Atlanta Falcons head coach Mike Smith has described the team's first pre-season game against the Cincinnati Bengals as a "true evaluation process".
The NFC South champions, who were the top seeds in their conference last season, face the AFC North team this evening.
Smith told reporters: "Well, it'll be a great time for us to go through a true evaluation process where we are playing the game of football. There's no limitation on the quarterback not being live, so it'll be an opportunity for our guys to go out and play.
"The other things is, they're going to be out there and they're going to be huddling up, there's not going to be coaches standing around the huddle. So it's going to be fun to watch these guys and see how they respond to tough situations."
The Falcons will also face the Baltimore Ravens, Tennessee Titans and Jacksonville Jaguars ahead of the start of the 2013 season.
