Atlanta Falcons, Kevin Stefanski Share One Curse to Break vs. Steelers

Will the Atlanta Falcons win their season opener on the road against the Pittsburgh Steelers?

The odds aren’t completely in their favor.

Week 1 games haven’t been polite to Atlanta. In the last five years, the Falcons have gone 1-4 in season-opening NFL games. The lone win came in 2023, a 24-10 triumph over the Carolina Panthers. It was the final season of Arthur Smith as the Falcons’ head coach.

Not to mention, the Falcons are 2-16-1 against the Steelers all-time; their worst winning percentage against any team in the NFL.

As Kevin Stefanski takes over the Falcons, he’s 2-4 in season openers in his lone head coaching job before Atlanta, the Cleveland Browns. The two-time AP Coach of the Year secured a 26-24 win over the Carolina Panthers in 2022 and beat the Cincinnati Bengals 24-3 in 2023.

That means Stefanski and the Falcons’ most recent season opener wins came in the same year.

On the other side, new Steelers head coach Mike McCarthy hasn’t posted gaudy numbers in Week 1 in recent years.

He’s 11-7 from his stints with the Green Bay Packers and Dallas Cowboys. In Dallas, McCarthy went 2-3 on openers, losing his first three and winning his final two. But the coach did, in fact, lead the Packers to five straight Week 1 wins from 2007 to 2011, with his current Pittsburgh quarterback, Aaron Rodgers, who helped him bring a Super Bowl to Green Bay in 2011.

Stefanski or McCarthy can end their Week 1 woes next Sunday, Sept. 13, at Pittsburgh’s Acrisure Stadium. Well, if the game doesn’t end in a tie, of course.

The case for Stefanski’s Falcons is their explosive talent, headlined by running back Bijan Robinson, wide receiver Drake London, and tight end Kyle Pitts Sr.

Defensively, the Falcons, a year removed from setting a franchise record for sacks with 57, can beleaguer a 42-year-old quarterback like Rodgers, who’s no longer as elusive as he was in his prime and is on the brink of retirement after the season. His top wide receiver targets are DK Metcalf and Michael Pittman Jr.

But Atlanta will have to disrupt the veteran and former NFL MVP without top pass rushers Jalon Walker, out for the season with a torn ACL, and James Pearce Jr., who’s been suspended by the NFL for violating the league’s personal conduct policy.

Stefanski’s familiarity with the AFC North can help. He faced the Steelers twice per season and even eliminated them from the 2020-2021 NFL playoffs as the Browns head coach.

However, this is a new Steelers team, with a new head coach and arguably better overall roster construction than Atlanta.

Defensively, the Steelers could cause issues for whoever the Falcons start at quarterback, Michael Penix Jr. or Tua Tagovailoa. The Steelers have a lockdown secondary featuring Joey Porter Jr. and Jalen Ramsey. On the frontline, TJ Watt is set to return from a partially collapsed lung after a down 2025 NFL season, only recording seven sacks.

The Steelers’ pass rush and defensive backs may force the Falcons to attack a more vulnerable spot, Pittsburgh’s middle-of-the-pack run defense.

But only time will tell.

Both teams are under resets and have coaches looking to shift the narrative of their recent Week 1 success – or lack thereof.

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