5 Observations From Falcons' Fifth Straight Defeat

What did we learn from the Atlanta Falcons loss against the Carolina Panthers?

Author:
Dave Holcomb
Publish date:
Oct 12, 2020 12:00 PM EDT

When it rains, it pours. It rained a lot in Atlanta over the weekend, and it has metaphorically poured on the Falcons during the first five weeks of the 2020 season.

With a fifth straight loss to begin the year, the Falcons are 0-5 for the first time since 1997. On Sunday, the Falcons lost their first NFC South game of the year to the Carolina Panthers, 23-16.

Let's take a look at what went wrong Sunday:

1. Matt Ryan is in the worst slump of his career

Let's be careful how much blame is placed on Ryan for this loss and the 0-5 start, but plain and simply, the veteran signal caller is not playing well. He might be in the worst slump of his career.

Ryan has gone 31 straight possessions without throwing a touchdown, which is the longest streak of his career. On Sunday, he missed a wide-open Hayden Hurst for a touchdown and then threw an interception in the end zone during the fourth quarter. The Falcons averaged just 5.2 yards per pass versus Carolina.

Thanks in large part to Ryan's struggles, the Falcons scored just three points on two redzone possessions.

Despite all the great things Ryan has done for the Falcons in his career, if he doesn't start leading the team to wins, Atlanta is going to have a Top-10 selection, and the discussion of whether or not to draft the 35-year-old's successor will begin.

2. Lack of playmakers without Julio Jones

Ryan will receive most of the blame for the passing-game blues, but his receivers deserve plenty of criticism as well. The Falcons dropped to 5-12 without Julio Jones on Sunday. It's no coincidence that Ryan's touchdown drought has occurred while his best playmaker has been sidelined.

Without Jones, Calvin Ridley is drawing the opposition's best coverage. Ridley caught eight passes for 136 yards after a goose egg in Green Bay, but Hurst and Olamide Zaccheaus were held to three catches combined. Russell Gage also had only two receptions.

One play, especially in the first quarter, doesn't usually make or break a team, but Gage dropped a second-and-11 pass for an easy first down on Atlanta's second drive. It ended up being a key missed opportunity.

The Falcons were ahead 7-3 at the time, and if Gage makes that catch, Atlanta would have been standing at about midfield. Instead, the Falcons punted, and the Panthers controlled the rest of the half, scoring on their next three possessions.

Ridley made a nice catch on third-and-16 in the second half to move the chains, but for the most part, Ryan had very small windows to throw to without Jones in the lineup.

This is going to sound very cliche, but the Falcons simply need someone to make a big play -- a broken tackle from a running back, a circus catch in the end zone for a score, or key sack on a third down -- to end this losing streak. And right now, it needs to come from someone other than the team's best player until he returns.

3. Todd Gurley's Breakout Game

The veteran running back exploded for 121 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries. The Falcons rushed for 166 yards.

The glass half-full way of looking at that stat line is how helpful Gurley may be next week in guiding Ryan through his slump. However, it's also infuriating that for weeks, we've complained about the Falcons running game, and then they still lose when the ground game finally gets rolling.

The problem, though, was Dirk Koetter didn't commit to the ground attack until it was too late. Gurley had only five carries in the first half, including just one after running for a 35-yard touchdown. The Falcons featured Gurley in the second half, as he racked up his first 100-yard day in Atlanta.

Yes, Gurley is on a "pitch count" because of his knee, but let me make a baseball playoff analogy -- down 2-0 in Game 3 of a five-game series, a manager shouldn't be concerned about the pitch count with his closer. There is no tomorrow without a win.

Week 5 was Atlanta's equivalent of down 2-0 in Game 3 during an MLB five-game playoff series, and Gurley still had more pitches to throw. No team has ever made the playoffs after starting 0-5.

4. Defense Struggles with Poor Tackling, Communication & Pass Rush

There's nothing too alarming about the defensive box score from Sunday, but the game film shows the Falcons constantly missing tackles, leaving receivers wide open due to poor communication and a lack of pressure on Teddy Bridgewater. The Falcons didn't force a turnover or record a sack.

Panthers running back Mike Davis came into Week 5 among the leaders in broken tackles, and that trend continued Sunday. Davis posted 149 yards from scrimmage with a touchdown while receiver David Moore went practically untouched for a 57-yard score towards the end of the first half.

Against Green Bay on Monday, at least the unit could say it was missing a lot of talent. That wasn't the case Sunday, and this was a very poor effort from a defense playing for its coach's job.

5. A Coaching Change Won't Solve Much

It was time. Dan Quinn had to go. Quinn was nothing but a classy leader during his time in Atlanta. However, there was no way around it. The team needs something to drastically change.

With news of Quinn's firing coming Sunday evening, there's no obvious choice for the team's interim head coach. The defense is a mess, and the passing game is a shell of its former self. Koetter has head coaching experience, but not much success.

So while the Falcons fans will get the coaching change they want, even without Quinn, things might continue to get worse for the Falcons before they get better.