The Atlanta Falcons may not be great, but they’re not bad, and definitely not boring. After an 0-2 start that few believed the team could overcome, the Falcons have now won three out of their last four games. Quarterback Marcus Mariota completed an impressive 92.7 percent of his passes during Sunday’s 28-14 win over the 49ers. Even though he threw for just 129 passing yards, Mariota made good decisions and didn’t turn the ball over. “We got a great group of guys that truly believe in the culture being built here, and that’s fun to be a part of,” stated Mariota after Sunday’s win. “You know, when I was a free agent, I was looking at places to play, I knew Art here was going to build that type of locker room. And when you got a bunch of good guys that enjoy coming to work that want to put in their best effort for each other and not just for themselves, you’re going to find ways to win games and be successful.” FALCONS WIRE
We haven't heard anything yet about the latest round of injuries, but the defense might be seriously short-handed if the news tomorrow and Wednesday isn't good. Starting edge rusher Ade Ogundeji and starting ILB Mykal Walker (the defensive signal caller) were out this week, as was backup safety Erik Harris. And then A.J. Terrell, Ta'Quon Graham and Casey Hayward all got banged up and came out of the game. That's five starters and one key reserve who might be out next weekend, in addition to the guys already on IR. The most obvious concern would be cornerback, where Isaiah Oliver is just now returning from IR himself. If both Terrell and Hayward are out (ouch!), the Falcons would probably be looking at playing second year mid-rounder Darren Hall and CFL prospect Dee Alford on the outsides with Oliver as the nickel and Mike Ford as the reserve in rotation. Cornell Armstrong is one of a trio of DB prospects on the practice squad and is the most likely to be called up for extra cornerback depth. The less obvious concern but potentially greater problem would be losing Ta'Quon Graham for any considerable period of time. Graham has been the rising star of the defensive line this season. He has worked himself into a full-time starting role, playing 2/3 of defensive snaps. He hasn't registered a sack yet but has put up 7 QB hits and has played solid run defense. Most importantly, he has made it difficult for opposing offenses to focus solely on Grady Jarrett, which has been a factor in Jarrett's monster year so far. Marlon Davidson is still on IR, so if Graham is out the rest of the interior line group would be Jarrett, undrafted rookie Timmy Horne, career project Abdullah Anderson (10 game appearances in four seasons prior to 2022) and former Tennessee prospect Matt Dickerson (18 appearances in four seasons prior to 2022). Bad news regarding Graham's status might finally be the trigger to get the team to add another experienced defensive lineman to the mix.
Casey Hayward's shoulder injury is enough that he's headed to IR. A.J. Terrell was optimistic that he'd be able to return this week. No word yet on the injury status of Graham, Harris, Ogundeji or Walker. Tight end Mycole Pruitt, a former Tennessee prospect who had been on Atlanta's practice squad, is moving up to the regular roster to take the open spot. Pruitt had played in the last two games (and scored Atlanta's first touchdown against SF) as a standard practice squad elevation. Now he's on the roster on a more permanent basis. And a bit of longer term help for the defensive line... prospect Jalen Dalton was one of the casualties of preseason, getting released with an injury settlement at the end of August. He's now eligible to rejoin the team, and the Falcons have signed him to the practice squad. Hopefully he can improve his injury luck - he missed all of 2020 on IR with a triceps injury and then went back on IR with a torn triceps in 2021. The Falcons also brought back linebacker Dorian Etheridge to the practice squad. Etheridge had also been hurt in preseason.
That time of the season where most teams are getting banged up. This is where good management is premium. Especially with the added 17th game.
The Atlanta Falcons have been one of the NFL’s biggest surprises through the first six weeks of the season, but they’ll be tested by a talented Cincinnati Bengals team in Week 7. To stop an explosive Bengals offense, the Falcons need a big day from their undermanned secondary. Not only did the the team place starting cornerback Casey Hayward on injured reserve, Atlanta has ruled out nickel CB Dee Alford for Sunday’s game. These four players must step up in order for the Falcons to secure their fourth win of the season. WR: Drake London Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports London went over 50 receiving yards in each of his first three games. The former USC star also grabbed two touchdowns during those first three weeks, but he’s racked up just 92 receiving yards since Week 4. The Falcons offense has been running the ball successfully, though, which has hindered London’s production somewhat. Against an explosive team like the Bengals, Atlanta may have to throw the ball to keep pace. Good things seem to happen when Mariota looks London’s way. CB: Darren Hall Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports Darren Hall is expected to step in for Hayward, and while he played well in Week 6, this Bengals offense is considerably more explosive than San Francisco’s. Hall finished the game against the 49ers with the team’s highest Pro Football Focus grade (90.1). Cincinnati boasts an impressive group of pass-catchers, led by Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. Hall has appeared in 20 games since being drafted in the fourth round of the 2021 NFL draft, but Sunday will be his first official start. RB: Tyler Allgeier (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) Falcons rookie Tyler Allgeier hasn’t done much to separate himself from Caleb Huntley in the two weeks since Cordarrelle Patterson went on injured reserve. Allgeier’s best game came during Atlanta’s Week 4 win over the Browns. Perhaps he can have that breakout performance fans have been waiting for against another Ohio team in Week 7. Thus far, Allgeier has 54 carries for 235 rushing yards (4.4 Y.P.C.) but has yet to score a touchdown. OLB: Arnold Ebiketie Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports The Falcons drafted Ebiketie in the second round of the 2022 NFL draft and the former Penn State standout currently leads all rookies with 18 QB pressures. The next player on the list is 49ers rookie Drake Jackson (11 QB pressures). Ebiketie also has the same number of QB hits as top-10 picks Aidan Hutchinson and Kayvon Thibodeaux COMBINED. On Sunday, Ebiketie could potentially get more reps since Ade Ogundeji is still banged up. FALCONS WIRE
Rookie WR Jared Bernhardt isn't just out for this weekend's game... today the team went ahead and put him on IR, so he'll be out at least four weeks. He came on strong in preseason, with his game-winning catch on a fourth down play at the end of the first exhibition game as the best known of his highlights. BUT as the longest of long shots, very few of his reps in training camp were with Marcus Mariota. Without that timing and chemistry, he's been relegated to the inactive list all season. I mentioned a few posts above that Cornell Armstrong was one of a trio of DBs on the practice squad and the most likely to be elevated for extra depth at cornerback. It happened - with Dee Alford out this weekend, Armstrong got the call-up. So the CB group is A.J. Terrell and Darren Hall on the outsides, Isaiah Oliver at nickel, and Mike Ford and Cornell Armstrong as the extras. That's going to be a challenge for Atlanta. On paper, Joe Burrow should carve them up.
Old-school football is back — nowhere more so than the run-first Atlanta Falcons Football is back. Well, football has been back for months, but the brand of football that made this America’s new pastime is back — and it’s especially back in the Dirty South. The Atlanta Falcons, who are exceeding expectations up to this point with a 3-3 record, suddenly have a promising future under the tutelage of head coach Arthur Smith. An offense that initially looked like the Island of Misfit Toys has put together an impressive run of play over the first six games of the season. Not only are the Falcons moving the ball, but in a league that's seeing robust improvements to run games with several franchises as more teams play in two-high shells, even the Falcons are distinguishing themselves. This offense is punishing defenses. It’s not the best or the most explosive offense in the league, but the Falcons have committed to an identity of grinding games out on the ground in a pass-happier NFL. And it’s working. According to Ben Baldwin of The Athletic, the Falcons rank seventh in expected points added per rushing play (0.001), fifth in rushing success rate (45.2%) and seventh in overall expected points added per play on offense. This is a big deal for a team that has $77.4 million in dead cap. They aren’t really supposed to be performing at this level right now. Based on the resources available to them, they’re a year ahead of schedule. How they’re getting this done is different from almost every other team in the league. According to Next Gen Stats, the Falcons are running pistol formations at the highest rate in the NFL at 37%, lead the league in two-back sets at 28% and are running the most condensed formations in the league with an average formation width of 21.4 yards. For a team that appears to be singularly focused in how they want to move the ball, the Falcons need to give themselves advantages to achieve that goal. In one offseason, Smith and the Falcons revamped the style of their offense. Marcus Mariota is a much different player than Matt Ryan, the quarterback he replaced in Atlanta. Mariota has allowed the Falcons to add an extra ballcarrier into their run game. Falcons running back Caleb Huntley spoke glowingly on the impact that Mariota has had on the Falcons’ ability to run the ball in an interview with Yahoo Sports. “He’s a dual threat,” Huntley said about Mariota. “There’s no telling what he can do. He can pass, he can run. So, I feel like that keeps defenses on their toes. Also with the offensive line, say they miss a block or something like that. He can always spring himself free and get away from blitzes.” Mariota’s mobility has been a key part of their running game and his ability to create with his legs certainly has saved the Falcons from some tricky spots. Even with his ups and downs this year as a player, Mariota’s presence allows them to be a team that lives in pistol. Those formations, where the quarterback is standing in front of the running back while still not being under center, aren’t necessarily new to the NFL, but they still do make things tough and complex on opposing defenses. “Honestly, I feel like they can’t really get a beat on us,” Huntley said. “They don’t know if we’re going to run or pass out of the pistol because we have so many caveats in this offense. I feel like they really can’t get a beat and some of the angles we’re running at.” One thing that has helped the Falcons running game, much to the chagrin of fantasy owners across the world, is the presence of talented receiving options like tight end Kyle Pitts and wide receiver Drake London. Even in games where the Falcons don’t throw the ball a lot — which is just about all of them —defenses can’t just load up the box and sell out against the run. Pitts and London can still burn secondaries. When teams come out with two safeties deep to help protect themselves against Pitts and London, the Falcons are running it. According to Next Gen Stats, the Falcons have the second-highest run rate against split safety looks at 48%. Their run game is as diverse as they come with a healthy mix of zone and gap running schemes. Huntley said he’s never been a part of a run game that has this many options. “This is like my first time with all these different types of run schemes, I like it though,” Huntley said. “I really don’t have a favorite, I just like when it’s my opportunity to take advantage of it. Whether it’s outside zone, inside zone, a gap play — I just try to do it to the best of my abilities.” While Huntley is experiencing an offense like this for the first time, rookie running back Tyler Allgeier played in an offense that featured similar run schemes as the Falcons during his time at BYU. Allgeier, like the rest of the Falcons offense, is a bruising running back that’s helped shoulder the load with Cordarrelle Patterson on injured reserve. “BYU trained me really well to get into an offense like this.” Allgeier said. “The schemes and all that and then playing with a mobile quarterback which is always great.” The quarterback, running backs and passing game threats have all played a role in the Falcons’ success so far, but the meat of this offense is a vastly improved offensive line. Elijah Wilkinson and Drew Dalman are new starters on what was arguably the worst offensive line in the NFL last season. This year, they’re mowing people on the ground. “They’ve been working their ass off,” Allgeier said. “It’s always a privilege getting to run behind those big boys. They don’t get as much love as you would think because they’re offensive line. Interior guys don’t usually get that much love, but they always make us right. Whatever our running game success is, it all starts with them up front.” Huntley, who was with the Falcons during the 2021 season, has been around to experience the Falcons’ most improved positional group in 2022. “Honestly, it’s just been the little things,” Huntley said. “Just buying into the process and trusting what coach Smith wants from us and what we expect from each other. There’s no huge plan or no huge thing that changed, just everyone bought into one goal.” That one goal appears to be what Smith said during the Falcons 23-20 win over the Cleveland Browns: run the piss out of the ball. So far, it’s been a viable solution for the Falcons and created a bright future after a couple of tough offseasons losing franchise legends. A new era has started in Atlanta, and it might spread across the NFL. Time will tell to see exactly how good this regime ends up being, but for now, they’re the team that every defense hates to play. YAHOOSPORTS
lol... I prefer comparing them to The Dirty Dozen rather than The Island of Misfit Toys. But it does fit.
Unfortunately for Atlanta, Cornell Armstrong is playing snaps on defense. As I expected, Burrow is carving them up.
That's the problem... Starting cornerback Casey Hayward got banged up last week and was put on IR. Early in the game, starting cornerback A.J. Terrell re-injured his hamstring and is now out. Backup corner Dee Alford is also out. So for the rest of the game, Atlanta's two outside cornerbacks are a second-year guy making his second career start and a practice squad elevation who is appearing in a game for the first time in two years. The practice squad guy in particular is getting targeted. Burrow is having a career day simply throwing to the receiver he's trying to cover on that particular play.
The team has 3 weeks to activate Patterson, but based on the video he posted a few days ago of himself working out, it does seem like he's already set to get rolling. It will be great to have him back, especially if the coaches work him back into the passing attack. A.J. Terrell still isn't practicing. Rashad Fenton wasn't listed on the injury report, but he might not have even arrived in Flowery Branch in time for practice today. The much better news for the secondary is that safety Jaylinn Hawkins (still in the concussion protocol) was a full participant in practice, while backup corner Dee Alford (hamstring) is no longer even listed on the injury report. For the second straight game, the coaching staff didn't use cornerback Mike Ford on defense. Seems clear to me that something is up with that. Could be they lost confidence in him as a corner (but want him for special teams duty while they try to get him back on track), or perhaps they're moving him to another position such as safety / dime back. But since he's active for special teams duty, it seems really odd that the team would prefer to bring up a guy from the practice squad and throw him straight into the starting lineup while keeping Ford on the bench. So if we assume Terrell will still be out and that the team still avoids using Ford at corner, we might be looking at a secondary of Fenton and Darren Hall as the starting CBs this weekend, Isaiah Oliver as the nickel, Hawkins back at safety along with Richie Grant, Dee Alford as the top backup in rotation at CB and Erik Harris as the main backup at safety.
The Atlanta Falcons will be without two starters when they take on the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 9. On Friday, the team ruled out cornerback A.J. Terrell and left guard Elijah Wilkinson, both of whom missed all three days of practice this week. Terrell will miss his second game in a row with a hamstring injury. In his absence, the Falcons could look to CB Rashad Fenton, who was acquired from Kansas City in a trade at the deadline. As for Wilkinson, he’s been battling a knee for some time. Backup center Matt Hennessy has been filling in all week at left guard, so look for him to get the start on Sunday. Cordarrelle Patterson has been designated to return, but the Falcons will wait until Saturday to decide if they should activate him for Week 9. FALCONS WIRE
Hennessy as the substitute for Wilkinson is interesting. Good to see the team getting him reps, though it does mean the only two centers on the roster will both be on the field together. It also presents the question of whether Germain Ifedi and Colby Gossett are somehow falling out of favor with the coaching staff. They're both on one-year contracts. Wilkinson had missed one other game earlier this year, and Gossett beat out Ifedi - who typically plays the right side rather than the left - in the competition to be the replacement that week. Hennessy remained the active interior backup in that one. The other noteworthy item is that the trade acquisition Fenton actually did make it from KC to Flowery Branch in time for practice on Wednesday. And he wasn't listed on the injury report, which means he was a full participant and the hamstring issues that kept him out of a few games for the Chiefs are behind him. So... do you start the new guy even though he's had only three days with the team to learn the system? Personally, I would - though I'd probably rotate Dee Alford in heavily and give the most reps to the one who screws up the least. I would have also had a lot of reps in practice Thursday/Friday where Isaiah Oliver and Alford switched back and forth between playing outside and playing the slot, to get a good look at both of them on the outsides. Alford and Mike Ford had worked a lot at nickel and the first month of the season while Oliver was still out on IR. If either or both of them could take some reps on the outside, they could help out while Fenton gets up to speed. It would also add depth behind Darren Hall, who has been starting in place of Casey Hayward.
Updates... Cordarrelle Patterson has been activated. He's off of IR, back on the roster, and good to go against the Chargers. The team has been okay in the running game with Tyler Allgeier leading the way, but Patterson was also third on the team in receiving last year. Having him on the field helps open up the passing game in addition to giving the team its top RB back. Left guard Elijah Wilkinson isn't just OUT for this game. He has been moved to IR (with Patterson taking his spot on the roster). His knee injury will have him out at least three more games after this one. Matt Hennessy said in an interview that he's been practicing at guard all season, putting in extra time at guard after getting beaten out by Drew Dalman for the starting center job. As the backup center, he also has to serve as the backup for both guard spots, so the extra focus makes sense. He said he really started to feel confident at the left guard position in practice this week, working in tandem with Dalman and left tackle Jake Matthews on combination assignments and communications. This may turn out to be a longer term change for Hennessy. Along those lines, the team is activating center Ryan Neuzil from the practice squad for this game. Neuzil was a UDFA guard prospect from last year's practice squad who converted to center and looked impressive running the reserves in preseason. If Hennessy becomes a full time guard, Neuzil will likely take over as the backup center going forward. Backup edge rusher Quinton Bell has been released from the roster, with defensive line prospect Jalen Dalton being signed to the roster from the practice squad. Dalton was a leading candidate to make the roster in preseason but got hurt and was released with an injury settlement. Once he was eligible to resign, the team added him to the practice squad, and now he's moving up to the regular roster after all. I would not be the least bit surprised to see Bell resigned to the practice squad next week. I have not seen any kind of official announcement saying that safety Jaylinn Hawkins is out of the league's concussion protocol, but he was a full participant all week in practice and has no injury-related designation for the game. Backup safety Erik Harris was limited on Friday with an ankle injury and is listed as Questionable. That's noteworthy as the other backup safety, Dean Marlowe, was just traded to the Bills at the trade deadline. Safety prospect Jovante Moffatt is also being called up from the practice squad for added depth.
I just scoured the WWW and as far as I can tell, he's playing, which is a good thing. Falcons wire says not much about any injury designation, only that he's good to go.
The Falcons started Matt Hennessy at left guard against the Chargers last Sunday, but they’ll need to put someone else in that spot against the Panthers on Thursday. The team announced on Tuesday that Hennessy has been placed on injured reserve. He injured his knee against the Chargers. Hennessy was starting in place of Elijah Wilkinson, who was placed on injured reserve last Saturday. Colby Gossett replaced Hennessy on Sunday and is likely in line to get the start against Carolina. The Falcons filled the open roster spot by signing safety Jovante Moffatt off the practice squad. He was elevated to play on special teams the last two weeks and appeared in 14 games for the Browns over the last two seasons. PFT
