The Falcons are 2-4, the schedule is brutal, and the path out of this hole is not exactly lined with soft landings. Atlanta has already taken on the Ravens and Bears, and now the unbeaten 49ers are next. Three of the next five opponents are undefeated, and the trip to Madrid to face Joe Burrow and the Bengals only adds to the grind.
And that’s before the Falcons even get to Detroit and then a road date with the 4-2 Browns, where Kevin Stefanski returns to face his former team in what’s described as a highly emotional game. After that stretch, getting back into playoff position would be an uphill battle bordering on impossible.
Still, the record doesn’t tell the whole story.
The first two weeks with Cooper Rush should almost be erased from the equation. Those games did not give Atlanta a real chance to win. Since Michael Penix Jr. stepped back in, the Falcons are 2-2, with road wins over the Packers and Saints by more than 21 points and narrow losses to the Ravens and Bears.
Penix hasn’t been perfect, and the flaws are easy to spot. When he has a clean pocket, he can look like one of the best quarterbacks in the league.
When pressure gets home, he hasn’t separated himself from Cooper Rush. The Ravens game especially stands out as one that got away.
But this is still his first four games back from a torn ACL, and he’s doing it in a completely new offense. The development is real. Penix is 13th in QBR and has thrown six touchdowns against just one interception, which is a strong step forward for a player who still doesn’t have a full season’s worth of starts.
There’s also a reason to believe in what Atlanta is building up front on defense. Losing Jalon Walker before the season and dealing with James Pearce Jr.’s eight-game suspension raised alarms about the defensive line, with plenty of people expecting the group to slide back into its old problems.
Instead, the offseason additions have paid off in a major way. Gervon Dexter Sr. and Brandon Dorlus have emerged quickly as one of the best defensive tackle pairings in football, and Maason Smith has given the Falcons another promising interior piece.
Brandon Dorlus and Gervon Dexter Sr. have both been among the top pressure producers at the position this season, and Atlanta’s numbers back up the eye test. The Falcons rank fifth in pass-rush win rate and second in run-stuff win rate.
That doesn’t mean the defense is finished. There are still holes to plug. But with money to spend in the offseason and a young core already in place, Atlanta has at least given itself something real to work with on that side of the ball.
In Other News...
Falcons Face A Familiar Problem In Raheem Morris Atlanta Return
Raheem Morris is heading back to Atlanta with a very different badge than the one he wore before. After two seasons as the Falcons' head coach, he was let go in January and quickly landed in San Francisco as the 49ers' defensive coordinator, where he has helped shape a defense that has been one of the league's better units by EPA per play. Now the Falcons get to see up close how much of Morris' touch still lingers, only this time from across the sideline.
For Atlanta, the matchup adds an extra layer to an already important week because Morris is not just another familiar face. He coached a roster that still has players who know his style, his voice and the way he wants the game played, and there is plenty of curiosity around how that translates when the 49ers defense lines up against them. The reunion may be brief, but it is the kind of return that forces a team to revisit the recent past while trying to stay focused on the present. [Read more 🡒]
Falcons Face A Trade Deadline Question At Wide Receiver
As the trade deadline creeps closer, the Falcons find themselves in the familiar position of weighing whether a receiver upgrade is worth the price. Brian Thomas Jr. has surfaced as a name to watch if Jacksonville decides to listen on offers, and that alone makes him an intriguing fit for Atlanta, where adding another pass-catching threat would immediately deepen the offense's options.
The conversation is there because the wideout picture in Atlanta is still taking shape, even with Jahan Dotson carving out a bigger role as the preferred downfield target. Dotson has topped 54 receiving yards in three straight games, which gives the Falcons something to build on, but it also sharpens the question of whether they need another move before the deadline to give the passing game more balance and another dynamic target. [Read more 🡒]
Tommy Rees Knows Whats Fueling The Falcons Early Offensive Holes
Tommy Rees has spent the week staring straight at the Falcons recent offensive slow starts, and the new offensive coordinator isnt trying to spread the blame around. Atlanta has opened too many games with stalled drives, and Rees made it clear the fix has to start with his own decisions as a play-caller as the Falcons prepare to face the San Francisco 49ers.
The next step, from Rees view, is getting the run game involved earlier so the offense can settle into a better rhythm and keep defenses from dictating the pace. Establishing that balance would give Michael Penix Jr. and the rest of the unit a cleaner path to production, but Atlanta still has to show it can turn the idea into something more consistent when the lights come on. [Read more 🡒]