Was the Falcons 28-10 home loss at the hands of the Patriots an aberration, or a sign of things to come when the Falcons play top notch talent? It is only preseason, but …
- Falcons were a mess on run defense. How can tackle old legs Fred Taylor after getting him bottled up at the line of scrimmage?
- Maybe getting Dunta Robinson on the field will help with the pass defense. Brady was 10-12, with 85 yards and 1 TD. That was against the Falcons first team defense.
- Ryan moved the ball well during his three possessions, but Atlanta’s first team offense only managed 3 points, off two field goal attempts.
- I am pulling for FG kicker Matt Bryant, however he continues to look inconsistent, making a 46 yard FG, and missing a 47 yard FG.
- I am not sure that anyone tracks this, but Roddy White did not help Ryan’s cause, dropping at least 2-3 passes.
There were a couple of bright spots …
- I think the Falcons look really good when Ryan runs the hurry up offense. They need to figure out how to really incorporate this into the offense for at least 25% of their game plan.
- Turner continues to look like he has fresh legs, getting 32 yards on 8 carries.
- Once again Turner was used as a receiver out of the backfield; the Falcons should continue to incorporate the backfield into the passing games. FB Mughelli is a really good in the flats, when healthy Norwood, and of course Snelling is also a threat; last year Snelling had 259 yards on 30 receptions.
The Falcons receiver situation is suddenly desperate. With Jenkins possibly out for the first couple of games, the Falcons were looking for Kerry Meier to step up, but after damaging his knee, Meier is out for the season.
Yes, it is only preseason, and the games do not count, but preseason play can also set the tone for the regular season. It can also be said that most defenses are running vanilla blitz packages, and the offenses are not unveiling their full repertoire of plays. All that is well and good, but it still means New England’s first team beat Atlanta’s first team 14-3, which to me spells ouch. I hope the Falcons can show some improvement next Friday night against the Dolphins.
Go Falcons!
