Pittsburgh Steelers Meet the Opponent: Atlanta Falcons

Offense

Total offense: 410.8 ypg (7th)
Passing offense: 314.8 ypg (6th)
Rushing offense: 96 ypg (21st)
Points Per Game: 29 ppg (6th)

Atlanta’s been known to have one of the more explosive offenses in the league the last few years, and it all starts with quarterback Matt Ryan. The 11 year veteran currently sits at a 68.3% of completed passes, which would be the second best of his career, only behind his 2016 MVP season. Ryan currently has amounted 1,316 yards with a 10-2 TD/INT ratio. Needless to say, Ryan looks to again be one of the better quarterbacks in the league should he keep his current pace up.

Ryan’s go-to guy just so happens to be one of the best receivers in the league in Julio Jones. Jones, often compared to Antonio Brown, uses his freakish 6’3″ frame along with his athleticism to do everything and anything asked of a receiver. Jones currently leads the league in receiving yards, going for 502 yards on 29 receptions thus far. As phenomenal as Jones has been, he has yet to find the end-zone in regular season play since November 26th of last year (9 games). Despite his apparent end-zone woes, Jones poises the capability to explode each and every week, and should give the Steelers another week of fits in the secondary.

The Falcons aerial offense doesn’t end there. Rather, it only begins. Rookie Calvin Ridley out of Alabama has found the end-zone six times thus far, while four other receivers have just one to their name. Ridley has proved to be an effective compliment to Atlanta’s star receiver (Steelers fans, you recognize that narrative) while also sharing the ball with Mohamed Sanu, who’s registered one more target than Ridley thus far. The trio of Jones/Ridley/Sanu can be argued as the best in the league, with not many teams having a legitimate answer to the potent receiving corps.

Atlanta’s offensive line has currently given up 10 sacks on the year, enough to land their QB in the top-ten of quarterbacks sacked. The Falcons have yet to really establish a strong presence on the ground, ranking in the bottom half of the league in rushing attempts (96). However, the Falcons will welcome back Devonta Freeman from a knee injury that has kept him out since week one. Freeman will give a boost to a Falcons backfield that has featured Tevin Coleman in his absence. With Freeman active, the Falcons will revert back to their 2-RB system, with Freeman getting much of the work in passing scenarios out of the backfield.

Steve Sarkisian is currently in his second year as the Falcons offensive coordinator. Sarkisian replaced Kyle Shanahan when he departed for San Francisco, one of the game’s best offensive minds that had Atlanta scoring a league high 33.8 points per game before leaving. Sarkisian’s first year saw a decline in production for the offense, dropping over ten points per game offensively in 2017. Sark has the Falcons lighting up the scoreboard in 2018, scoring 30+ points in the last three contests.

With a weak Steelers secondary, look for the Falcons to spread the ball out. Ryan has thrown for no less than 28 attempts this year, and with a high-scoring affair in order, it’s perfectly reasonable to expect Ryan to hit near 35-40 attempts. It’s also reasonable to expect Atlanta to work Freeman back into his regular workload, with a dose of Coleman as well. The Falcons offense has proved it can light up defenses on a regular basis, and Sunday should hold no exceptions with the talent loaded everywhere.