The Atlanta Falcons have a golden opportunity this Sunday.
They can end their two-game losing streak while earning a statement win over one of the NFL’s final three unbeaten teams, the San Francisco 49ers.
“That’s why you love this game,” said Falcons running back Bijan Robinson.
“They’re a very good team, and there’s the underdog story and everything. We’re really just focused on ourselves and what we need to do. But these are the games that you love to play for.”
The other two undefeated NFL teams are the Kansas City Chiefs and the Minnesota Vikings, squads that the Falcons will meet in the four games after facing the 49ers.
The Falcons entered the 2026 season with one of the hardest schedules across the league, and the coming weeks are unrelenting.
After a 0-2 start while in quarterback purgatory, the Falcons (2-4) strung together two consecutive wins, but then lost two straight. Atlanta’s last outing was a failed comeback loss to the Chicago Bears, 31-23, last Sunday, Oct. 18.
As for the 49ers (6-0), they defeated the Washington Commanders 23-17 on Oct. 19’s Monday Night Football on Oct. 19 to remain perfect on the season.
San Fran boasts the ninth-best total offense out of the NFL’s 32 teams, with quarterback Brock Purdy leading the way with his pocket presence and opportunistic running. Behind Purdy is one of the league’s top running backs, Christian McCaffrey, the 2025 NFL Comeback Player of the Year.
Their offense is second in total EPA and No. 1 in passing EPA, according to Sumer Sports. However, they're missing several key weapons.
Defensively, the 49ers are fifth in the NFL total defense. Former Falcons head coach Raheem Morris is the defense coordinator. Robinson said he and Morris spoke “a couple of weeks ago.”
Additionally, the Niners have star linebacker Fred Warner, whom Robinson deems “the best in the game.”
“It’s all the little things that are going to require us to win this game,” Robinson said. “This is a great opponent coming in. Just that alone, I’m fired up. I can’t wait. I’m juiced up, I know the other guys are too. It comes with the competitiveness that we have to bring. We have to come in here and make sure we’re on top of what we’re supposed to do to win this game.”
Falcons-49ers kickoff at 1 p.m. on Sunday at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium. FOX will televise the NFL Week 7 matchup.
The teams met a season ago, when San Francisco hosted and won the Sunday Night Football meeting 20-10 last October.
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