#371 Packers Unscripted: Falcons frustrations

And I tell you what, West, all you have to do is look at this team as an illustration of just how I guess unpredictable and fleeting success can be in the NFL. Because I was thinking about this the other day. Two months ago, the Atlanta Falcons were leading a Super Bowl twenty nine to three, and about eleven months ago, they were gold to go at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia with a chance to return to the NFC Championship game if they could get it in the

end zone in a goal to ghost situation. They did not get that. They did not get the title from that Super Bowl against the Patriots, and now they're sitting at four and eight and they are playing out the string, just like the Green Bay Packers are. Yeah, and the the real tough situation here for the Falcons as you look at them going into this game. Now. They had a big emotional win over Washington thirty eight to fourteen.

That was on November four, and since then they've dropped games to Cleveland, Dallas, New Orleans in Baltimore to bring a four game losing straight. Yeah, four losses in a row after a four and four record at the midway point, So sitting at four and eight. My biggest takeaway from this mic, and I said it the night of that Super Bowl, is that it is so difficult. The road is so hard, and so many things have to fall your way for you to not only win a Super Bowl,

but make it there. This is why it's gut wrenching, I think because there is no guarantees. It doesn't Just because you're the best team one year doesn't mean everything's gonna line up and you're gonna be the best team the next Look at the Packers in two thousand ten to two thousand eleven. Just because you have an m v P quarterback doesn't mean it's always going to fall into place. What's really peculiar about this particular team, though,

is they've had some terrible injuries this year. They lose Devonte Freeman. I think when you look at Kian O'Neil, one of the top hybrid type linebacker safety types in the league and do a multitude of different things. So injuries have you know, wage their ugly head there. But on the other side of it, you look at the defense in the primary playmakers, your Vic Beasley's of the world. Uh, you know, you look at Desmond Truffont, They've had a

lot of those guys there. The defense just hasn't responded and offensively they haven't consistent enough to be able to get past it. So I think you look at where the Packers are at and where the Falcons are at, there's a lot of parallels between those two teams that are going to meet at Lambeufield at New and Central time on Sunday. Yeah. When I look at this Falcons offense, you look at the statistics Matt Ryan is completing around

his passes, Julio Jones statistically having a monster season. They added the rookie Calvin Ridley out of Alabama to the receiving corps he's got I believe eight touchdown receptions. I don't.

I don't know how this team has scored less than twenty points four games in a row, in this four game losing streak with this offense, it's it's and yes, the loss of DeVante Freeman, I don't want to diminish that, but you still have Tevin Coleman in the backfield and all of these weapons, Mohammed Sanu, Austin Hooper, all of these other guys to go with Jones and Ridley in the passing game. With a quarterback who just won an m v P and deservedly so in two thousand and sixteen,

it's it's a head scratcher in a sense. West as to out early in the season, they lost a couple of shootouts. They lost a shootout to the Bengals, they lost an overtime shootout to the Saints that was part of the four and four start. But now in the four game losing streak that's dropped him to four and eight, they can't even get to twenty points. It's it's it's amazing, quite frankly. Yeah, And then also to mention their offensive line.

I mean Jake Matthews, Uh, you know, Alex Mack and Ryan Schrader are all there this year as well, So I mean Andy Leavitri has been out for the year, but they still have most of those big components are

offensive line. So it has been a head scratcher. But when I was going and doing my research before we hopped in here to talk about the Falcons, I couldn't help but look at their record, look at their schedule, and not draw some of those those comparisons in my head that Joe Philbin had talked about at the podium on Monday about sometimes that self fulfilling prophecy a little bit when the winds aren't going your way, when the production isn't going your way, when the wind just isn't

quite blowing in the direction you needed to blow, you start to fall into a rut. And then that rut ends up leading a fewer big plays and fewer you know, capitalized opportunities, and then you start getting in a losing streak. So yeah, that's where the Falcons are at. This is a fascinating match up on a number of levels, though, because I think when both of these two teams are playing at their absolute best. Yeah, they're they're playoff contending teams.

They have that kind of ability, they have that kind of talent on both sides of the ball. But I think it's been an issue of just not getting enough big plays out of your playmakers. Looking specifically at Atlanta twenty six right now. In total defense, when they have the resources that they've invested into that defense, you need more production that you need more pressure on the quarterback than they've been getting, and it just hasn't been there

this season. Yeah. Now this is the rematch obviously of the two thousand and sixteen NFC title game that was down in Atlanta, which the Falcons won, but I believe it was three touchdowns or so. They clearly were the class of the NFC that year and as we know, they should have won the Super Bowl. But when you look at this Packers team, certainly on the defensive side of the ball, this is a very different Packers team than the one that went to Atlanta for that NFC

championship game. But the Falcons personnel wise offense and defense, aside from you know, the addition of Ridley from the draft and maybe one or two others, it kind of still looks like the same team, you know, yet the Packers, at least on the defensive side of the ball, are very different. Yeah, no, it is. I mean, like I said, they lost two of their big playmakers offensively and defensively

with DeVonta Freeman going down. But before Devonte Freeman became a thing in the NFL, Tevin Coleman was there starting running backs. Injuries that sort of pushed Freeman to the lineup and let him become the kind of difference maker

every down back that he became. And I think when you look at what Neil had done, and especially in that NFC Championship game, what he and and some of the players that they had in that defense, the way that they were able to really gel and galvanize themselves during the final stretch of that season propelled the Falcons to being, you know, a Super Bowl contending team. And

then you said you mentioned Austin Hooper earlier. I've been following Hooper all season, just a young and that has really come into his own the last two seasons, has become more in each week, it seems like more and more of a primary target for Matt Ryan and Kelvin Ridley. Well, he did have a kind of a lull there mid season, has had a resurgence here the last couple of weeks has been a big end zone target, as you mentioned,

with a touchdown. So there's a lot of weapons the Packers are going to have to take into account defensively to be able to hold Matt Ryan and check because like many of these other top flight quarterbacks they've seen this season, Ryan gets the ball out quickly, he lets things develop down field, but isn't afraid to work underneath. And with having Ridley Sanu who had a big game against the Packers two years ago, uh, Jones and and Hooper certainly don't have to keep in mind the the

receiving aspect that Freeman provides. But still, that's a lot of weapons to shut down. Yeah, and I've always felt that Mohammed Sanu is one of the more underrated and under the radar type of receivers in this league. Yes, he benefits from the attention that Julio Jones gets and now that Calvin Ridley is getting. But Mohammed Sanu is a guy who can he he can do some damage in his own right, and he can win his one on one matchups so I mean if if they're giving

extra attention to Jones Freeman, uh those other weapons. He's a guy, as we saw in the NFC title game two years ago. When you give him one on one look, he's going to take advantage of it. Yeah, alright, well quickly was before I forget because I have a tendency to do that once in a while. Packers fans be sure to stopped in at your local quick Trip and pick up your Packers cup today. Get eighty nine cent refills on your Cafe Karuba coffee all season long, and

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I'm certain almost create this like West overtime period when you're coming out of it is now where I jumped back in. I just wanted to point this out because we'll get in on Friday. Two keys to victory, but a very quirky stat that worked out, and I'd be very interested if like Alias or somebody else could figure this out. The Packers last week face the thirty two ranked rushing offense in the league right right this week now,

Atlanta is now last ranked in rushing offense in the NFL. Now, to make a point in terms of the key to victory, the Packers for the most part, Blake Martinez. I was talking with him about this after the game. They did a good job of being able to shut down David Johnson consistently, but that third quarter kind of got away

from them. They're going to need to put that kind of complete performance together against Atlanta because we know, unlike with Josh Rosen, who was kind of you know, in you know, inaccurate, you could say, you know, Matt Ryan's gonna be able to cut you up there if you if you'd let them be two dimensional. Well, it was interesting with the Packers run defense against the Cardinals, as good a job, I thought as they did against David Johnson.

It was when the Cardinals turned to Edmonds, that's suddenly the explosive plays were happening, and and the Packers really didn't adjust to that very well. And Edmonds became a huge part of that offense in Arizona pulling out that victory. Yeah, it was. I mean, he was the difference baker for them, and I don't think you and I said his name

once in the lead up to that game. So from this perspective that I'd be really interested to see the last time the Packers have faced back to back rushing offenses that we're dead last in the league, and then three weeks ago it was Minnesota who was thirty one. So kind of a weird stretch that they've kind of underwentire in this final half of the season. Yeah. Well, on the defensive side of the ball, that's really where

the Falcons have had the majority of their injuries. As you said, some of their key guys have certainly been there throughout the season, but they do have a guy with a half dozen interceptions in the secondary here. He's a playmaker year. You have to pay attention to tell us about him. Yeah, So Demonte CAZy, second year player for them fifth round draft pick a year ago. It's really coincidental the way this works out. He has six

picks on the year, the Falcons in general only have nine. Uh, So he's stepped up in that way and has sort of been become a big playmaker for them. They don't have Ricardo Lamas this year, so it's been basically him and obviously with Neil being out, so he's been kind of the big playmaker for them on the back end so far this season out of San Diego State. UM from San Bernardino, California, So I'd be curious. I have to ask Kenny Clark if he has a background with

him at all. Um, But it's been a big play target for them this year. It's been kind of interesting how that's worked out. Only has fifty to receive like interception return yards, but as you and I have both seen Mike over the years, when you have a player that gets over five six interceptions, the kind of difference

it makes for a secondary Yeah. Absolutely. Um. Interestingly, with the Falcons we saw you know again, we keep referring to that two thousand sixteen NFC Championship game because that's really our reference point with the Falcons. Vick Beasley was was kind of tough to handle that day, But um, he's not having the type of season at this point that that the Falcons were counting on. He's not, I said, Ricardo Amas, not Ricardo Allen. Who's who I meant to say.

Ricardo Lamas is a UFC fighter, So I apologize. I knew her, I knew who you meant, but Allen, I missed the miss miss speaking. I'm glad I caught myself on that. Ricardo Allen has been a big presence there was in that NFC Championship game, a starter for them for many season. He's been out for the year. So I was just making the point here out since Week four whatever it is that that Casey has kind of been thrown in the lineup because of that. Your question again, Sorry,

I was distracted. No, I was just talking about Vick Beasley and that when when the type of postseason that he had when the Falcons made that run to the Super Bowl a couple of years ago, he was he was a big time player on that defense and they've been looking for a lot out of him, and so far this year they haven't really gotten what they were hoping for Yeah, so I don't I can't give you a full scouting report on what Vic Beasley's two thousand eighteen season has been like, but I will say this,

I was really taken aback when I brought up the statistics and saw that, Okay, he was there an injury or something. No, He's played in twelve games for them, he started eight thirteen tackles, three sacks. In the past deflection, you go back to the NFC Championship game when he was on the tail end of his Pro Bowl season fifteen and a half sacks, six force fumbles in the

regular season, the place he made during the postseason. It looked like this young man was going to become the next you know, Khalil Mack like that, that type of difference maker in this league. And over the last two seasons, five sacks for him last year in fourteen games, three in twelve this year. Two of those came against Dallas two weeks ago. So it's been really interesting how this

has worked out. And I think one of the issues so far this year for the Falcons with their twenty six ranked defense, they only have twenty three sacks tack McKinley, who is a former teammate of of some of these used former u c l A players on the Packers roster. He currently leads them right now with five and a half sacks, but just getting after the quarterback has been kind of a problem for them this year and something the Packers are gonna have to keep in mind in

this matchup. Yeah, well, the Falcons. Falcons looking to snap a four game losing streak. As we mentioned, the Packers been on the skids as we know since the bye week, losing five out of six. Looking to turn things around under interim head coach Joe philbin Um. Dan Quinn, the head coach of the Falcons. You know, it's inevitable that they're always gonna be discussions of job security and whatnot.

It's it's it's astounding to me that, as I said, even last year, coming off the Super Bowl loss, they were goal to go against Philadelphia on the road in the Divisional playoffs with a chance to get a touchdown and get back to the NFC Championship game. And now suddenly they're they're even rumblings about how secure dan Quinn is in is that land? I don't know how seriously to take those when it's just one down year. But we've been talking about the personnel and everything on the team.

They are. They are a hard team to figure out this year, and hopefully, for the Packer's sake, they can the Packers can keep them on the the downside of things at least for another week, because Green Bay needs a victory just as badly as these guys. They really do, Mike, and I'm really interested to see. You know, dan Quinn is a defensive mastermind, right. I mean that's how he cut his teeth in this league where he didn't built that Seattle defense and then and then that's how he

got the head coaching job in at Lane. Yeah, so I'm sure there is that aspect that he really does want to get this defense back on track. I think one thing that is going to help them, I you know, last week Dion Jones. They finally got him back. He had fifteen tackles in that game against Baltimore, and again not to keep referencing two thousand and sixteen, but you saw him in that game and as a hybrid type

player what he provides that defense. So there was a little bit of a uh, you know, comeback there from one of their top guys. But that being said, the

statistics still are what they are. And I'm sure we haven't had a chance to talk to him at this point in time, but I'm sure that's something that's that's kind of grinding at him a little bit, is that the defense hasn't been what I think they thought they were going to be in terms of having Matt Ryan, having that offense and having the explosiveness there, but also

a defense to compliment that. It's been a little in balance for the Falcons so far this season, and then in the times in which the offense isn't able to point put points up. You've seen teams like Cleveland, You've seen teams like Baltimore be able to have the success that they've had. Yeah, all right, well I've got a run and I know you do too, So we're going to call it a wrap on this edition of Packers Unscripted. Be sure to follow all of our coverage of the

team on Packers dot com on Twitter. You can still find him at west Hot I'm at Mike Spofford at Packers for the team account. Thanks for tuning in, everybody, We'll see you next time.