CHARGERS: Atlanta Falcons scouting report

By MIKE SULLIVAN - Staff Writer | Tuesday, November 25, 2008 6:09 PM PST ∞

Kickoff: 1:05 p.m. Sunday at Qualcomm Stadium

Series: Atlanta leads 6-1. In the last meeting, on Oct. 17, 2004, the Falcons beat the Chargers 21-20 in Atlanta. The teams have met four times at Qualcomm Stadium, with the Falcons winning all four.

Player to watch: RB Michael Turner

LaDainian Tomlinson's former caddy with the Chargers has taken advantage of his first chance to be an every-down running back and has had one of the best seasons in the NFL. Turner leads the league with 13 touchdowns and ranks third with 1,088 rushing yards. He has exceeded 100 rushing yards five times, including a franchise-record 220 in a game against Detroit. The previous record (202 by Gerald Riggs) had stood for 24 years. Turner's next rushing touchdown will tie the team mark held by Jamal Anderson (14 in 1998), and he also has a chance to become just the fourth Falcons back to rush for 1,500 yards in a season ---- Anderson (1,848 in 1998) holds the team record, followed by Riggs (1,719 in 1985) and William Andrews (1,567 in 1983). Nicknamed "The Burner" during a record-breaking college career at Northern Illinois, Turner was chosen in the fifth round of the 2004 draft by the Chargers and gained 1,257 yards in four seasons with the team. He signed with the Falcons as an unrestricted free agent last March.

Offense

QB Matt Ryan, the third overall choice of this year's draft, doesn't play like a rookie. Ryan has passed for 2,418 yards and 11 touchdowns with only six interceptions in 310 passing attempts. He has completed at least 66.7 percent of his passes in five games. Atlanta has a good change-of-pace back for Turner in Jerious Norwood, who averages 5.4 yards per carry. Norwood has 394 rushing yards and has caught 25 passes. WR Roddy White has 62 receptions and the third-most receiving yards (973) in the NFL, and is on the verge of becoming the first Falcons receiver since Terance Mathis (1998-99) to post consecutive 1,000-yard seasons. White had 83 receptions for 1,202 yards in 2007. WR Michael Jenkins has added 33 receptions for 498 yards. C Todd McClure will start his 108th consecutive game and is the fixture of a line that has allowed just 13 sacks; the fewest Atlanta has allowed in a season is 25 in 1982.

Defense

DE John Abraham has been outstanding, recording 12 of Atlanta's 21 sacks. He's tied for second in the NFL and has the second-most sacks this decade (79 1/2) behind Washington's Jason Taylor (101 1/2). Abraham has forced 30 fumbles in his nine-year career, and 25 of those have come while sacking a quarterback. DT Jonathan Babineaux has recorded seven tackles for losses, tied for fourth most in the NFL. OLB Keith Brooking, a five-time Pro Bowl player, has led the Falcons in tackles in each of the last seven seasons, and his 86 stops this season are tied for the team lead with FS Erik Coleman. An offseason free-agent acquisition, Coleman also has a team-leading three interceptions and has forced two fumbles while teaming with veteran SS Lawyer Milloy (25 career interceptions) in the back end. Rookie MLB Curtis Lofton has been solid with 76 tackles.

Noteworthy

Atlanta first-year head coach Mike Smith is a contender for the NFL coach of the year award. Few remember that he began his coaching career as an assistant at San Diego State (1982-85). ... Former Denver K Jason Elam is 22-of-24 on field goals this season. Elam has 96 points and is looking to top 100 points for the 16th consecutive season. He already holds the record for most consecutive seasons over 100 points. ... Backup TE Justin Peelle played with the Chargers from 2002-05. ... Norwood's 25.3 career kickoff-return average is the second best in Atlanta history behind Darrick Vaughn (25.7).