Falcons’ formerly feared offence now firing blanks
Three games of ineptitude has Atlanta and its reigning MVP looking for answers
The Atlanta Falcons fielded, by far, the NFL’s hottest offence down the stretch last season, remember?
They averaged 416 total yards per game in 2016 and hit otherworldly heights in the playoffs, at least until the fourth quarter of Super Bowl LI.
But after the Falcons feebly lost their third game in a row — 23-7 Sunday night to the New England Patriots in Foxborough — it’s clear last year’s offensive successes are light years away.
You can’t find conclusive proof by looking at NFL team stats. Before Monday night’s Washington-Philadelphia game, the Falcons ranked eighth in total offence, a drop of only six spots from a year ago. And they’re averaging the exact same yardage on the ground (121 per game) even if their passing attack is down by 43 yards per game, to 252.
But if you focus just on Atlanta’s last three games, all of them losses after a 3-0 start, you can see the gorge into which the offence has plummeted.
So, did the Falcons’ leaguebest offence of a year ago just up and leave in February with Kyle Shanahan, last year’s offensive co-ordinator? Shanahan is now head coach of the winless San Francisco 49ers.
His replacement is Steve Sarkisian. Clearly, whatever he is drawing up and calling is not fitting in with the talent on hand.
Even Matt Ryan, last year’s consensus league MVP, looks rattled, uncomfortable and confused. He keeps over-shooting the types of passes he effortlessly dropped between receivers’ palms last season.
The most embarrassing fact for these Falcons is, after leading Miami 10-0 at halftime the week before, they didn’t score again until late in the fourth quarter Sunday night at Foxboro — 12 possessions of scoreless football covering 90 minutes and 21 seconds of game time.
Falcons head coach Dan Quinn and several players on Sunday night pointed to the endless struggles in the red zone, something that has afflicted the offence since Week 4, their first loss of the season to Buffalo.
“If you look at our numbers, we are moving the ball,” tackle Jake Matthews said in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “We are having trouble finishing in the red zone, and on third down. We had opportunities to score ... ample opportunities to be in that game. But we have to finish and execute.”
No one was dumping blame at Sarkisian’s feet.
“I think it’s on all of us,” running back Devonta Freeman said, according to the Journal-Constitution. “Nobody can point fingers at nobody. We just have to figure out ways to win.”
Hero: Matt Moore, QB, Miami Dolphins.
Down 14 points to AFC East rival New York Jets in the fourth quarter, and with starting QB Jay Cutler out with cracked ribs, the longtime Dolphins emergency QB proceeded to pilot Miami back to victory, throwing for 188 yards and two touchdown passes to lift the mostly stumbling Dolphins to a hard-to-fathom 4-2 record.
Zero: Marshawn Lynch, RB, Oakland Raiders
Last Thursday in an absolute must-win game against AFC West rival Kansas City, he raced onto the field when Raiders QB Derek Carr got roughed up a bit on a slide. That was dumb enough. Then when an official bear-hugged him to try to stop him from committing further stupidity, Lynch jostled with him and shoved him. One-game suspension. Lynch should have stayed retired.
Stock up: Chicago Bears defence.
Before Sunday’s game in Chicago was 18 minutes old, the Bears scored two defensive touchdowns against Carolina, both by safety Eddie Jackson. The 23-year-old rookie returned a fumbled Carolina pitch 75 yards for a score and returned a tipped Cam Newton pass from 76 yards out — the first time an NFL defender has scored twice off returns of 75-plus yards. But more than that, the Bears shut down the Carolina run game — 108 yards, but on 30 carries — and held Newton to zero TD passes, while picking him off twice and sacking him five times.
Stock Down: Jacoby Brissett, QB, Colts.
Brissett has completed fewer than 60 per cent of his throws for less than six yards per attempt. He also took 10 sacks against the Jags. The Colts O -line is a mess right now, but still. Brissett has to give his team more of a chance.