The Atlanta Falcons‘ defense has one primary goal enter

ATLANTA (AP) —ing Sunday’s game against Dallas: Slow down Ezekiel Elliott and make Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott try to beat them with his arm.The Falcons will need all their resources to corral Elliott Black Steve Bartkowski Jersey , who leads the NFL with 93 runs of 10 or more yards over the last three years.Atlanta coach Dan Quinn says his defense, which gave up 211 yards rushing in last week’s loss at Cleveland, must maintain gap control against a patient, powerful running back.“He can wait to set up a block and stick his foot in the ground and really explode,” Quinn said. “Oftentimes, you can see him take a handoff and see a read about to happen, then he can change the direction and really explode. I would say the second piece of that is he’s really effective as a pass catcher, too.”Atlanta’s struggling defense should get a boost from the return of middle linebacker Deion Jones, who hasn’t played since breaking his right foot in the season opener. When healthy, Jones is the Falcons’ best defender. He calls the plays, is stout against the run and is fast enough to cover running backs and receivers in coverage.Jones’ injury and season-ending surgeries for starting safeties Keanu Neal and Ricardo Allen have been too much for the Falcons to overcome. They rank third-worst in average yards allowed and fourth-worst in scoring average.Elliott is coming off a dazzling performance — 19 runs and six catches for 187 yards from scrimmage and two touchdowns — in a win at Philadelphia. But the Cowboys had to stay the course early when Elliott had just seven yards through the team’s first two possessions.“Honestly, at the beginning, it was a little bit tough sledding,” Elliott said. “We made some good adjustments. We have to have the same mentality going into this game.”Dallas’ defense faces a tough challenge in matching up against Atlanta quarterback Matt Ryan and star wideout Julio Jones, who has reached 10,000 yards receiving quicker than any player in NFL history.So, there isn’t much wiggle room for either team. Both are 4-5 and trying to stay in the playoff hunt.Here are things to know about the Cowboys-Falcons matchup:THIN D-LINEThe Cowboys started practice this week with five defensive linemen sidelined by injuries: David Irving (ankle) Chris Lindstrom Atlanta Falcons Jersey , Taco Charlton (shoulder), Maliek Collins (knee), Daniel Ross (calf) and Antwaun Woods (concussion).Collins and Woods both played more than 60 percent of the snaps against Philadelphia. If either can’t play against the Falcons, the depth on the interior line will be tested.Dallas might not be able to use Tyrone Crawford outside as much to ease the load on DeMarcus Lawrence and Randy Gregory. Lawrence, who has battled shoulder issues this season and has a history of back trouble, played a season-high 90 percent of the snaps against the Eagles.FIGHTING FOR RESPECTFalcons cornerback Desmond Trufant is enduring his toughest year as a pro with five dropped interceptions, the worst coming on Cincinnati’s game-winning drive in Week 4.Trufant, a first-round pick in 2013, takes the blame for not playing consistently sound fundamentals.“I’m judging myself harder than anybody else can,” he said. “So it is what it is. It’s the league. I’m in the spotlight. I’m earning what I’m earning. It just comes with it. That’s just how it goes. I’m in that position. I’ll just keep working, attack the issues, stay humble. I’ve been here before. I’ll just keep working.”COMPARING PICKSThe Cowboys were high on Calvin Ridley going into the draft, having spent plenty of time with the former Alabama receiver and needing a replacement after releasing Dez Bryant, the franchise’s career leader in touchdown catches, in a cost-cutting move in the offseason. Instead, Dallas went with Boise State linebacker Leighton Vander Esch at No. 19. The Falcons chose Ridley seven picks later.Both teams are pleased.Vander Esch set a rookie franchise record with 19 tackles against the Eagles, according to the coaches’ count. Ridley leads all rookies with 500 yards receiving and has been a strong complement to Julio Jones.LOOKING BETTERPrescott was steady in leading 75-yard drives for touchdowns in the fourth quarter last week 2019 Chris Lindstrom Jersey , each of which answered a TD from the Eagles. It has been an inconsistent season for the 2016 NFL Offensive Rookie the Year as he ranks 33rd in average yards passing, but Dallas coach Jason Garrett says the team ignores outside criticism.“Well, we don’t spend much on that,” Garrett said. “We spend most of our time on ourselves and what we need to do to be better. That’s every one of us. Every coach. Every player. And we love Dak. Dak has done some really great things for our team in the 2 ½ years that he’s been our starting quarterback. He’s continuing to grow as a player.”STAY STRONGRyan needs the threat of play-action, but that’s hard to maintain when the Falcons’ running game starts strong and fades. It’s been a frustrating trend all season.“We just need to stick with it,” he said. “Last week, we just played from behind most of the third and fourth quarter, which makes it difficult to run the football. I thought that we had our opportunities. We did some nice things in the run game last week, so staying in front of the chains and staying ahead and the score is key to keeping our run game rolling.” Courtesy of DeSean Jackson, Ryan Fitzpatrick rocked a pair of sunglasses and a partially zipped warmup jacket revealing a couple of gold chains and a large pendant resting on his chest."It's nothing," the Tampa Bay quarterback said of the garb after throwing four touchdown passes and topping 400 yards for the second straight week, leading the Buccaneers to a 27-21 victory over the reigning Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday."I think we just have to stay humble," Fitzpatrick added, a smile crossing his face. "We've got to make sure we know how to handle success and all those things. We can't change who we are."Filling in for suspended quarterback Jameis Winston, Fitzpatrick completed 27 of 33 passes for 402 yards and has the suddenly explosive Bucs off to a 2-0 start for the first time since 2010.Jackson scored on a 75-yard reception on the first play of the game, giving him three TDs in two games after having three all last season.O.J. Howard also had a 75-yard TD catch in the first half for Tampa Bay, which stunned New Orleans 48-40 on the road in its season opener."I think we just developed a lot of confidence in the offseason and through training camp with how we worked Chris Lindstrom Atlanta Falcons Jersey , and the way things were going, and the rapport with the guys," the 35-year-old Fitzpatrick said. "I think that confidence has carried over into the season."Nick Foles threw for 334 yards for the Eagles (1-1), who rallied from a 20-point, third-quarter deficit.The Super Bowl MVP's 2-yard TD pass to Nelson Agholor on fourth down trimmed Tampa Bay's lead to 27-21 with 2:46 remaining. Fitzpatrick didn't give the Eagles' injury-decimated offense a chance to finish the comeback."We didn't win every single game last year. I think people forget that," Foles said, trying to put the loss in perspective. "There's a lot of expectations for us, but we can't put that kind of pressure on ourselves."Fitzpatrick, a 14-year veteran and one of four players in NFL history to throw TD passes for seven franchises, produced a couple first downs on Tampa Bay's last possession to drain all but 19 seconds off the clock."We had our shots. I just feel like if we had got that ball back one more time, we would have a chance to try to win it," Eagles tackle Jason Peters said. "But we were pinned back there with 20 seconds left and we didn't have a lot of options."Chris Godwin and Mike Evans had TD receptions of 8 and 4 yards, respectively, for the Bucs. Jackson, who had two TD receptions before leaving the season opener with a concussion, finished with four catches for 129 yards.The Eagles opened the season with Foles throwing for just 117 yards in an 18-12 victory over the Atlanta Falcons.They drove 78 yards in 13 plays to pull even with Tampa Bay in the second quarter, only to watch Howard turn a short pass into another long TD by eluding two defenders and turning up the left sideline. Eagles cornerback Ronald Darby was unable to chase down the 6-foot-6 Cheap Chris Lindstrom Jersey , 251-pound tight end.Foles finished 35 of 48 with no interceptions. Corey Clement scored on a 15-yard run in the first half, and Jay Ajayi's 2-yard TD run began Philadelphia's rally from a 27-7 deficit.FITZMAGICFitzpatrick threw for a career-best 417 yards and four TDs in the season opener. He also ran for a touchdown against the Saints, meaning he's thrown for 819 yards and accounted for nine TDs in two weeks. He improved to 4-1 as a starter in two seasons with the Bucs.TOUGH DAYPhiladelphia's defense, coming off sacking Matt Ryan four times and holding the Falcons quarterback to his lowest completion percentage in seven years, was torched for 271 yards passing and three touchdowns in the first half alone.Fletcher Cox and Nigel Bradham had sacks Sunday. The Eagles also forced two turnovers, including a second-half fumble that helped them stay in the game.INJURIESEagles: The Eagles were already without receiver Alshon Jeffery and running back Darren Sproles, and Foles' job got tougher when running back Jay Ajayi (back), receiver Mike Wallace (ankle) and tackle Jason Peters (quad) left in the first half. Ajayi returned at the start of the second half, finishing with 23 yards rushing on seven carries.Buccaneers: With Brent Grimes (groin) missing his second straight game and Vernon Hargreaves III (shoulder) on injured reserve after getting hurt at New Orleans, the Bucs played without both starting cornerbacks. Defensive tackle Beau Allen (foot) and safety Chris Conte (knee) left the game in the second half.FAST STARTThe Bucs, who haven't made the playoffs since 2007, are 2-0 for only the second time in 13 years. They also won their first two on the way to a 10-6 finish under former coach Raheem Morris in 2010.UP NEXTEagles: Host Indianapolis next Sunday.Buccaneers: Pittsburgh at home next Monday night, final game of Winston's suspension.