Thursday’s NFL Matchup
NEW ENGLAND (6-4) AT ATLANTA (4-5)
KICKOFF: 8:30 p.m., FOX, NFL Network
BETTING LINE: Patriots by 7, according to FanDuel SportsBook.
AGAINST THE SPREAD: Patriots 6-4, Falcons 4-5.
SERIES RECORD: Patriots lead 9-6.
LAST MEETING: Patriots beat Falcons 23-7 on Oct. 22, 2017, at Foxborough, Mass.
LAST WEEK: Patriots beat Browns 45-7; Falcons lost to Cowboys 43-3.
PLAYERS TO WATCH: Patriots LB Matt Judon has led New England’s’ pass rush this season, getting a team-high 9½ sacks . ... Falcons QB Matt Ryan is coming off the lowest-rated game (21.4) of his career. He completed just 9 of 21 passes for 117 yards and two interceptions in the ugly loss to Dallas.
STATS AND STUFF: The Patriots have won four straight games and five of their last six after a 1-3 start. … With a victory, New England coach Bill Belichick would take sole possession of third place on the regular-season career win list with one team. He is tied at 250 wins with former Dallas coach Tom Landry, trailing George Halas (318 with Chicago) and Don Shula (257 with Miami). . The Patriots are one of two teams, along with Tampa Bay, to score at least 45 points in multiple games. . Rookie QB Mac Jones has completed at least 70% of his passes in six of his first 10 games, the only rookie quarterback to do so. The rookie record is nine such games by Dallas’ Dak Prescott. … The Patriots have scored in the first half in 96 consecutive games (regular season and playoffs), an NFL record. . The Patriots are tied with Dallas for second in the NFL with 14 interceptions, one behind Buffalo. … The Falcons fell behind 36-3 against the Cowboys, the second-largest halftime deficit in franchise history. The largest was a 35-0 deficit to Johnny Unitas and the Baltimore Colts in 1967, the franchise’s second year in the NFL. … The 40-point loss was Atlanta’s worst since a 56-10 rout by the Kansas City Chiefs in 2004. … Atlanta has lost five straight games at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, including an 0-3 mark this year. Since moving into the retractable-roof stadium in 2017, Atlanta is just 14-21 at home. … The Falcons will try to get to .500 for the third time this season. They have not been above .500 since the end of the 2017 season. … K Younghoe Koo has made 15 of 16 field goals and all 17 PATs. … The Falcons have won six of their last seven prime-time games in Atlanta. …
Kyle Pitts has a team-high 606 yards receiving, second most through the first nine games of a season by a rookie tight end in NFL history. … In his first two games against the AFC East opponents, Pitts had 16 receptions for 282 yards and one TD.