The Falcons faltered late in Sunday’s game against the Washington Football Team on both sides of the ball. The defense gave up a touchdown drive, that brought Washington within two points, against a replacement-level quarterback in Taylor Heinicke in the only way the Falcons know how to lose — excruciating fashion. Heinicke scrambled for what seemed like forever, then launched a prayer into the endzone, which Terry McLaurin caught.
After that, though, the Falcons’ offense went three and out in the final minutes of the game. A couple of first downs would’ve put the game on ice, but Arthur Smith’s group couldn’t muster enough. Atlanta had a 2-point lead, and Smith dialed up three straight plays for Mike Davis. Those two runs and screen netted just six yards, forcing the Falcons to punt to Washington for a game-winning drive.
There was criticism from the fan base about the conservative approach, but if the Falcons run game was something they could rely on, Smith could’ve iced the game easily. Even though Cordarrelle Patterson had the big day against Washington, Mike Davis is more than capable of getting a first down. Unfortunately, the offensive line (tight ends included) couldn’t do their jobs well enough, which has been an issue all season.
The Falcons have run the ball 94 times for 347 yards and one touchdown this year — 3.7 yards per carry and 86.8 yards per game. They rank 24th in rush attempts and 25th in rush yards among all NFL teams. And outside of the first quarter of the season, their rushing game has been nonexistent. Arthur Smith dialed up 12 run plays that averaged 6.6 yards in the first quarter of the Eagles game, totaling 87 rushing yards IN THE FIRST QUARTER.
Mike Davis had eight attempts for 40 yards, and Cordarrelle Patterson carried the ball four times for 38 yards — 5.0 and 9.5 yards per carry, respectively. It seemed like Atlanta had finally found the run game they’ve been searching for since Kyle Shanahan was the offensive coordinator. But all of that has gone out the window.
Since that encouraging first quarter against Philadelphia, Davis has carried the rock 41 times for 111 yards, averaging 2.7 yards per carry. Patterson has 23 rushing attempts for 81 yards in that same timespan, averaging 3.5 yards per carry. Those numbers aren’t conducive to winning football games, especially when you lean on it most late in the game. If the Falcons had a reliable rushing attack, Arthur Smith would’ve earned the second win of his career.
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