Week 2 of the 2010 NFL Preseason schedule gets started Thursday with a nationally televised game between the New England Patriots and the Atlanta Falcons at the Georgia Dome (8 pm ET, FOX).
The Falcons as a 1.5-point favorite and the over/under total is at 37 in NFL Lines at online sportsbooks.
New England is 3-2 straight up and against the point spread over the past five meetings with the Falcons, the last of which was Sept. 27 last season when the Patriots beat the Falcons 26-10, cashing as a 4.5-point favorite. The score went under the over/under total of 45.5.
Both teams won their preseason openers, New England beating the Super Bowl champion New Orleans Saints 27-24 last Thursday, and Atlanta doubling the Kansas City Chiefs 20-10 on Friday.
Last season, the Patriots were first in the AFC East division with a 10-6 SU and 8-7-1 ATS record. But New England did nothing in the NFL Playoffs, losing 33-14 loss against the Baltimore Ravens in the Wild Card round.
The Falcons were looking to improve on their 11–5 SU record in 2008, but they ended up just 9-7 SU and 11-5 ATS, 2nd in the NFC South division, and were eliminated from playoff contention in Week 15.
New England ended the regular season with a 34-27 loss against the Houston Texans as a 7.5-point road favorite.
Atlanta closed it season with a 20-10 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, covering the spread as a 2.5-point favorite.
