Falcons: The lack of protection for Matt Ryan is worse than you think

The Falcons’ offensive line was always going to be fighting an uphill battle against the defensive front of the Buccaneers. The group of Jake Matthews–Jalen Mayfield–Matt Hennessy/Drew Dalman–Chris Lindstrom–Kaleb McGary is no match for Ndamukong Suh, Vita Vea, William Gholston, Jason Pierre-Paul, and Shaq Barrett; in fact, there aren’t many offensive lines that can stave off Tampa’s front.

On Sunday, Matt Ryan was battered and bruised in the loss. Whether it be the receivers’ lack of separation, the porous offensive line, or Ryan holding the ball too long, the Bucs got after the Falcons quarterback. The offensive line established running lanes on the opening drive, but they couldn’t sustain them. As a result, Ryan was sacked five times and hit 11 more.

The most important story along the line has to be the center rotation between Hennessy and Dalman. The second-year center started the game rotating every two series with the rookie, but the staff decided to go in a different direction after Dalman and Ryan fumbled two different exchanges. In the second half, it was all Hennessy.

Now, the Falcons will face the Panthers, who sacked Ryan three times and hit him another eight in the first matchup. Atlanta has struggled to protect Ryan all year, evident in this unsurprising statistic.

Total QB Hits Allowed Through Week 13:

TB: 40
ARI: 43
LAR: 48
PHI: 50
PIT: 56
CLE*, SF: 57
DAL: 60
LV: 62
BUF, GB*: 64
JAX: 65
NE, WAS: 67
KC, MIN: 68
NO: 69
HOU: 71
DET, NYG, TEN*: 72
CAR*, CHI, MIA, NYJ: 74
CIN: 75
LAC, SEA: 77
BAL, DEN: 83
IND: 84
ATL: 92

*Bye

— Johnny Kinsley (@Brickwallblitz) December 7, 2021

Atlanta has allowed the most quarterback hits in the NFL… that is a recipe for failure, my friends. The Falcons will have a chance at sneaking into the playoffs if they can win four of their last five games, but with this kind of protection, they might be better suited to skip the postseason and address the offensive line. Obviously, we all want the Falcons in the playoffs; however, the future of the offensive line is concerning, to say the least. Mayfield has shown faint progress through his rookie season, while Hennessy and McGary are inconsistent. The Falcons have about five reliable starters on offense, but that’s not enough nowadays in the NFL.