Dirty Birds Dispatch: Undefeated 49ers up next

FLOWERY BRANCH — The 49ers are undefeated. The Falcons, wearing their red throwback helmets for the first time this season, are relishing the chance to play spoiler at 1 p.m. Sunday in Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

“Absolutely,” running back Bijan Robinson said. “That’s why you love this game. They’re a very good team. They’ve won every single game. And then, there’s an underdog story and everything.”

The Falcons certainly are an underdog. ESPN Analytics gives them just a 21.1% chance of victory. But the Falcons are operating with belief in pulling off the improbable, something they’ve grown increasingly prone to doing.

Of their eight wins last season, only three came when favored. They were underdogs in both of their wins this season, too. Perhaps that means oddsmakers don’t think much of the Falcons. Or perhaps that means the Falcons are merely wired to do what others think they can’t.

The answer may be somewhere in the middle. But that’s a complicated gray area. Quarterback Michael Penix Jr. has his own theory. Spoiler: It’s a lot simpler.

“I just think it’s NFL football,” Penix said Wednesday. “Every week, anybody can win. Obviously, you’ve got to respect their record, respect what they’ve been doing up to this point. But for us as a team, we can’t look at and focus on, ‘Oh, they’re 6-0,’ and the outside noise and what everybody else is saying.

“We’ve got to come in and play our football and our brand of football, so that’s what it’s about. Just us playing our brand of football and everything else will fall into place.”

Robinson said the Falcons are “really just focusing ourselves” on what they need to do to execute at a high level on every play. They have quite the challenge ahead, and a familiar face leading the defense they’ll face — the 49ers hired Raheem Morris, the Falcons’ coach for the past two years, as their defensive coordinator this spring.

• Morris returns to Atlanta with a chance at revenge

The Falcons have downplayed Morris’ return. Their best player, however, won’t downplay his excitement for the chance to ruin the 49ers’ undefeated season.

“These are the games that you love to play,” Robinson said.

Let’s dive into the 49ers — and much more — on this week’s Dirty Birds Dispatch.

Falcons’ offense hoping to get on track

The Falcons had 18 full possessions in Weeks 3 and 4, Penix’s first two starts of the season. They scored on 13 of them. That’s a 72.2% clip. Over the past two weeks, they’ve had 21 drives and scored on seven of them. That’s a 33% clip.

Have defenses adjusted to the Penix-led Falcons offense? Have the Falcons merely not executed? Are they in the midst of making the next move in the NFL’s never-ending chess match?

• Matt Ryan helped Jahan Dotson break through
• Andy Dalton felt he was led to Falcons

The Falcons have their staples, coach Kevin Stefanski said. But they’re also evolving, too, while finding the counterpunches to defensive adjustments. They’re seeking consistency in blending the two together, and Stefanski is optimistic they’ll achieve it.

“I feel really good about the group we have,” Stefanski said Wednesday. “I feel good about the things that we’re implementing, but you’ve got to go do it.”

Purdy playing at elite level

The Falcons’ secondary had a challenging time Sunday against Bears quarterback Caleb Williams, who completed 30 of 36 passes for 305 yards and one touchdown. The unit won’t get any reprieve this week.

Stefanski admits he hasn’t studied every team in the league — he’s focused on his opponent each week — but it’s hard for the 44-year-old coach to imagine any quarterback is playing better than 49ers star Brock Purdy.

The last pick in the 2022 draft, Purdy is tied for the league lead with 14 touchdown passes, while his 83 Quarterback Rating puts him in sole possession of first place. He’s second in the NFL in passing expected points added at 57.8, according to Next Gen Stats, and his 69.6% completion rate is fourth-best among qualified passers.

• Falcons open window for AJ Terrell’s return
• Kendal Daniels recaps frightening injury

Stefanski described Purdy as a “very, very special quarterback,” one who could make life difficult on the Falcons’ back-end Sunday.

“He’s an elite processor,” Stefanski said. “You see how quickly he gets through his progressions. He has elite accuracy. And I think he’s an elite scrambler. I think he’s the best or one of the best off-schedule quarterbacks playing right now. You watch him, he’s a smart scrambler. He’s looking to pass. And then when he runs, he can score from 50 yards out, as he’s done.

“So just very, very smart. Hard to get on the ground. This is a great player.”

Can Falcons get home against 49ers’ stout O-line?

While Purdy gets the bulk of the credit for the 49ers’ passing game, their offensive line deserves a nod, too. Purdy has only been sacked five times, fewest in the league among qualified quarterbacks, and he’s been pressured on just 27.4% of his dropbacks, the lowest rate in the NFL. He’s the only signal-caller to be pressured on under 30% of passing plays.

The Falcons’ pass rush has recorded four sacks in back-to-back weeks, and the group leads the NFL with 114 quarterback pressures through six games.

One side has to give.

Stefanski said the 49ers’ success up front stems from “a great combination of very good players, very good scheme,” and the ball coming out quickly. Getting pressure on Purdy is at the forefront of the Falcons’ defensive game plan.

“The quarterback does a nice job, even when he gets through to his third and fourth read — sometimes fifth read — he’s in the heart of the pocket,” Stefanski said. “And with the interior they have and the tackles they have, they set a very firm pocket that allows him to operate from there.

“So, like any game, we’re going to try and affect the quarterback. Sometimes via four-man pressure, five-man pressure, six-man pressure, whatever it ends up being. Affecting the quarterback’s a big part of how you try to slow this offense down.”

A return to norm in run defense

The Falcons were transparent about their run defense being unacceptable in a Week 5 loss to the Ravens. They allowed 208 rushing yards, more than they allowed the first four weeks combined, and several parties took blame — perhaps none more honest than defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich, who said he didn’t prepare his players enough for gap-scheme runs.

The Bears called a “decent bit” of gap runs, Stefanski said, which is in line with how they play. But the Falcons were more prepared and defended them at a higher level.

• Chicago entered Week 6 as the NFL’s best rushing attack, averaging 173.2 yards per game on the ground. The Falcons held the Bears to just 98 yards on 33 attempts, an average of 3 yards per carry.
• The Bears scored three rushing touchdowns, which doubled the Falcons’ season total, but their collective success on running plays paled in comparison to their body of work throughout the season.

Stefanski said the Falcons made the jump they desired in defending gap-scheme runs.

“These are good schemes. These are good players within these good schemes,” Stefanski said. “So, you’re trying to slow down the run game. You’re not going to just knock out the run game versus these outstanding teams. We’ve got to make sure that you’re about your business. You know what your reads and keys are. You get off blocks; you tackle well.

“All those boring things that we talk about — fundamentals — in order to have success in the run game.”

Injury report

Here’s the Falcons’ injury report from Wednesday’s practice. Of note, the Falcons have opened the window for cornerback AJ Terrell and receiver Beaux Collins — both on injured reserve — to return to practice. The team has 21 days to move them to the active roster.

Full participation

• LB Kendal Daniels (neck)

Limited participation

• WR Beaux Collins (hip)
• DE Samson Ebukam (hamstring)
• CB CJ Henderson (groin)
• OT Michael Jerrell (bicep)
• RB Brian Robinson (hamstring)
• DE Za’Darius Smith (neck)
• CB AJ Terrell (groin)
• CB Avieon Terrell (hamstring)
• WR Olamide Zaccheaus (shoulder)

Did not participate

• DB Billy Bowman (hamstring)
• LB Divine Deablo (forearm)