The Falcons will face a lousy Panthers team on Sunday, marking their third division matchup in as many weeks. Carolina may have a secret weapon, though — The Red Rifle, Andy Dalton.
Dalton is a perfect 4-0 in his career against the Falcons, 2-0 with the Bengals and a win with the Saints and Cowboys each. He only threw one pass for Dallas, but in the other three contests, Dalton was dealing.
In those three games against the Falcons, Andy Dalton was 55-of-81 passing for 740 yards and six touchdowns. Fortunately for Atlanta, the Panthers are a much worse team than any of those other three.
Since taking over for Bryce Young, Dalton owns a 1-2 record as a starter with a 65.1% completion percentage, 675 yards, five touchdowns and two interceptions.
The veteran signal caller completed 18-of-28 passes but for only 136 yards and an interception last week, good for a 61.0Â passer rating. In Dalton’s first two starts, he averaged 170 yards a game, with five touchdowns and one interception.
The Falcons, on the other hand, have had mixed results on defense. They haven’t been able to stop the run at any point, with opposing offenses averaging nearly 150 yards per game, ranking near the bottom of the league. Jimmy Lake’s defense has allowed opposing passers to complete a league-best 74.34% of passes, even though they’re only allowing 187.4 passing yards per game.
The Falcons don’t give up a lot of pass yards because offenses can just run down their throat. Against a run-heavy Panthers offense, they’ll have their hands full. It’ll be one of those games that Falcons fans expect to win but they might be surprised how much fight the Panthers have on Sunday.
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