By Shawn Clarke, NFL Contributing Editor -- (Sports Network) - The Atlanta Falcons will try to regroup from a tough loss when they welcome the struggling Cleveland Browns to the Georgia Dome on Sunday afternoon.

The Falcons dropped to 5-3 on the season after suffering a surprising 30-14 loss to the lowly Detroit Lions at Ford Field. Falcons quarterback Michael Vick didn't enjoy the type of day he had anticipated, throwing for 163 yards with a touchdown, two interceptions and a fumble.

Vick added 80 yards on the ground and Alge Crumpler had four catches for 47 yards and a touchdown, as the Falcons saw their two-game winning streak come to an end and dropped one game behind New Orleans for the top spot in the NFC South standings.

Cleveland has lost three of its last four games, and second-year head coach Romeo Crennel is already feeling the heat. The Browns were beaten 32-25 last Sunday against San Diego, and had no answer for Chargers running back LaDainian Tomlinson, who rushed for 172 yards with three second-half touchdowns.

Browns quarterback Charlie Frye (questionable for this week with a thumb and back injury) ended 25-of-43 for 236 yards with a TD and an interception, while Braylon Edwards had six catches for 61 yards with a score. Even on their best offensive day of the season, the Browns couldn't reach the win column.

Cleveland fell to 2-6 this season, and is tied for last place in the AFC North division with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

SERIES HISTORY

Cleveland holds a 9-2 edge in its all-time series with Atlanta, including a 24-16 home victory when the teams last met, in 2002. The Falcons won the previous matchup, taking a 17-14 home decision in 2003. The Browns are 4-1 all-time in Atlanta, with their most recent win there coming in 1984.

The Browns' Crennel and Falcons' Jim Mora have never met one another, nor each other's respective team, as head coaches.

BROWNS OFFENSE VS. FALCONS DEFENSE

Frye (1,565 yards, 8 TDs, 12 INTs) is having a rough season for the Browns, but Crennel is giving the second-year-pro every chance to prove he is a worthy No. 1 signal-caller. Frye is 29th in the NFL with a 69.2 passer rating, and needs to work on reading defenses and finding receivers with touch instead of forcing his passes into tight spots. In Sunday's loss to the Chargers, Frye eclipsed the 200-yard passing mark for the first time since Week 3. His receiving corps is as good as it's going to get, with tight end Kellen Winslow (51 catches, 471 yards, 3 TDs), and wideouts Braylon Edwards (30 catches, 439 yards, 2 TDs), Joe Jurevicius (13 catches, 166 yards, 2 TDs) and Dennis Northcutt (14 catches, 115 yards) all posing as fine targets. Winslow hauled in 11 passes for 78 yards against San Diego, and Edwards contributed six catches for 61 yards and a touchdown. Frye would have had a better game if it hadn't been sacked five times. He has been sacked 29 times this season, and is on pace for 58, which would top Tim Couch's record of 56 set in 1999. The offensive line may receive a boost this week as right tackle Ryan Tucker is expected to re-join the team. Tucker has been out since Week 7 against Denver with an undisclosed illness.

Aiming to give Tucker a rough first game back will be Falcons defensive ends Patrick Kerney, Paul Carrington and Chauncey Davis. Kerney (14 tackles, 5 sacks) is tied for the team record for career sacks (58 1/2) with former great Chuck Smith, and has also has started in 104 straight games. Davis has been filling in for injured star end John Abraham, who had surgery to repair a torn abdominal muscle. Abraham has been jogging and attending team meetings, but is not expected to practice for another few weeks. Opposing QBs have had too much time in the pocket picking apart the Atlanta defensive backfield, and in a move to add depth and veteran experience, the Falcons signed free agent safety Lance Schulters and placed S Kevin Mathis on injured reserve with a neck problem earlier this week. Mathis fractured his neck on the opening kickoff of last week's game. Rookie Jimmy Williams (5 tackles) will be used on passing downs, as will veteran Allen Rossum (3 tackles). Starting cornerback Jason Webster (51 tackles, 2 INTs) is questionable with a groin injury. Star defensive back DeAngelo Hall (26 tackles, 4 INTs) is one of the top corners in the league and responsible for covering the best wideout each week, in this case probably Braylon Edwards. Safeties Lawyer Milloy (54 tackles, sack) and Chris Crocker (26 tackles, sack) provide the big hits in Atlanta's last line of defense.

Cleveland has the 31st-ranked running attack in the NFL this season and all fingers point to a disheveled offensive line and a mediocre back in Reuben Droughns. Droughns (132 carries, 418 yards, 2 TDs) has eclipsed the 100-yard rushing mark just twice this season, and was held to 36 yards on 19 touches in Sunday's loss to San Diego. His best performance of the season came in Week 8 against the New York Jets, when he recorded 125 yards and a touchdown on 33 carries. Droughns has 100-plus yards rushing in five of his past eight November games, averaging 104.4 yards in those games. The Browns are 4-1 when he rushes for 100 yards or more. Backup running backs Jerome Harrison (12 carries, 39 yards) and Jason Wright (7 catches, 18 yards) rarely see the field, and probably won't appear much against the Atlanta defense, which is No. 12 against the rush so far this season.

Falcons defensive tackles Rod Coleman (6 tackles, 2 sacks), Grady Jackson (15 tackles) and Jonathan Babineaux (11 tackles, sack, INT) are the main run- stuffers up front. Coleman had 1 1/2 sacks in his last game against the Browns, and owns 40 1/2 sacks since 2002, the most at his position during that stretch. Jackson is questionable with a knee injury. The Falcons have trouble against the top backs in the league and let Tiki Barber and Kevin Jones have solid games in matchups with the Giants and Lions, respectively. Linebacker Edgerton Hartwell (6 tackles) has only played in two games this season due to knee problems and missed last Sunday's loss to the Lions, but the ex-Raven owns 51 stops in six career games against Cleveland. Outside linebacker Keith Brooking figures to be a Pro Bowl selection this season, and leads the team with 56 tackles. Fellow OLB Michael Boley (40 tackles, sack) has 16 tackles over his last four games.

FALCONS OFFENSE VS. BROWNS DEFENSE

Falcons quarterback Michael Vick can damage defenses with both his arm and legs, and is doing both this season. Vick (1,362 yards, 11 TDs, 7 INTs) didn't have a good showing against the lowly Lions on Sunday, however, and was picked off twice on a day that he also amassed 80 yards on 10 scrambles. Often criticized for his passing skills, Vick has thrown for 686 yards and eight touchdowns over his last three games. In a big Week 7 win over Pittsburgh, he passed for 232 yards and four TDs. In the running game, Vick has 576 yards and two scores on 70 carries this season, and is second in the NFL with 26 rushes of 10 yards or more. The elusive lefty has won his past seven starts against AFC foes with 12 TD passes and two rushing scores, and has never lost at home in interconference action (7-0). Tight end Alge Crumpler, who is questionable with an ankle injury, leads NFL TE's with nine catches of 20 or more yards. Crumpler (430 yards, 6 TDs) has five touchdown grabs in his last three games, including three against the Steelers. Vick's top wide receivers are Ashley Lelie and Michael Jenkins. Lelie (17 catches, 298 yards) is questionable with a groin problem, while Jenkins (21 catches, 276 yards, 3 TDs) is healthy, but hasn't caught more than three passes in a game this season for the 30th-ranked passing offense in the NFL. Atlanta's offensive line has been excellent this season and is a major factor in the league's top rushing attack. Starting right guard Kynan Forney is out for the season with a right shoulder problem, however, and left guard Matt Lehr is still serving an NFL suspension due to steroids.

Browns defensive tackle Orpheus Roye (21 tackles, sack) has missed the last two games with a hamstring injury and is questionable against Atlanta. If he plays, Roye's hamstring better be 100 percent, with Vick running all over the field. Also responsible for chasing down Vick and the Falcons in the 3-4 defense will be defensive ends Alvin McKinley (24 tackles, sack) and Simon Fraser (11 tackles, 3 sacks). A banged up Browns' secondary will also be busy. Starting cornerback Leigh Bodden (18 tackles, INT) is doubtful with an ankle injury, and fellow starter Daven Holly (28 tackles) is expected to miss his second straight game with an illness. Safeties Sean Jones (48 tackles, 4 INT) and Brian Russell (34 tackles) are healthy and ready to help the sixth-ranked passing defense in the NFL.

The Falcons sport the best running game in the NFL, with Vick and Warrick Dunn running the show. Dunn and Vick are the only tandem in the NFL to rank in the top 20 in rushing. The Falcons lead the league with 205.1 rushing yards per contest, and can become just the third team in NFL history with 3,000 or more yards in a season. Dunn (688 yards, 3 TDs) ran for 51 yards and a score on 11 carries in a loss to Detroit, but is tied for the NFL lead with six runs of 20 yards or more. The multi-purpose back also has 652 rushing yards in his last seven games against AFC teams. Meanwhile, promising rookie running back Jerious Norwood underwent surgery after spraining his knee against the Lions. Atlanta has since activated back Marlion Jackson from the practice squad. Reserve back Fred McCrary is questionable with a knee injury.

Cleveland has problems against the run, as evidenced by its rank of 29th in the NFL in that category. Tackles Ted Washington (24 tackles) and Ethan Kelly (13 tackles) have each experienced shaky seasons, and must be ready for Vick and the top-ranked Atlanta rushing offense. The linebackers, especially Andra Davis and D'Qwell Jackson, had trouble tackling last week against San Diego and saw LaDainian Tomlinson have another career day. Davis (52 tackles, sack, 2 INTs) and Jackson (52) are the top tacklers on the Browns, and outside man Kamerion Wimbley (29 tackles) leads the club with 4 1/2 sacks. Veteran linebacker and Crennel favorite Willie McGinest missed the game against San Diego last week because of an ankle injury, and is questionable for the Falcons. Surprisingly, Vick has been sacked 23 times this season, including 12 times over the past four games.

OVERALL ANALYSIS

To put it plainly, Michael Vick will be far too much for the Cleveland Browns to handle on Sunday. With Vick's ability to hurt defenses with his legs, and the emergence of a much-improved passing game, a depleted Cleveland defense will find it difficult to keep pace, especially on the fast surface of the Georgia Dome. On the other side of the ball, and injury-riddled Frye will be harassed into some mistakes, and the Falcons will notch their sixth win to at least keep pace with New Orleans in the NFC South.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Falcons 24, Browns 13