Apologies for picking nits, but that's kind of why I'm here. (Well, isn't it?) The Atlanta Falcons played well and were deserving winners against Carolina on Sunday. Their offense was terrific. Their defense was, if not quite good, then good enough. Therein rests our quibble.
The Falcons managed 442 yards against a solid defense. That’s an A. The Falcons yielded 439 yards to a team that had managed 293 in its winning opener against Dallas. That’s not an A. Some of those could filed under – borrowing from Jim Mora, ever quotable – “empty yards,” meaning those surrendered when a trailing team has no recourse but to throw. Still, the Panthers never trailed by more than 14 points, and if D.J. Moore could have held the final pass of regulation, they’d have been headed to overtime.
Even worse: Carolina mustered 439 yards without tight end Greg Olsen, which meant Cam Newton’s 335 yards passing – only twice over the past two regular seasons has he thrown for more – were achieved without his favorite target. Generally speaking, Newton without Olsen is like Butch without Sundance. On this day, however, Cam found a way.
It took him time to find it. With 1:44 remaining in the third quarter, the Falcons had more than doubled the Panthers in yardage (358 to 168) and points (24 to 10). Then Newton got going, and the Falcons seemed content to watch him work. They didn’t sack him in the second half. He completed 16 of 22 passes for 223 yards and two touchdowns in the fourth quarter. Let’s be clear: Had Carolina somehow won in overtime, it would have been a stolen victory. But this is the NFL, and those happen. Think Aaron Rodgers on Sunday night against the Bears.
This was supposed to be the season when the Falcons’ defense rose to the level of its high-falutin’ and high-salaried offense. With Keanu Neal lost for the season and Deion Jones for at least half of it, that’s probably not going to happen. Maybe it wouldn’t have happened anyway. The Falcons’ front seven has two sacks – both by Takkarist McKinley. (Cornerback Brian Poole also has two.) Vic Beasley, who led the NFL in sacks in 2016 and who’s again a defensive end, has been credited with one solo tackle in two games.
Duke Riley, who figures to be the chief replacement for Jones, missed the tackle on Moore that became the 55-yard touchdown that galvanized Carolina's comeback. Damontae Kazee, seeing more snaps with Neal shelved, was ejected for unnecessary roughness after hitting the sliding Newton in the head and faces a certain fine and a possible suspension. For all the brave talk about the depth of this roster – and it is, we stipulate, an excellent roster – there's a reason your starters are starting. This defense won't be as stout without two All-Pros.
If the offense plays as it did Sunday, that mightn’t much matter. (Witness the stirring run of 2016, when Matt Ryan and Co. essentially outscored its own defense right up until the fourth quarter of the Super Bowl.) But this star-spangled display came 10 days after another dreary showing in Philadelphia, and we can’t yet know which marks the exception and which the rule. (Steve Sarkisian, international man of mystery!)
We can, however, offer this: With these resources, it would be difficult for this offense not to be excellent. Without Neal and Jones, it will be tough for this defense to rise to a similar exalted plane. That doesn’t mean these Falcons can’t win 11 games and take the NFC South. It just means the anticipated moment of true defensive arrival might have to wait until 2019.
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