Atlanta Falcons vs. New York Jets: Prediction, preview, pick to win

ATLANTA FALCONS (3-3) AT NEW YORK JETS (3-4)

KICKOFF: Sunday, 1 p.m. ET, MetLife Stadium. TV: FOX, Sam Rosen, Ronde Barber, Kristina Pink (field reporter).

SERIES HISTORY: 12th regular-season meeting. The Falcons lead the series, 6-5. The Jets won the last meeting 30-28 behind QB Geno Smith's three passing touchdowns on Oct. 7, 2013, at the Georgia Dome.

KEYS TO THE GAME: The biggest test for the Falcons will be how quickly then can forget about last week's spanking administered by the Patriots. They have lost three straight and are last in the league in takeaways -- two interceptions and one fumble recovery -- in six games. And they've got to figure out how to stop the run. Over the past three games, all losses, the Falcons have given up 117, 138 and 162 yards on the ground to drop from ninth in the rankings to 16th. Jets running backs Bilal Powell and Matt Forte are more than capable of grinding out yards and keeping the ball away from the Falcons and their potentially explosive offense guided by QB Matt Ryan.

The Jets' biggest problem this year has been themselves. Even at 3-4, New York is one of the surprising teams, and don't be deceived by that record. If not for an untimely and controversial fumble and a ton of penalties, New York would be right in the thick of things in the AFC East along with New England. The Jets have committed 67 penalties for 546 yards. They are fourth in the league. Only Seattle (70), San Francisco (68) and Kansas City (68) have more. If they don't beat themselves, they are very capable of winning this game at home.

MATCHUPS TO WATCH:

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Falcons TE Austin Hooper vs. Jets SS Jamal Adams. Hooper, who was off to a strong start this season and had seven receptions two weeks ago against Miami, was targeted only once against the Patriots last week. The much-heralded Adams, the sixth pick in the draft out of LSU, is off to a strong rookie season. He has 35 tackles, two sacks and three pass breakups.

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Jets WR Jermaine Kearse vs. Falcons CB Robert Alford. Desmond Trufant is the better of the Falcons' two cornerbacks, so if the Falcons opt to deploy him on deep threat Robby Anderson, the onus falls on Kearse to open up the passing game against Alford, whom Tom Brady picked on Sunday night.

PLAYER SPOTLIGHT: RB Tevin Coleman. Last season, Coleman led all running backs with 2.54 yards per route run and averaged 13.3 routes run per game, according to ProFootballFocus.com. Through four games this year, Coleman averaged the same 13.3 routes per game and increased his efficiency to 3.00 yards per route run. In the past two games, however, Coleman has run just 16 routes and seen only two targets for four yards.

FAST FACTS: Falcons QB Matt Ryan completed 36 of 45 (80 percent) attempts for 319 yards and two touchdowns the last time the two teams met. He has thrown a touchdown pass in 25 consecutive games, the longest active streak. ... RB Devonta Freeman is tied for second in NFL with five rushing touchdowns. Since 2015, he leads NFL in rushing touchdowns with 27 and ranks third in yards from scrimmage yards with 3,699. ... WR Julio Jones had eight catches for 99 yards the last time he faced off against the Jets. Since 2014, he ranks second in NFL with 5,339 receiving yards. ... LB Vic Beasley Jr. had a sack last week and has 18 1/2 sacks since 2016, third most in the NFL. ... Jets QB Josh McCown passed for three touchdowns and one interception, and rushed for one score last week. He threw for 301 yards with two touchdowns the last time he faced the Falcons (11/9/14 with Tampa Bay). ... RB Bilal Powell has 130-plus total yards from scrimmage in three of the past four games at home. ... TE Austin Seferian-Jenkins has caught a touchdown in three straight games and is tied for fifth among tight ends with three scores. ... Second-year LB Darron Lee led team with 11 tackles last week.

PREDICTION: The Falcons have something to prove after last week's shellacking. The Jets have been surprisingly competitive.

OUR PICK: Jets, 30-26.

--Dennis Rudner