W2W4: Falcons vs. Ravens

W2W4: Falcons vs. Ravens

By Vaughn McClure | ESPN.com

Here are a few things to watch for as the 2-4 Atlanta Falcons try to break a three-game losing streak against the 4-2 Baltimore Ravens:

Julio Jones, Roddy White, and Levine Toilolo took full responsibility for their drops in last week's loss to the Chicago Bears. Jones is going to be dynamic despite a few hiccups here and there. Toilolo has to take better advantage of his limited opportunities. The bulk of the pressure is on White, who has three drops in 39 targets this season. His 7.7 percent drop percentage is tied for the fourth most in the league among wide receivers. It's no wonder White spent some extra time with quarterback Matt Ryan following Friday's practice, obviously trying to re-establish a rhythm. If White is healthy now, as the injury report would reflect, the Falcons need him to show he has plenty left in the tank. He knows he has let his team down to start the season.

Of course, getting the ball to White, Jones, or Devin Hester will be a tall task if Ryan is pressured in the same manner he was in the last game. The circumstances, with the Chicago Bears holding a lead and being able to focus on getting after Ryan, contributed to the meltdown. Getting off to fast start this week will depend on the Falcons being able to keep the pressure from Terrell Suggs and company off Ryan. Suggs rushes from both sides, meaning both left tackle Jake Matthews and right tackle Gabe Carimi have to be prepared for his speed and power. Suggs no doubt is aware of the ankle issues hampering Matthews' play, so expect Suggs to attack. The Ravens send pressure from all different directions, so the Falcons probably will need their running backs and tight ends to help the tackles. And Peter Konz and Justin Blalock have to be aware of nose tackle Haloti Ngata's pass-rush skills. Ngata knocked Tampa Bay's center and left guard both to the ground rushing on a third-down play last week.

Speaking of pressure, the Falcons defense might have a favorable matchup this week. Really. The Ravens are set to start unproven rookie James Hurst at left tackle again because of an injury to Eugene Monroe. Hurst and second-year right tackle Rick Wagner are nothing special, so Falcons defensive coordinator Mike Nolan has to come with an aggressive game plan that will put stress on both of them, if possible. But we all know the Falcons -- tied for 27th in the league with just six sacks -- have failed miserably with their pressure, although Jonathan Massaquoi showed some tremendous progress the last time out. If the Falcons don't get a decent rush going, it will be another week of the defensive backs trying to cover forever -- this time against Steve Smith and Torrey Smith, who have a combined seven touchdowns. And the defense already will have a tough enough challenge shutting down a surprisingly potent Ray Rice-less rushing attack, led by speedy Justin Forsett and his 6.4 yards per carry.