Dirty Birds Dispatch: Falcons have not found a way

What went wrong in the Raheem Morris administration?

We’ve got a month to try to figure it out.

The fans want to hear from owner Arthur Blank, but he continues to walk in silence.

THE FIRST TWO YEARS

Falcons owner Arthur Blank walks the sideline during the second half of Sunday's blowout loss to the Seahawks.

Perhaps Blank will show Morris and his staff some grace and allow them to continue into a third season.

Kyle Shanahan and Dan Campbell struggled in their first two seasons with the 49ers and Lions before turning things around.

• Shanahan, after leaving the Falcons, went 6-10 in 2017 and 4-12 for a combined 10-22. He went 13-4 the next season.
• Campbell went 3-13-1 in 2021 and 9-8 the next season for a combined 12-21-1. He went 12-5 in his third season.

WHERE TO WATCH (AND LISTEN)

Tonight’s game will be the 65th regular-season meeting between the Falcons and Buccaneers. The series is tied, 32-32.

The slumping teams — and the ghost of Tom Brady — will kick things off at 8:15 p.m. Atlanta receiver Drake London will sit out again.

📺 On TV: Amazon Prime

• Play by play: Al Michaels
• Analyst: Kirk Herbstreit
• Sideline: Kaylee Hartung

📻 On local radio: 92.9 FM The Game

• Play-by-play: Wes Durham
• Analyst: David Archer

📡 On national radio: Westwood One

• Play by play: Jason Benetti
• Analyst: Kyle Rudolph

3 KEY MATCHUPS

1️⃣ Falcons LB Kaden Elliss vs. Bucs RB Bucky Irving: Elliss leads the team with 88 tackles. He also has 3.5 sacks, nine tackles for loss and 10 quarterback hits. He will be charged with helping to slow down the Bucs’ rushing attack.

Irving returned to the lineup against the Cardinals on Nov. 30 after missing seven weeks with foot and ankle injuries. He rush 17 times for 61 yards in the 20-17 win over the Cardinals. Last week, he rushed 15 times for 55 yards in the 24-20 loss to the Saints. He’s backed up by Rachaad White.

“They’re both good players,” Elliss said. “A little different. Both are fast and explosive. We are going to have to come ready to play.”

2️⃣ Falcons CB Dee Alford vs. Bucs WR Chris Godwin: Alford has taken over at nickel back for the injured Billy Bowman. He’s been solid, but this will be his biggest challenge. Godwin returned from a fibula injury in Week 12 and is starting to heat up. He caught three passes for 78 yards against the Cardinals on Nov. 30 and five passes for 55 yards in their recent outing against the Saints.

3️⃣ Falcons RB Bijan Robinson vs. Bucs LB Lavonte David: The dynamic Robinson got loose for a 50-yard touchdown on a swing pass in the first meeting. He had his streak of three games with at least 100 scrimmage yards stopped in the last outing against the Seahawks.

David, a one-time Pro Bowler, is in his 14th season in the league. David is second on the Bucs with 90 tackles. He also has seven tackles for losses, five quarterback hits and 2.5 sacks.

• Robinson needs another big game vs. Bucs
• Interior offensive line has a challenge ahead

JESSIE BATES SPEAKS

Falcons safety Jessie Bates III warms up before the team's September matchup with Tampa Bay.

We checked in with Falcons safety Jessie Bates III, and he’s bullish on the youthful foundation of the defense.

Here’s what he had to say.

🗣️ On rookie outside linebacker James Pearce Jr.: “I think he’s really starting to figure out what it takes a week in, a week out, to be productive in this league. He’s got a hell of a leader with Flo (Leonard Floyd) who’s played it at this high level in this league. … So, I really think he’s starting to figure out the process of what it looks like.”

🗣️ On rookie outside linebacker Jalon Walker: “Yeah, I’ll say the whole rookie class. Honestly, they got a unique bond with each other, with Billy (Bowman) and X (Xavier Watts) even when you see like those two, and then you see James and J-Walk all the time with each other. So yeah, it’s like brothers, almost like twin brothers that do a really good job of going off the edge. They just continue to help each other outside of the locker room … a brother next to you that you can learn from and learn from his mistakes and stuff like that. So that’s big time when you can have that type relationship with a teammate.”

🗣️ On AJ Terrell being the Walter Payton Man of Year nominee: “I’ve been here for three years now, but over the time, just seeing what the city means to him and the amount of events that he does every single off day, he’s got something going on. He’s a busy man.

“He takes pride in wanting to do for the city of Atlanta. It just says a lot about the person that AJ is. He always says he’s born in New York, but this is what you know, Atlanta raised him. So he has a lot of a lot of love, and wants to show support to the youth in the city. So, you can’t say enough good things about AJ.”

🗣️ On rookie safety Xavier Watts: “I think if you look at the body of work that he’s put out there this year. I think it’s one of the best in the league. I think that Pro Bowl voting, it kind of comes with your winning record as well, you got to be winning. But I think you turn on the tape and watch X playing, you understand why he’s one of the top safeties in this league.”

TALE OF THE TAPE

Here’s a closer statistical look at the Falcons-Buccaneers matchup, with league rankings in parentheses.

FALCONS — BUCCANEERS

19.4 (27) — Points/Game — 23.0 (18)

330.0 (16) — Total Yards/Game — 315.0 (22)

123.6 (11) — Rush Yards/Game — 115.2 (20)

206.4 (18) — Pass Yards/Game — 199.8 (20)

29:07 (24) — Time of Possession — 31:31 (7)

24.1 (20) — Opponent Points/Game — 25.0 (23)

322.5 (14) — Opponent Total Yards/Game — 338.4 (21)

131.0 (25) — Opponent Rush Yards/Game — 100.6 (8)

191.5 (9) — Opponent Pass Yards/Game — 237.8 (27)

+2 (11) — Turnover Margin — +9 (4)

MAILBAG TIME

A file photo shows Georgia Tech linebacker James Liipfert celebrating a victory.

📬 Reader Scott Mathews: Hey good morning Mr D. Orlando. I always enjoy your candid and accurate articles in the AJC. You tell it like it is and for that I salute you.

If the Falcons do make a decision to clean house, I have a GM suggestion for them. The Houston Texans are the hottest team in football right now. I would strongly suggest Mr. Blank take a look at their (assistant) GM, James Liipfert, as the next Falcons GM. He is a great talent evaluator and played linebacker at GT.

Keep up the great work.

My response: Good morning Scott,

Thank you for your kind words. It’s going to be an interesting offseason around here. I see that Mr. Liipert is the assistant general manager of the Texans and was with the Patriots for nine seasons.

📬 Reader Jack Futch: This week when you’re on (92.9 The Game (doing) jokes with Dukes and dummy, are you guys going to talk about going capri pants shopping at Lenox Mall? Why not blast this terrible owner. #practice real journalism

My response: Hello Mr. Futch,

I do not go to Lenox mall for capri pants. I don’t know what that has to do with anything. I like suits from Jos. A. Bank. I’ll get a seersucker suit from K&G. What do capri pants have to do with anything? I like bow ties, too. Go find Cunningham’s column on Arthur Blank ownership post-2013.

📬 Reader Jack Futch: When are you going to ask the hard questions?????? Practice real journalism. Hold the Falcons accountable!!!!!

My response: Jack, you’re not paying attention. I always ask the tough questions.

📬 Reader Hugh Glass: Please start listing new coaches for the Falcons. Morris will end up with a 60% losing record as a head coach. Fans will burn down the stadium and boycott all AB teams and stores if he doesn’t fire him. Nobody wants to read anything about the Falcons anymore so maybe your readers will like to hear about new coaching options and GM options. Neither TF or RM had the credentials to be in (their) jobs. RM proved he is not a good judge of coaching talent also.

My response: Thanks for reading. Let this season play out. Real fans — like in Detroit and Cleveland — would stick with their teams through the tough times and not threaten ownership with economic withdrawal. Lions and Browns fans have stuck around no matter what. Either you are a real fan or a bandwagon jumper.

PHOTO OF THE WEEK

Falcons owner Arthur Blank (right) greets head coach Raheem Morris after Sunday's loss to Seattle.