As a born and raised Falcons fan, I've been through a fair share of pain. Whether it was that crushing SuperBowl loss (28-3) or the countless games that were decided by the smallest margins, I've come to deal with pain in sports pretty well. That Superbowl loss was considered one of the greatest but most heartbreaking games in Superbowl history. But this season has been a new dose of Ls after Ls.
Our defense has been absolutely devastated by injury.
Whether is Debo or Keanu Neal, our defense has been replaced by a group of nobodies that cannot stop the opposing offense on a single down. How are we expected to cheer and root for a team that is physically incapable of even making a single play on defense?
In the game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the defense almost gave up a touchdown on the last play of the game to a team that is clearly worse than ours. In the case of the game versus the Cincinnati Bengals, the defense was unable to pull through and gave up a last minute field goal which ended the game.
If I wanted to see a team be unable to play defense, I would go see some high school football games.
Another aspect of our struggling team is the lack of production by our offense.
Julio Jones has had trouble finding the end zone, and while Calvin Ridley has shined, other players seem to be unable to do the same. Two seasons ago, the Falcons had the most prolific offense in the league, and now, they seem to have completely lost their swagger.
Matt Ryan is playing extremely conservatively and seems to have lost his confidence in the deep ball, something that must change if this team is still pushing for the playoffs. Don't let the numbers fool you. Matt Ryan is playing with a lower confidence than before, and it is evident by his lack of touch. Ryan overthrows balls that he would have easily made in the past and struggles to keep his wits behind and offensive line that has seen better days.
These issues have to come as a priority to the head coach and offensive coordinators if they are to pull this team together for the long run.
At the end of the day, the season comes down to chemistry between teammates and trust in the coaches. The head coach Dan Quinn should be able to turn this defense around and rally them, but I think that Steve Sarkisian is losing the trust of his players. The offensive coordinator is supposed to be the brain of the team and is supposed to come up with ingenious ways for the offense to fool opposing defenses.
Sark is getting the blame for most of the offense, and while I think it is his fault for the struggles of the team, it cannot be solely on him. Blatant injuries have decimated the roster and forced the Falcons to rely on a far antique offense that is two runs then one pass. At the end of the day, a team is only as good as the worst player and for the Falcons right now, that is far too many people rhythm.
