Why The Falcons Aren’t Worried About Nick Folk After Rocky Debut

Acrisure Stadium is widely regarded as one of the toughest NFL venues for kickers.

The unpredictable winds and playing surface are the culprits.

That was on full display as the normally automatic Atlanta Falcons placekicker Nick Folk struggled early in their Week 1 20-13 road loss against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

First, he missed a 54-yard field goal attempt wide right in the second quarter.

“I think the first one, he struck the ball really well,” Falcons special teams coordinator Craig Aukerman told reporters on Thursday. “I think he just pushed it over to the right-hand side.”

Then, Folk was off the mark, wide right again, on a 45-yarder from the right hash.

“He just didn’t hit the ball as well as he could,” Aukerman said.

Aukerman added that he went over to talk to Folk after the second miss. Folk gave him an ‘I’m good, don’t worry about it’ look, the special teams coordinator recalled.

Folk was, in fact, good.

He was Atlanta’s only source of scoring in the second half. He made a 51-yard field goal in the third quarter and was money from 43 yards out in the fourth quarter.

“I was happy that he ended up responding,” Aukerman said. “Just taking a kick one at a time.”

As bad as the Atlanta offense struggled to score with Cooper Rush as the starting quarterback, Folk’s misses were just as detrimental in the one-touchdown shortfall in Pittsburgh.

The underwhelming performance was unlike that of the 19-year NFL veteran. And it was the polar opposite of when he put the Falcons away with a dramatic 56-yard field goal to notch a 27-24 win for the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium.

In the last three seasons, Folk missed just three kicks from his time with the Tennessee Titans and Jets. He also didn’t miss much all offseason, Aukerman said.

“He’s an extremely accurate kicker,” Aukerman said. “Uncharacteristic of him, missing those field goals, and he’s going to get back to work. I know he’s excited to get back out there.”

Accuracy is paramount moving forward.

Just a season ago, the Falcons had to operate through a rolodex of kickers after moving on from Younghoe Koo midseason, turning to John Parker Romo and Zane Gonzalez.

Folk has another shot at redemption this Sunday when the Carolina Panthers visit Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium for the NFC South opener. Kickoff is at 1 p.m.

The Falcons (0-1) and Panthers (0-1) both search for their first wins after all NFC South division members suffered Week 1 losses.

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