Looking ahead
The Falcons (1-1) face the first of three consecutive AFC East opponents with a road game at Miami (2-0) 4:05 p.m. on Sunday at Sun Life Stadium.
The Dolphins and second-year coach Joe Philbin are off to a 2-0 start with road victories against Cleveland (23-10) and Indianapolis (24-20). Second-year Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill passed for 319 yards and a touchdown with no interception against the Colts.
Ex-Falcons Brent Grimes and Tyson Clabo are playing major roles for the Dolphins. Grimes had a key fourth-quarter interception to preserve the win over the Colts and Clabo has played all 134 of Miami’s offensive snaps this season.
There are three subplots:
- Protecting Ryan: The Falcons allowed two sacks and eight hits of quarterback Matt Ryan in their 31-24 victory against the Rams on Sunday. According to profootballfocus.com, the Rams pressured Ryan on 31 percent of his drop backs vs. 52 percent against the Saints in Week 1. The Dolphins are tied for the league lead with nine sacks. The Chiefs, Raiders and Buccaneers also have nine sacks. Cameron Wake leads the way for the Dolphins with 2 1/2 sacks.
- Running backs on the spot: The Falcons made the unusual decision to keep six running backs on the roster during final cuts. They'll need them with with Bradie Ewing (shoulder) out for the season and Steven Jackson (thigh) hobbled. Jason Snelling and Jacquizz Rodgers are next in line and will be backed up by special teams standout Antone Smith and exhibition season star Josh Vaughan.
- Finding a pass rush: The Falcons have just two sacks over the first two games. Defensive coordinator Mike Nolan said he would like at least three sacks a game. The Dolphins have allowed nine sacks, including five against the Colts, and Nolan's intricate pressure packages should provide some opportunities for the Falcons to befuddle Tannehill.
Sound bites
"Julio Jones is one of the top four wide receivers in the NFL at this point." — NFL Network analyst Deion Sanders on the Falcons wide receiver.
"Miami fans, you've got a football team to go along with your basketball team now. … I think Miami's legit." — NBC analyst Tony Dungy on the Dolphins.
By the numbers
374
Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan passed for 374 yards against the Rams for his 19th 300-yard game.
182
Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones tied his career-high in yards receiving against the Rams. He also had 11 catches for 182 yards in the NFC championship game against San Francisco last season.
53
The Falcons had seven penalties for 53 yards against the Rams.
A crowded injury report
Falcons coach Mike Smith announced that fullback Bradie Ewing and linebacker/defensive end Kroy Biermann would be placed on injured reserve after each was knocked out the Rams game. Ewing suffered a separated shoulder and Biermann tore an Achilles tendon.
Three other starters left the Rams game with injuries: running back Steven Jackson, linebacker Sean Weatherspoon (foot) and cornerback Asante Samuel (thigh). Defensive lineman Cliff Matthews (neck) left the game but later returned.
There won’t be any official word on Jackson, Weatherspoon and Samuel until the team releases the first injury report of the week on Wednesday.
Twitterati
Steven Jackson
@sj39
Falcons running back
“With progress comes challenges. Always walking in expectancy. Thank you to ALL those who encourage me. I hear you.”
Roddy White
@roddywhiteTV
Falcons wide receiver
“Good win for us today now we can start a streak”
Robert Alford
@rockorocky
Falcons cornerback
“Great Win today. Time to hit the film and get the lil kinks fix for next week vs Miami …
#RiiiissseeeeeUP #TeamAlford”
Quotable
"I was able to contribute to the win which makes it even more pleasing. I feel like all the guys stepped up and made plays when their number was called. It speaks to the professionalism we have as a team." — Running back Jason Snelling on coming off the bench to replace Jackson against the Rams.
Falcons notes
No-huddle muddle: After scoring just three points on their first 10 possessions, the Rams scored touchdowns on three straight possessions in the second half while using a no-huddle offense. The drives lasted 1:50, 3:03 and 4:03 and quarterback Sam Bradford was 17-of-27 for 188 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions.
Coach Mike Smith said it is possible future opponents will test the Falcons with no-huddle strategy.
“I don’t think we handled it as well as we’d like, not only for the players on the field but as a coaching staff. We’ve got to get guys in a better position to maybe be more challenging and we’ve got to be more disciplined,” Smith said. “We had a few mental errors on defense and couple of them were major errors (against) the no-huddle offense. We’ve got to do a better job of communicating. It was loud in the Dome and there was some miscommunication.”
Playing time: Linebacker Joplo Bartu and defensive ends Jonathan Massaquoi and Malliciah Goodman received increased playing time against the Rams.
Bartu played 63 of 77 defensive snaps (83 percent), Massaquoi played 45 (58 percent) and Goodman played 25 snaps (32 percent).
Bartu, a rookie, played in the base defense after Sean Weatherspoon left the game with a foot injury. Veteran Stephen Nicholas played just four defensive snaps.
Less White: Falcons wide receiver Roddy White said his high ankle sprain is feeling better but he played fewer snaps against the Rams than he did in the opener at New Orleans. White played 34 of 64 offensive snaps (53 percent) against the Rams. In the opener, he played 37 of 56 snaps (66 percent).
Up next
The Miami Dolphins (2-0) at 4:05 p.m. on Sunday at Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla.
“They are 2-0, they’ve won two games on the road,” coach Mike Smith said. “Ryan Tannehill is a very athletic quarterback. I know that (wide receiver) Mike Wallace had a number of catches in the ball game (nine on Sunday). And any time you go on the road and win, that’s impressive.
“They’ve got some guys that can rush the passer. Cameron Wake comes to mind. He’s a guy that can put pressure on the quarterback. It seems they are playing with lots of confidence. Coach (Joe) Philbin, I think, does a great job down there and he’s got an outstanding staff.”
Staff writer D. Orlando Ledbetter contributed to this article.
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