Falcons’ Zac Robinson charged with fixing the team’s offensive woes

FLOWERY BRANCH — Falcons offensive coordinator Zac Robinson has to drag his unit out of the gutter.

“We’ve got to fix it, and we’ve got to fix it fast,” Robinson said.

Since jumping to a 21-7 lead against Buffalo in the second quarter, the Falcons have had 28 possessions and have scored only one touchdown while the game was in question. They added a late garbage-time touchdown while getting blown out by Miami.

The Falcons (3-4) will have a formidable task when they face the Patriots (6-2) at 1 p.m. Sunday at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts.

After jumping to a lead against the Bills, the Falcons’ offense went into hibernation. They scored only a touchdown in the 20-10 loss to the 49ers and one late against the Dolphins.

“The last two weeks have not (been) reflective of what we had built, the previous two weeks,” Robinson said. “We felt like we built some really positive momentum from Washington, coming off the Carolina game to build some more momentum into the Buffalo game.”

But since the first half against Buffalo, the Falcons have been misfiring on offense.

“San Fran, there (was) a lot of things to clean up in that game,” Robinson said. “(Against Miami) we just got to play a lot better across the board. We’ve got to coach better, all those things.”

Robinson believes the Falcons can rediscover the end zone.

“I told the guys, like, we’re still two weeks removed from what we had against Buffalo,” Robinson said. “So, we haven’t forgotten how to play. We still have good players. We have good coaches. It’s just getting back to that and just maintaining a level of consistency. I think that’s across the board.”

The Falcons plan to get their rushing attack rolling. The 49ers and Dolphins held the Falcons to 62 yards and 45 yards rushing, respectively.

“Obviously, we have not been able to run it as well the last couple of weeks,” Robinson said. “We’ll get a lot of those things cleaned up just from an identification standpoint, making sure we’re going to the right people. That’s been kind of the biggest issue the last couple of weeks of running the rock.”

Robinson knows that time is of the essence. He compared the situation with the atmosphere around the team after the shocking 30-0 loss to the Panthers on Sept. 21.

“So, it feels kind of (like our) back (is) against the wall, similar to (after) Carolina,” Robinson said. “When we came out against Washington, great energy. We played really well in that game. It sucks to be in the same position again.”

Robinson believes the players and coaches will respond to the adversity.

“We just got to stack days, got to have a great walk-through, got to have great practice,” Robinson said. “Got to stack a day (Wednesday), tomorrow. ... We’ve got to have a great week of prep. I know once Sunday comes around, those guys will be ready to roll.”

The Patriots, who have won five games in a row, are perhaps the hottest team in the NFL and are anchored by a stout, attacking-styled defense. Under Mike Vrabel, who’s in his first season as the Patriots head coach, the defense is playing well. For the first time since 1950 the Patriots have played the first eight weeks of a season without allowing a running back to gain 50 yards in a game.

“I think they’re just really sound across the board,” Robinson said. “They’ve got talent at all three levels. Look at the interior part of the defensive lines, the edges. They’ve got really good players across the board. So, we know we’ll be in for a great challenge. Our guys will be fired up and ready to roll.”

Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. suffered a bone bruise in his left knee late in the game against San Francisco and did not play against the Dolphins. Kirk Cousins made his first start of the season Sunday and couldn’t move the offense.

Penix participated during the walk-through and during the open portion of practice Wednesday.

“He feels better than he did last week,” Falcons coach Raheem Morris said. “Obviously, he feels better than he did every single day with it being a bone bruise. That stuff gets better every day. So, I feel really good about him.”

Wide receiver Drake London also missed the Miami game with a hip injury. He had 110 yards receiving against Washington and 158 against the Bills. Against the 49ers, he caught 4 of 10 targets for 42 yards.