As the NFL offseason
is in full swing, it’s a perfect opportunity to evaluate where each team was in
2017, and where they plan to go in the New Year. Let’s begin the review of
the Atlanta Falcons.
2017 Season Recap:
When the 2017 season
began, the Atlanta Falcons were still licking their wounds from their Super
Bowl 51 disaster loss to the Patriots and finding a replacement for departed
offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan. With rectifying one issue Coach Quinn hired
former Alabama coordinator Steve Sarkisian amidst controversy that he wouldn’t
be able to replicate the success from the previous season. The naysayers
definitely had reason to believe the Falcons offense might stumble in 2017 as
Matt Ryan doesn’t adapt well in seasons which begin with a new play caller,
(perfect example is Shanahan’s first year in Atlanta). The Falcons stumbled out
of the gates almost dropping the season opener to the Bears while following it
up with a masterful performance against the Packers in week two. Aside from the
fantastic play of the Atlanta Falcons in that week two contest, the rest of the
season had fans on a rollercoaster of emotions as uneven play became the
normality for this bunch. By week nine the Falcons found themselves with a
record of 4-4 in arguably the toughest division in football, knowing a
monumental run would have to transpire if they wanted to play into January with
hopes at redemption at another Super Bowl.
The Falcons needed to
make a run and that they sure did. Post week nine, the Falcons clawed their way
through a plethora of divisional games as five of the last eight contents were
played in the NFC South. With that said, the schedule makers didn’t do the
Falcons any favors as the Cowboys, Seahawks, and Vikings rounded out the
remaining games the last eight weeks of the season. It was extremely impressive
to watch a team that obviously learned from past experience finding their way
to finish the year with a 6-2 record and claiming a Wildcard spot. Even still, Atlanta
found it difficult to put points on the board ranking 15th in the
league (22.1 PPG), they did manage to produce the 8th highest
ranking in total yards (364.8 YPG). The offensive statistics can be quite
deceiving as Matt Ryan finished off 2017 as one of his worst campaigns in his
career. The Atlanta defense began to step up their play helping generate those
must wins. This unit has early resemblances of Dan Quinn’s Seattle Seahawks
(Legion of Boom), with still a few pieces to be desired to round out an
improving squad. Finishing in the top ten in most categories, the Falcons
finished the year 8th in points against (19.7 PPG), 9th
in total yards against (318.4 YPG), and 9th in total rush yards
against (104.1 YPG), quite impressive.
Alas, even with all
the improvements on defense, the offense was the achilles heel as the playoffs
wore on. Atlanta travelled to Los Angeles to face off against the favored Rams
where special team mistakes overtook the contest and the Falcons capitalized on
each gift. As they entered the divisional round against the Wentz-less Eagles,
Matt Ryan couldn’t muster anything special against what turned out to become a
loss to the future Super Bowl Champions. In a season of triumphs and
tribulation, the Falcons were sent packing and given an early opportunity to
retool and rebound for 2018.
2018 Offseason
Workbook:
Offseason Review:
Enter the offseason
after their disappointing loss to the Eagles, not much tinkering on this
Coaching staff has transpired. Early rumblings had the fan base calling for the
removal of offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian, however Coach Dan Quinn
reiterated the gleaming endorsement for Steve to return for another season. The
Falcons however did add specialty coaches to help improve the offensive
production, bringing in new running backs coach (Bernie Parmalee), and
offensive assistant (Chad Walker), to work directly with Steve Sarkisian to
help bring the Atlanta offense to their 2016 numbers. General Manager – Thomas Dimitroff
has done an admirable job with this Falcons roster even though they look to add
talent in places they lacked overall consistent production. Currently Atlanta
houses almost 13 million under the cap and will have to get creative moving
forward.
Reviewing the Falcons
roster, beginning with the offense, Atlanta does bolster a top flight offensive
line that was solidified with the addition of Center Alex Mack to provide the necessary
time and space for Matt Ryan and his running backs. In 2016 Kyle Shanahan found
a way to utilize speedster Taylor Gabriel adding a dynamic that was almost un-defendable
at times. Steve Sarkisian was unable to recreate not only that success and
mismatch, but also had questionable understanding of how to correctly call red
zone plays. Based on roster improvements, the Falcons should look to improve
their Tight End position adding more speed in the receiving game. Outside
improving depth, the Falcons offense looks poised to continue building from
2017, while looking to upgrade certain positions to take them over the top. The
largest obstacle under review will be how to bring this once feared offense
back to the 2016 level.
Defensively, Head
Coach Dan Quinn has this unit buying into his concepts and beginning to mirror
the unit of his days in Seattle. As of now this Falcons defensive unit can’t be
compared to the Legion of Boom until they address specific holes which
currently exist. It’s safe to say that outside of Deion Jones, Atlanta needs to
acquire another uber-talented line backer to man the middle of the field. Dan
Quinn was very creative in masking their inadequacies with star in the making -
Safety Keanu Neal. Having Neal line up all over the filed allowed the Falcons
to confuse their opponents. The strength of this unit is most definitely in the
secondary, but at times was exposed to a lack of a consistent pass rush.
Generating only 39 sacks in 2017 left their defensive backs in situations where
they had to cover for much longer periods of time eventually giving up big
plays. It’s very clear that Thomas Dimitroff is working side by side with Coach
Quinn to amass the best quality players to fit his defensive scheme. With
salary cap concerns, look for Atlanta to add talent in the draft to round out
what could be a dangerous unit in 2018.
Rostered Free Agents:
As mentioned above,
the Falcons have dire cap constraints that will make it difficult to maneuver
star additions to this roster. With run stuffing standout Dontari Poe looking
to have priced his way out of Atlanta based on his quality play, they will be hard
pressed to resign the man. Another player that exceeded expectations was
defensive end Adrian Clayborn. Of the 39 sacks the Falcons generated, he was
responsible for 9.5 of them adding 2 forced fumbles. It seems clear that both
Clayborn and Poe will hit the open market at the start of the league year.
Rounding out the other potential free agent priorities, is wide receiver Taylor
Gabriel and clutch kicker Matt Bryant. Its conceivable Dimitroff will attempt
to get creative and bring back Bryant and possibly Gabriel as the rest of the
Falcons 15 unrestricted free agents should see the open market.
Atlanta does have team
friendly deals which they could exercise in releasing a few rostered
contractual individuals to create cash flow and cap space. Top cut candidate
from day one is Guard Andy Levitre, where the Falcons could save upwards of 7
million dollars if they let the big man walk. Defensive end Brooks Reed is
another player that could find himself on the outs, as cutting the seasoned vet
would save them nearly 3.6 million. Backup quarterback Matt Schaub is another
player that could be looking for work elsewhere, as yet another 3 million can
be saved if he’s let loose from the team. With the 13 million dollars Atlanta
has currently on the books, they have the potential to add another 13 million
to help round out this roster.
NFL Draft:
With the financial
issues facing the Falcons this season, the NFL Draft will be the best avenue
for them to acquire top end talent. Currently Atlanta houses six picks missing
their 5th round selection in the upcoming draft. More than likely
the focus will be on adding defensive depth with hopes they can produce
starting talent to bolster the defensive line and line backing cores. It wouldn’t
be a surprise to see the majority of the 2018 draft class spent on defense the
likes of which resemble adequate pieces to continue to build Coach Quinn’s vision.
There is potential for Dimitroff to make an offensive splash as he tends to
favor the offensive side of the ball. ADF views this draft for the Falcons as a
potential make or break situation, as opportunities to get back to the main
stage will be challenging in a difficult NFC.
Overall for 2018:
The mandate is clear
in Atlanta that their window of opportunity could be closing in the next three
years as Matt Ryan enters his 10th season as the Falcons starter. At
age 32, Ryan still has a few prime years left to bring a title to the great
state of Georgia. Matt Ryan again enters a contract season, which one could envision
he should entertain a substantial pay day depending on production. Team owner,
Arthur Blank has already been on record to sway Ryan into taking a team friendly
deal to keep this train moving. Realistically, the Falcons aren’t far off from
becoming a very dominate team, but require depth pieces at the correct price to
compete with the salary cap. Playing in the NFC South will continue to be a
large challenge for the Falcons as all teams look to keep their production at
high levels for 2018. This season will rest on the contract year Matt Ryan
enters, as the extra motivation should propel him to reach the career highs he
enjoyed two seasons ago. Improvement in the run game and red zone efficiency
will be the top priority for Steve Sarkisian to correct and streamline.
All in all, the
Atlanta Falcons should again be a top performer in 2018. It will be very
exciting to watch the transactions and creative maneuvering Atlanta does once
the league year opens. The Falcons are in good hands and we fully expect them
to improve.
Comments
Post a Comment