An early look at Sunday

Sunday is when the real test comes. Anyone can win at home, right? Even the Falcons. Pardon the sarcasm there, but seriously, Sunday's game against the Tennessee Titans is going to be a big one. The Falcons are obviously coming off their first win of the season and the Titans are coming off a bye week in which the team was able to relax after blazing out to a 2-1 start.

I said in my weekly podcast (you can find that at macon.com/falcons) that a good question would be which scenario is better? Is it better to have that extra week of rest? Or is it better to have some momentum going by coming off a win? Honestly, the matchup of those two questions ends in a push for me. I think both scenarios are equally valuable to teams. The Falcons needed a win and they got it. The Titans needed a rest after facing a very tough start to the season with games against Jacksonville, Indianapolis and a Monday night matchup with New Orleans.

So what's the wild card here? Home-field advantage. Or for the Falcons, a lack of it. Atlanta travels to Tennessee to play in front of a rejuvenated crowd that is optimistic about its team's chances this season. It's going to be incredibly hostile in the Volunteer State and the Falcons are going to have to overcome that for their second win of the season. Winning at home last week was great for the Falcons because it gave them a chance to really show the home crowd what this season could be like if all the necessary parts start coming together. But now is the chance to show a different team in a different stadium in a different state, and that's never easy for any NFL team.

Should the Falcons come out on top this week, it will be nothing short of a giant leap in the right direction. If the Falcons can prove they can win at home and on the road, then, most importantly, they will be proving a lot to themselves.