FalconsSI Staff Predictions are Split on Falcons vs. Bengals in Spain

The Atlanta Falcons are in Madrid, Spain, for an international Week 9 matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday. Atlanta is looking to get back into the win column against a Cincinnati team that has won three consecutive games.

The Bengals present a difficult challenge for Atlanta, particularly on the defensive side of the ball. Joe Burrow leads one of the NFL’s most productive offenses, featuring star wide receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. With injuries beginning to catch up with the Falcons, slowing down Cincinnati’s passing attack could be a major challenge.

Atlanta’s offense will also need to deliver a strong performance against a Bengals defense that has struggled at times this season. Michael Penix Jr. and Bijan Robinson will be important pieces as the Falcons attempt to keep pace with Burrow and company in what could be a high-scoring international matchup.

Here are the Falcons On SI staff’s predictions for Sunday’s Week 9 matchup.

Garrett Chapman (4-4)

The Falcons will have a difficult test on Sunday with the high-flying Bengals offense. They will score plenty of points in this one, and it will be on Michael Penix Jr. to match that production. Working in their favor is the fact that the Bengals are not an elite pressure team, so if they can keep the quarterback clean, then the Falcons could keep up.

Atlanta usually wins one of these games they aren’t supposed to every year, and I think Atlanta can find a way to get to Joe Burrow a few times.

It’ll be a high-scoring game, and the Falcons’ season survives one more week with a 34-30 win.

Prediction: Falcons 34, Bengals 30

Gerald Thomas, III (3-5)

Welcome to another week of the most unpredictable team in football. This game has all the makings of one the Falcons play up for. International game, and the Bengals have been rolling with three-straight wins. This game could make for fireworks.

Cincy is pretty much the middle of the pack defensively, but has one of the top offenses in the league. So the Falcons will have opportunities to put points on the board too. But can their secondary keep up with the likes of Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins? We have to wait and see if they prove it. Expect a high-scoring affair in Madrid, with the Bengals coming out victorious.

Prediction: Bengals 38, Falcons 34

Darius Hayes (3-5)

After picking the Falcons to win each of the last three games, I’m finally going against Atlanta this week. I believed the Falcons had opportunities to pick up wins in two of those matchups, but unfortunately, I was wrong.

Heading into Sunday’s matchup against the Bengals, I think Joe Burrow and Cincinnati’s offense will be too much to handle, especially with Atlanta’s injuries beginning to catch up with them. I expect the Falcons to keep it close, but ultimately, I’m taking the Bengals to win 27-24.

Prediction: Bengals 27, Falcons 24

Jerry Jones, Falcons Podcast (3-5)

As inconsistent as the Falcons are, they’ve consistently shown us that they will beat teams they have no business beating and lose to teams they have no business losing to. That makes this a great week to be playing one of the better teams in the league.

Pattern recognition aside, there are several aspects of this matchup that make me hopeful. The obvious key to this game will be whether the Falcons can stop Joe Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase, and Tee Higgins. But the Falcons have been one of the better pass defenses in the league; they now have a fully healthy secondary, and their best pass rusher is back from suspension, although he is questionable for Sunday.

The offense will need a big bounce-back to pull off the upset. Michael Penix Jr. will try to rebound after his best Desmond Ridder impression last week. But I think the Falcons’ o-line will be just as inspired to have a great showing after getting dominated by the Buccaneers’ d-line last week.

Ultimately, I have the Falcons pulling off the upset behind an inspired run game and some big plays from Jeff Ulbrich and his defense when it matters.

Prediction: Falcons 33, Bengals 30

Scott Kennedy (3-5)

I've said for years that trying to predict what the Atlanta Falcons are going to do is a good way to look like an idiot. General manager Ian Cunningham has helped fix that off the field by dutifully addressing needs in free agency and matching premium positions of need with his top draft picks.

However, all is not fixed in less than a year. The team on the field remains maddeningly inconsistent because of talent and depth problems inherited by Cunningham and head coach Kevin Stefanski.

The Falcons have the same record that I do when trying to predict the outcome of their games: 3-5. In each of their three wins, I've picked them to lose.

So naturally, being an underdog in a foreign country is the type of game that makes the Falcons dangerous for Cincinnati. That said, I'm a creature of logic, and logic tells me the cracks in Atlanta's defense will be too much for the offense to overcome.

Prediction: Bengals 30, Falcons 20

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