As the NFL Preseason hits its full stride, the fans of the Atlanta Falcons (like myself) are attently watching to see what the Falcons have prepared for this upcoming season. There are fears and questions about this season that we all have. Here are 3 things we are curious to find out:
1.) Will Devonta Freeman repeat last year’s performance?
Freeman displayed to the NFL that he is a legitimate running back. He finished with 1,061 rushing yards (7th in the NFL) and tied for a league best with 11 rushing touchdowns. With these stats in mind, we do have to remember that Freeman was forced to take over most of the Falcons’ rushing workload as Tevin Coleman struggled with injuries (cracked ribs in Week 2) and adapting to league. The bright side of all this, is that the Falcons finally have two young running backs with potential. In the last few years, the rushing game is what had dragged down the Falcons the most. After the decline of Michael Turner and the failure of signing Steven Jackson, it is nice see a potential growth in the running game.
2.) Will the defense finally show up?
Our defense was not terrible but it was not dominate either. Like the Broncos and Seahawks have demonstrated the last few years, a great defense wins championships. The Broncos had a terrible offensive year last year, yet they made it to the Super Bowl and shut down the NFL MVP Cam Newton and the Panthers. How? With a dominate defense. They were one of 2 teams (the Seahawks were the other) that limited their opponents to less than 300 yards per game. The Falcons, meanwhile, fell towards the middle pack ranking 16th with 347.6 yards per game. The Falcons have worked on this aspect by selecting safety Keanu Neal 17th in this years draft. Hopefully between this new addition and improvement of last year’s first round pick, Vic Beasley, the Falcons will be able to shut down their opponents’ defenses.
3.) Can we have some consistency, please?
After the Falcons started off 6 and one, I was ready to buy some Super Bowl tickets and watch the Falcons finally win it all. Julio and Freeman were leading the offense and the defense was doing enough to keep the team out of trouble. Then, the team fell apart. Matt Ryan and Matt Bryant stopped being as clutch as they were in previous years. Our defense was never able to properly rush the passer. It simply felt as if the was unable to catch any break. Yes, it was Dan Quinn’s first year in Atlanta but after that our start last year, I was not satisfied with finishing the season 8 and 8. The team had set itself up early for a better year than that.
With the new additions and Dan Quinn settling in to the head coaching job, the Falcons have the potential to have a great year and challenge the Panthers for the NFC East. Our Dirty Birds will get it together this season and rise up.
