Breaking down today's matchup:

Matty Ice

Falcons second-year QB Matt Ryan plays with a level of poise and maturity that belies his

youth. But he's dealing with a painful turf toe that sidelined him for two games. He returned

to the lineup last week and gave a gutsy effort, throwing the winning touchdown pass against

the Jets. Even at less than 100 percent, Ryan can still hurt a defense throwing to a pair of

big-time receivers in WR Roddy White and TE Tony Gonzalez. If the Bills can get in Ryan's

face, he might make some bad decisions and give their ball-hawking secondary a chance to add

to its league-high interception total.

Brohm's time

It looks like QB Brian Brohm will make his NFL debut today. He's as much a big unknown for the

Bills as he is for the Falcons. The Falcons figure to see how Brohm can handle pressure by

coming after him with several blitzes. That's risky because it would leave their young

secondary vulnerable in one-on-one coverage against WRs Lee Evans and Terrell Owens. But Brohm

better have a quick trigger finger because the Bills' offensive line will have some trouble.

LT Jonathan Scott will have his hands full against Falcons pass-rushing DE John Abraham.

Tag team

It took a while, but Bills RBs Fred Jackson and Marshawn Lynch are finally performing like

a solid tandem, complementing each other. Jackson has a shot at his first 1,000-yard season in

the NFL (he's got 811 yards). The Falcons are ranked 20th against the run, allowing 116.5

yards per game, but they have held four of their last five opponents under 100 yards. Look for

the Falcons to put most of their focus on stopping Jackson and Lynch so Brohm has to carry

more of the offense.

Burned out

The Falcons prefer to operate a run-first offense, but when RB Michael Turner went down with a

high ankle sprain against Carolina on Nov. 15, so did the ground attack. Atlanta has failed to

gain more than 100 rushing yards in each of the past five games. Jason Snelling is a big,

physical runner like Turner and Jerious Norwood possesses Turner's breakaway speed. But the

backups haven't combined to equal Turner, who isn't expected to play after reinjuring the

ankle last Sunday. The Bills are coming off one of their best games as far as defending the

run, but are they up for a repeat performance?

What's the motivation

There are a number of Bills fans who think the team should lose the last two games to better

its draft position. But that's not the players' mentality. They aren't going to lie down

because many of them are playing for jobs either here or elsewhere. The Falcons also are

eliminated from the playoffs, but they have something else to rally around. By capturing the

final two games, they will achieve back-to-back winning seasons for the first time in

franchise history. They also want to finish strong at the Georgia Dome, where they are 5-2

this year and 12-3 under coach Mike Smith.

Prediction

Prediction: Not sure if Brohm is up for this yet. Falcons, 17-13.