Falcons’ problems run deeper than just Cooper Rush

The Falcons and Steelers combined for one of the worst offensive showings in NFL history, with all three touchdowns from the game coming as a result of a turnover.

On the one hand, there are a lot of positives to discuss surrounding the defense, and even Bijan Robinson continued tearing teams to shreds on the other side of the ball. However, the offense overall looked no better than what you’d find at your local high school here in Georgia, and the issues ran much deeper than just the quarterback.

Falcons Offensive Line

The Falcons have invested a ton of money into their offensive line, most recently making Matthew Bergeron the highest-paid guard in the league. Chris Lindstrom on the other side is up there as well, and Jake Matthews is also being paid handsomely at left tackle.

It didn’t look like it on Sunday. The Falcons were called for holding six times, with four of those penalties being accepted — both rank dead last in the league through one week. They also surrendered four sacks, which is pretty impressive considering Cooper Rush only dropped back 26 times, and more often than not, he was targeting a quick option in the flat.

The Steelers have a menacing defensive line, led by T.J. Watt — one of the best defensive players over the last decade. But several members of the Falcons offensive line are getting paid like the best at their respective positions, and all of them underwhelmed on Sunday. For now, we can chalk it up to a small sample size against a good defense with a quarterback who wasn’t doing them any favors, but they have to be way better moving forward, or this team is going to struggle to get to six wins.

Falcons Kicking Woes

Kicking woes doomed the Falcons on several occasions last year as they cycled through three different field goal kickers before finally landing on Zane Gonzalez, who brought some stability to the position, making 19 of 22 attempts over the final nine games.

But for whatever reason, that wasn’t good enough to keep him around. Instead, the new regime preferred 41-year-old Nick Folk, who looked every bit of his age in his first game with the Falcons, missing two of his four attempts. That ultimately was the difference in the game, because Atlanta found themselves looking for touchdowns in the fourth quarter instead of a go-ahead field goal.

Folk has been arguably the most reliable kicker in the league over the last three seasons. He entered Sunday’s game having missed only three field goals since the start of the 2023 campaign, so he’s earned a little bit of grace. That said, he’s coming up on 42 years old, and the cliff when kickers get to that age tends to be pretty steep once things start heading in the wrong direction.

Falcons Injuries

The offense has stayed mostly healthy up to this point. Chris Lindstrom did suffer a concussion in the loss and his status is up in the air for Week 2, but most of the concerns lie across the defensive front. James Pearce Jr. has seven more games to serve of his suspension. Jalon Walker is out for the season with a torn ACL, and now Da’Shawn Hand will also miss the remainder of the campaign after suffering a torn quad. The Falcons defensive front was spectacular against the Steelers, but they are running out of depth fast, which could rear its ugly head later in the season.

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(Photo by John Adams/Icon Sportswire)