The Atlanta Falcons thought they’d turned the page on one of their most frustrating problem spots. Instead, special teams is still dragging them back into the same mess.
Under the previous coaching staff, special teams never really got sorted out, and the expectation was that a new setup would bring cleaner execution. Marquice Williams is gone and “living life in Las Vegas,” but the same headaches keep showing up.
Kevin Stefanski brought in Craig Aukerman as his special teams coordinator, and Aukerman used his own ties to add pieces like kicker Nick Folk and punter Jake Bailey. Folk and Bailey have been good, even if Folk got off to a slow start. That’s not where Atlanta’s latest problem lies.
The trouble showed up in the Falcons’ 31-23 loss to the Chicago Bears, where special teams helped swing the game by 10 points. The biggest damage came in the return game, and it was ugly.
Rookie Zachariah Branch had two fumbles the Bears were able to turn into points, but he wasn’t the only issue. Olamide Zaccheus also hurt Atlanta by failing to call for a fair catch on a punt inside the 10-yard line. He wound up losing a yard on the return, and the bad field position helped lead to a three-and-out for the offense.
Bears recover the muffed punt!
CHIvsATL on FOX/FOX One
Stream on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/Bp13sT3Yo5
- NFL (@NFL) October 18, 2026
Those kinds of plays point to a bigger discipline problem. The Falcons’ breakdowns on special teams are looking more like a coaching issue than a player issue, and that falls on Aukerman and this staff as much as anyone.
Chicago made its special teams chances count, too. Kalif Raymond averaged 18 yards per return on three punt returns, while Atlanta got minus-1 yards combined on three returns between Branch and Zaccheus. That gap mattered, and it showed.
Atlanta knew this area had been a weakness last year, which is why the team tried to address it with better personnel and a new staff. But so far, that hasn’t translated into real improvement. The Falcons asked for more from a more talented unit than Marquice Williams and Raheem Morris had, and that still doesn’t seem to be happening.
The team hired Aukerman and Chase Blackburn, both of whom are described here as two of the worst special teams coaches in the NFL from last season. The talent is there, but the leadership hasn’t done much with it yet, and that leaves the whole operation looking like a coaching problem.
It’s tough to win when special teams keeps putting the offense and defense in bad spots. Craig Aukerman and Chase Blackburn may not be at the point of getting fired, but this group has to turn it around quickly, or the conversation is going to get a lot more uncomfortable.
In Other News...
Falcons Young Core Faces A Brutal Week 7 Measuring Stick
A midseason trip to a contender can be a harsh way to find out where a young roster really stands, and the Falcons are staring at exactly that kind of test in Week 7 of the 2026 season. The matchup is shaping up as a measuring stick for a developing core that is still trying to prove it belongs in the same conversation with the leagues upper tier, even if the projection around this game suggests the task is a steep one.
San Francisco is the kind of opponent that can expose every weak spot, especially when a team is still learning how to handle pressure on both sides of the ball. The 49ers are being treated as the standard in this forecast, and for Atlanta, the bigger question may not be whether it can spring an upset in this spot, but what the Falcons can learn from a game that already looks like one of the toughest on their schedule. [Read more 🡒]
Falcons Offense Has One Frustrating Shift Fans Can't Ignore
After a promising start, the Falcons have suddenly dropped two straight, and the frustration around the offense is starting to feel familiar for a team trying to build something around Michael Penix Jr. Atlantas early success came with a run-first approach that kept the attack balanced and gave the rookie quarterback a steadier rhythm, but the recent slide has invited sharper scrutiny of how the offense is being called and whether it has drifted from what was working.
Tommy Rees is now at the center of that conversation, with his play-calling drawing criticism for moving away from the scheme that helped the Falcons find their footing. The bigger concern for Atlanta is not just that the offense has cooled, but that key pieces are not being used in a way that maximizes what they do best, leaving fans wondering why a unit that looked so efficient not long ago has become so hard to trust. [Read more 🡒]
Falcons Pass Defense May Force A Deadline Move They Can't Dodge
After the loss to the Bears, the Falcons pass defense is looking like the sort of problem that can force a front office into action before the deadline. Atlanta expects help back soon with A.J. Terrell and James Pearce Jr. on the way from injury, but the secondary has still been vulnerable enough to keep the conversation centered on whether more help is needed, and how aggressive the team wants to be in fixing it.
One name worth watching is a corner with a short-term deal in Philadelphia, where the Eagles season has taken a turn and the franchise may be more willing to listen than it was a few weeks ago. For the Falcons, the question is whether the combination of reinforcements already coming back and the urgency created by recent breakdowns is enough to push them into a move they might otherwise try to avoid. [Read more 🡒]