The Falcons opened as 3-point favorites at SBGGlobal.com Sportsbook with an over under of 34.5.

Kansas City finished just 4-12 straight up and 7-9 against the spread last year in rookie Coach Todd Haley’s debut season but that can be written off to it being a massive transition campaign in year one of the Scott Pioli era. Pioli took over as the Chiefs general manager and cleaned house with a new coaching staff and revamped roster.

Part of the changes in Kansas City came with quarterback Matt Cassel, who arrived with much fanfare after a successful 2008 season in which he almost led the New England Patriots to the playoffs subbing for injured Tom Brady. Cassel also had a rough debut in KC with the thin roster but Charlie Weiss has arrived from Notre Dame to coordinate the offense. Weiss and Cassel share New England ties and Haley wanted to give up control of the offense for a bigger picture view of the team.

Another ex-Patriot from New England, Romeo Crennel, arrives to coordinate the defense. Along with special team’s coordinator Steve Hoffman, the Chiefs have a staff that has a combined 13 Super Bowl appearances.

Haley is “very comfortable” with his new staff that he says is more in sync with him. They will use the preseason games to work out the kinks of their new systems on both sides of the line. KC’s backup quarterbacks Brodie Croyle and Tyler Palko will get plenty of reps in preseason.

The Atlanta Falcons are coming off the first ever back-to-back winning seasons in the history of the franchise, which began in 1966. They were 9-7 straight up and an even better 11-5 against the spread.

The offense is led by quarterback Matt Ryan, who is firmly established as the starter and will see limited preseason action as a result. Chris Redman and John Parker Wilson will take most of the exhibition snaps.

Although he should see limited action in the preseason opener, Atlanta tight end Tony Gonzalez will likely get a series or two against his former team where he was a pro bowl regular and pillar of the franchise.

The big preseason news in Atlanta is the renovated defensive lineup that came with a cost of a whopping $75 million. Coordinator Brian VanGorder will spend exhibition games getting the unit in sync.

“When you get new players, whether it’s through free agency or whether it’s through the draft, there is a process that you go through,” said VanGorder. Number one draft pick Sean Weatherspoon out of Missouri will be a key component of the unit.

It’s not an enviable task but the Vikings should be well rested and despite a sloppy patch in December are still one of the best teams in football. For the Vikings to win they simply need to keep doing what they’ve done all year: loosen up the defense with a steady dose of Adrian Peterson and the running game and then finish them off with Brett Favre and the passing game.

Favre has been a statistical anomaly this season and age 40 put together the best season of his career (4,202 yards, 33 TDs, 7 INTs and a passer rating of 107.1). His experience and numbers in the playoffs speak for themselves and if anyone can score against the stingy Dallas D, it’s Favre.

But Peterson will do the heavy lifting and should provide a healthy antidote to the Cowboy’s pass rush. On defense Jared Allen and his line mates have to make life hell for Romo. Dallas has a tremendous O-line but the Vike’s D-line is the best in the biz and should be able to win this match up. And one other thing: Minny is 8-0 at dome sweet dome this season. Vikes will win this one at home.