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Cris Carter reveals how the Falcons can slow down Tom Brady and the Patriots

Published Jan. 31, 2017 6:52 p.m. ET

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Andrew Lynch

This Sunday's Super Bowl LI matchup between the Atlanta Falcons and New England Patriots (6 p.m. ET, FOX and FOX Sports GO) features two of the best offenses in the NFL this season, and most of the attention is on Tom Brady and the pass-happy Patriots. Sure, Matt Ryan's Falcons were actually the better offense this year — and they might be the better team, too. But Atlanta flew under the radar most of the season, while New England is one of the most beloved (and hated) teams in all of professional sports.

So headed into Sunday's championship game, the big question is how the Falcons defense can slow down Brady's Patriots. During Tuesday's Facebook Live broadcast of the Make Me Smarter football podcast, Cris Carter and Nick Wright explained just what Atlanta has to do to keep New England off the field.

https://www.facebook.com/FOXSports1/videos/1125042980954489/

CRIS: There's a couple things that Atlanta can do. From a ball-control standpoint, offensively — forget about Tom Brady right now, they have to win time of possession. That means they have utilized both their running backs, that means they have gotten enough first down, and that means they have not turned the ball over. ...

Now, Atlanta's going to have to create a couple of turnovers for themselves to give their offense a couple possessions. How do they do that? They're going to have to rush the quarterback, specifically Vic Beasley. I haven't heard enough people talk about the guy that leads the NFL in sacks for the 2016 season, and he's partnered up on the other side with a guy who I haven't mentioned who might be in his last football game, and that's Dwight Freeney.

CRIS: Jonathan Babineaux also testified to this last night, that the number of things they have learned from Dwight Freeney has changed their career, and has changed Vic Beasley's career in particular.

 

As Carter points out, we've seen veteran pass rushers play well in their final games in the Super Bowl before. Guys such as as Ray Lewis and Michael Strahan knew they had one last NFL appearance and they left everything out there to help their teams win championships. And when you've been in the league as long as Freeney, you've definitely picked up a few tricks for getting to a quarterback like Tom Brady.

CRIS: And Dwight Freeney, he has the speed move on the outside, but he has that spin move coming back to the inside. Because Tom Brady and New England, what they try to do is  make a pocket and push the outside guys wide. But Freeney, he goes wide and then he spins up under. And that could be the move that could be the game-changer.

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