FLOWERY BRANCH — The Falcons ran the ball well Sunday against the Saints’ perennially top-ranked run defense.
Now the Falcons must sync their passing attack to keep teams off balance.
The Falcons (0-1) will need to keep the Rams (0-1) off balance when they face the defending Super Bowl champions at 4:05 p.m. Sunday at SoFi Stadium.
“Well, there are a lot of things, first and foremost being able to trust what we are able to do out on the practice field is going to show up in the game,” Falcons quarterback Marcus Mariota said. “Our type of preparation, our guys can kind of fall back on that. They don’t have to think about hey, ‘How is this going to do? Do I have to do this?’ I think what we do out on the field really translates to the game.”
Mariota completed 20 of 33 passes for 210 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions. He finished with a passer rating of 79.7.
“I thought we were really effective moving the football,” Falcons coach Arthur Smith said Wednesday. “I thought he made some really good decisions for us. So, it was good to see.”
Mariota had not started since Oct. 13, 2019, for the Titans against the Broncos. He was benched by the Titans, where Smith was the offensive coordinator at the time.
Mariota, who was the second player taken in the 2015 NFL draft, was a reserve with the Raiders for the past two seasons. The Falcons signed him to a modest two-year contract after trading Matt Ryan to the Colts.
“He started one game in the last 2 ½ years, give or take,” Smith said. “He was dialed in. He was ready to go. He made some big-time throws when we needed them.”
Rookie wide receiver Drake London led the Falcons in receiving, with five catches for 74 yards.
“I thought we did a good job of getting explosives in the passing game, too,” Mariota said. “I think that’s a credit to the offensive line and the run.”
Becoming more potent in the passing attack will help balance the offense and perhaps help with red-zone scoring.
“There is going to be a time and a place,” Mariota said of the passing attack. “It’s going to depend on who we are playing. What the scheme is. I think our guys are going to find the right zones or ways to win one-on-one matchups. I think we’ll be just fine.”
In addition to passing, Mariota ran 12 times for 72 yards. The Falcons went with a lot of the pistol formation and ran a slew of run-pass-option plays.
“(Mariota) certainly made some plays with his legs, and there were a lot of things we asked him to do at the line of scrimmage,” Smith said.
There were some missed throws and missed connections with tight end Kyle Pitts.
“How you want to attack somebody with a game plan going in,” Smith said when asked how to better sync the passing attack. “How you can adapt. But there is always critical lessons learned, whether you win the game or lose the game. That’s certainly our approach.”
Pitts caught only two passes, but “he had a huge impact on the game,” according to Smith.
“He affects the game,” Smith said. “I think the one thing that was very encouraging, I think Kyle, it’s not just lip service in one of these (exhibition) season stories, he blocked really well (Sunday).”
Pitts and London each had a team-high seven targets.
“We are certainly going to target Kyle, but we also have other good players,” Smith said. “If you want to take him away ... I’m very encouraged by what I saw by Drake. I thought he made some good plays and (receiver KhaDarel) Hodge. We’ll look to continue to improve and get everybody involved in the offense. Kyle had a huge impact on the game.”
The Falcons suspect they’ll need both facets of their offense against the Rams, who added perennial All-Pro linebacker Bobby Wagner.
“He’s got intelligence,” Smith said. “Obviously, instinct. He’s been a very productive player, similar to Demario (Davis of the Saints). Not the first time they’ve seen most of the stuff we’ll throw at him. Got great experience, tough, makes plays all over the tape. Have a lot of respect for him as well.”
Cordarrelle Patterson likely will be the focus after his career-high rushing performance.
“It’s a credit to CP and the work he’s put in,” Smith said. “We just have to keep trying to push and put our players in the right spots to have success.”
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The Bow Tie Chronicles
Atlanta Falcons 2022 NFL schedule
Sept. 11: Saints 27, Falcons 26
Sept. 18 at Los Angeles Rams, 4:05 p.m.
Sept. 25 at Seattle, 4:25 p.m.
Oct. 2 vs. Cleveland, 1 p.m.
Oct. 9 at Tampa Bay, 1 p.m.
Oct. 16 vs. San Francisco, 1 p.m.
Oct. 23 at Cincinnati, 1 p.m.
Oct. 30 vs. Carolina, 1 p.m.
Nov. 6 vs. Los Angeles Chargers, 1 p.m.
Nov. 10 at Carolina, 8:15 p.m.
Nov. 20 vs. Chicago, 1 p.m.
Nov. 27 at Washington, 1 p.m.
Dec. 4 vs. Pittsburgh, 1 p.m.
BYE WEEK
Dec. 18 at New Orleans, TBD
Dec. 24 at Baltimore, 1 p.m.
Jan. 1 vs. Arizona, 1 p.m.
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