Had the Falcons made one of a thousand different plays in the second half of the Super Bowl they would be sitting here today World Champions. They showed pure dominance throughout the NFC playoffs crushing both the Packers and Seahawks into oblivion, their offense finished first in nearly every category and Matt Ryan cruised to his first MVP. But you would not know it based off Vegas’ and SportLine’s projections for the 2017 regular season.
SportsLine projected both the Packers and Seahawks to have more wins than Atlanta, as well as the Patriots and Steelers. And the same number as the Baltimore Ravens? With a projected 9.5 wins this season.
Vegas also has the Falcons over/under for regular season victories at 9.5.
Keep in mind, last year’s Super Bowl losers, the Carolina Panthers, went from fifteen regular season wins to just six last season.
While it may not be the most disrespectful ranking in Atlanta sports history, the Falcons are a lock to win double digit games this season. They were a year early last year as a team, and most of these guys on both sides of the ball are just entering their primes. Atlanta showed last season they can lose major pieces and still run ramped on the rest of the league.
And heading into 2017, the Falcons roster got even better. Their biggest question marks are on defense, but this defense could be looking at a monumental jump with the additions of Dontari Poe, Takkarist McKinley and the previously injured Desmond Trufant. Dan Quinn is building something special down in Atlanta and the rest of the world, especially out West apparently, is sleeping. The Falcons are one of the safest bets on this list even with a very tough schedule.