FLOWERY BRANCH -- The Falcons must replace a key cog in their passing attack in wide receiver Julio Jones, who was traded to Tennessee in June.
The Falcons never played quarterback Matt Ryan and his wide receivers Calvin Ridley and Russell Gage in the exhibition season. The X-factor in the season opener against the Eagles (1 p.m. Sunday, Mercedes-Benz Stadium) will be whether the Falcons found a way to sync up the passing attack in practice.
“You get a sense for what it’s like,” said Ryan, who played 61 snaps in the 2019 exhibition season. “There are definitely unknowns.”
The Falcons’ passing attack was the best part of the offense last season. Although Ryan often was under siege (41 sacks), the Falcons averaged 272.7 yards per game passing, which ranked fifth in the NFL.
“There’s always the unknown going into the first game, whether it’s a new staff, a staff you’ve been with for a long time, whatever it is,” Ryan said. “There are definitely unknowns going into any season, and I think we’ll be a very different team in November and December. I hope we are.”
With Jones playing in only seven full games and small parts of two others, Ridley and Gage stepped forward last season. Ridley caught 90 passes for 1,374 yards and nine touchdowns. Gage caught 72 passes for 786 yards and four touchdowns playing out of the slot.
Also, Ryan will play in a game with rookie tight end Kyle Pitts for the first time.
If the timing is off and the passing attack looks ragged, new coach Arthur Smith already is anticipating the postgame questions.
“Certainly, if we don’t come out and play well, that’s an easy narrative to grab onto,” Smith said. “But whether we played 70 snaps (in exhibition games) and we don’t play well Week 1, there’s an issue no matter what. So, we got to continue to improve no matter how we play Sunday.”
Ryan knows that things might look a bit off with the season opener.
“I hope we’re a much better football team and we continue to improve,” Ryan said. “There’s definitely unknowns going into the first game.”
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