots head to Atlanta to take on the Falcons. The Patriots come into this game red hot, while the Falcons had their worst week of the season a week ago. Here, the Patriots enter as a seven-point favorite as they look to extend their win streak and improve their playoff chances.

New England Patriots

The New England Patriots have won four straight games, including their most recent outing against the Cleveland Browns. New England demolished the Browns, putting a 45-7 hurting on Ohio’s top NFL representative. This week, the Patriots are expected to win big once again, but they will have to avoid letting up after a month of strong performances to move to 6-4 on the season.

From a betting perspective, this could be the tipping point at which the Patriots become overvalued in the market. Laying seven points on the road with a rookie quarterback with short rest is a challenge to cover, even when Bill Belichick is coaching that team. It will be interesting to see if the Patriots finally falter after taking such substantial leaps forward in the last four weeks with Mac Jones as their quarterback.

Atlanta Falcons

The Atlanta Falcons got destroyed by the Dallas Cowboys last week, losing 43-3 on the road to Dak Prescott and a sharp Cowboys offense. That loss dropped the Falcons to 4-5 on the year, with Matt Ryan and company failing to get above .500, which they would have had they beaten Dallas. This week, the Falcons will be put to the test on both sides of the ball against Bill Belichick, with a short week to prepare for a game against one of the best minds in the sport’s history.

For the Falcons, the question going into this game will be how they respond to struggling the way they did against Dallas. A blowout loss can either motivate a team to perform better or send a teetering team off the edge of the proverbial cliff. Which direction the Falcons’ blowout loss to the Cowboys takes them remains to be seen, but neither should be counted out going into this Thursday night matchup.

Keys to the Game

For the Patriots, the biggest key to this game is going to be simply remaining sharp. Against an opponent that is perceived to be inferior, the Patriots will have to remain focused and motivated to pick up a fifth straight win and cover the spread. While one wouldn’t expect a Belichick-coached team to come out flat in a game, stranger things have happened.

On the Falcons side, playing mistake-free football is going to be key, to give themselves a chance to pick up a win in this matchup. Being at home on a Thursday night is typically an advantageous position to be in, as the Dolphins showed last week against the Ravens. But turnovers and penalties can nullify that advantage if the Falcons are not careful.