It appears the Atlanta Falcons will catch a bit of a break on Sunday when they play a road playoff game with the New York Giants.

The projected high for East Rutherford, N.J. that day is a reasonable 45 degrees. However, the above-average temperature doesn’t mean the Falcons are out of the woods when it comes to the weather. The forecast also says there will be a 40-percent chance of rain Sunday.

That’s not good news for a team that plays its home games in the comfort of the Georgia Dome. Recent history has shown the Falcons aren’t a great team when they’re playing outdoors, even when weather doesn’t matter.

They lost early season road games to Chicago and Tampa Bay on days when the weather wasn’t a factor. They also won at Seattle, but only after almost blowing a big lead. They also won a late-season game in Carolina on a day in which the weather was decent.

If the rain is heavy, it obviously could impact Matt Ryan, Julio Jones, Roddy White and Tony Gonzalez in the passing game. It’s probably a good thing coach Mike Smith pulled running back Michael Turner in the second quarter of Sunday’s romp against Tampa Bay.

If the weather is rough, Turner should be rested enough to carry a heavy load.