Baltimore vs Atlanta – NFL Sports Book

The NFL moves back to Thursday primetime this week so be sure to get your money down at the NFL sports book early for week 10.

This Thursday, the Baltimore Ravens and the Atlanta Falcons meet in a battle between the top team in the AFC and arguably the top team in the NFC. Both teams have strong running games and young quarterbacks on the verge of stardom, this could potentially be a Super Bowl preview.

The NFL sports book odds makers have set the Atlanta Falcons as the -1-point favorites. As the game line is under 2 points, there is no moneyline on the game. The game total is set at 43½ points.

Here is BetOnline.com’s resident Ravens expert Ariana with her NFL Betting take:

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NFL Sports Book Betting Lines
November 12, 2010

Baltimore Ravens +1 -110
Atlanta Falcons -1 -110

Game Total 43½

Location: Georgia Superdome – Atlanta GA
Game Time: 8:20pm
TV: NFL Network

The Falcons and Ravens both sit at 6-2 on the season and at the top of their divisions. Against the spread Atlanta is 4-4 ATS, the Raven’s pushed a game so they sit at 4-3-1 ATS.

The Falcons lost in week one to the Ben Roethlisberger-less Pittsburgh Steelers, then run off four straight wins before dropping their a game to the Eagles. They’ve won both games on either side of their week 8 bye against the Bengals in week 7 and the Bucs in week 9.

Quarterback Matt Ryan and number one receiver Roddy White have put together exceptional numbers this season. Ryan has a QB rating of 90.2 on the season, tossing 1949 yards and 13 TD passes. Roddy White has been on the receiving end of 796 yards and five TD passes from Ryan.

The Falcons running backs of Michael Turner (694) and Jason Snelling (280) have combined for 974 yards this season. The Falcons rank 6th in the league with 136.5 rushing yards a game.

Defensively, the Falcons are strong against the run, they rank sixth, but weak against the pass, 26th. This is bad news for Ravens running back Ray Rice and great news for quarterback Joe Flacco and number one receiver Anquan Bolden.

The Ravens brought in Bolden in the offseason to give Flacco a prime target and it’s worked smashingly. The two have connected 40 times for 546 yards and five touchdowns.

The addition of Bolden has Flacco on pace to set a career high in passing yards. It’s also opened up opportunities for Derek Mason, Todd Heap and despite early season struggles, Ray Rice.

Rice is has gained 842 combined rushing and receiving yards this season. Unfortunately, for fantasy football owners, he’s only found the end zone twice in eight games.

The Ravens offense is solid but when your talk about Baltimore football, you have to talk about the defense.

The Ravens defense welcomed back Ed Reed two games ago and he wasted no time making an impact. He’s made eight tackles, forced a fumble and grabbed three interceptions.

Baltimore’s defense ranks 9th in the league against the pass but they should climb higher with Reed back in the lineup.

This game is going to be a tight battle. The Falcons are undefeated at home and Matt Ryan is 17-1 all time playing in the Georgia Dome but the Ravens have beaten some of the best teams in the league. Baltimore owns victories over the Jets, Patriots and Steelers.

The difference in this game will be Joe Flacco and Anquan Bolden. The Falcons’ secondary is banged up and that should allow the Ravens to be the second home loss on the Matt Ryan’s record.

NFL Sports Book Pick: Baltimore Ravens +1