After a disappointing loss to the rival New Orleans Saints and a mini-bye break, the Falcons return to practice Monday.
First-year coach Dan Quinn, coming off a loss for the first time, will attempt to regroup his team after it got off to a surprising 5-0 start by keeping games close and then pulling them out with clutch late performances. They’ve had just one blowout, a 48-21 dismantling of the Houston Texans.
The key issue for Quinn and his coaching staff is addressing a rash of turnovers — they fumbled five times last Thursday night, losing three — and somehow generating a pass rush. Also, the team is hoping that injured players — wide receiver Julio Jones (toe, hamstring), linebacker Justin Durant (elbow) and center Mike Person (ankle) — have recovered.
The Falcons face three games at Tennessee, Tampa Bay and at San Francisco before they get another break during their bye week.
The Falcons will likely be favored in all three games and could take an 8-1 record into the bye week.
Here’s a breakdown of the upcoming opponents:
Tennessee (1-4)
How they have fared: The Falcons faced the Titans in an exhibition game on Aug. 14 when the first-team defense jumped all over rookie quarterback Marcus Mariota. Linebacker Justin Durant had an interception that night that set up a touchdown and middle linebacker Paul Worrilow recovered a fumble and returned it 14 yards for a touchdown. The Falcons must again create some turnovers and get some pressure against Mariota, who is off to a shaky start while the Titans have dropped four straight games.
Strengths: The Titans passing attack is functional with Mariota mostly targeting tight end Delanie Walker and wide receiver Kendall Wright. The Titans were expecting big things from rookie wide receiver Dorial Green-Beckham, but he's off to a slow start. Running back Bishop Sankey (31.8 yards per game) leads the them in rushing. Also, Dexter McCluster is a weapon.
Weaknesses: The Titans are slow starters. They fell behind 21-0 to Cleveland on Sept. 20, 14-0 to Indianapolis on Sept. 27 and trailed Miami 17-3 at the half before losing 38-10 on Sunday. They rallied against the Colts but came up short in a 35-33 loss. The Titans battled the Bills last Sunday before losing 14-13.
Highlights: Tennessee coach Ken Whisenhunt's team opened the season with a 42-14 victory over Tampa Bay. Mariota is developing (nine TD passes in five games) but hasn't been able to maintain a high level of consistency.
Key players: QB Marcus Mariota, OG Chance Warmack, DE Jurrell Casey and DE Derrick Morgan.
Tampa Bay (2-3)
How they have fared: The Bucs have victories over the Saints (26-19) on Sept. 20 and Jacksonville (38-31) on Oct. 11. They have been defeated by Tennessee (42-14) on Sept. 13, Houston (19-9) on Sept. 27 and Carolina (37-23) on Oct. 4. They play at Washington on Oct. 25 before facing the Falcons.
Strengths: Former Falcons offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter is using running backs Doug Martin and Charles Sims to help alleviate some of the pressure from rookie quarterback Jameis Winston. Martin rushed for 123 yards and three touchdowns against the Jaguars. Sims has 14 receptions out of the backfield and got loose for a 56-yard touchdown catch against Jaguars.
Weaknesses: Winston has been in consistent. He's completed 86 of 152 passes (56.6 percent) for 1,174 yards, seven touchdowns and seven interceptions with a passer rating of 77.6. He's averaging 7.7 yards per pass play, right under the acceptable level of 8 yards. In the Bucs' wins, Winston has passed 9.8 yards gained per pass play against New Orleans and 11 against Jacksonville.
Highlights: Victories over the Saints and the Jaguars have the Bucs hopeful.
Key players: QB Jameis Winston, RB Doug Martin, RB Charles Sims, LB Lavonta David and CB Tim Jennings.
San Francisco (2-4)
How they have fared: The 49ers, who defeated the Ravens 25-20 on Sunday, won their opener, a 20-3 romp over Minnesota. They struggled with losses to Pittsburgh (43-18), Arizona (47-7), Green Bay (17-3) and New York Giants (30-27) before dowing the Ravens. The Falcons can television-scout them against Seattle on Thursday night. They play at St. Louis on Nov. 1 before facing the Falcons on Nov. 8.
Strengths: Wide receiver Anquan Boldin is still performing at a high level. He had five catches for 102 yards against the Ravens. Running back Jarryd Hayne, a former Australian rugby star, has been one of the few bright spots for the 49ers, who suffered a rash of personnel losses to retirements and player moves over the offseason, which included the release of troubled defender Aldon Smith.
Weaknesses: Before facing Baltimore, quarterback Colin Kaeperkick was averaging 6.5 yards gained per pass play. He's still a rushing threat and can be dangerous off of play-action fakes.
Highlights: Running back Carlos Hyde and Hayne have provided the 49ers with a respectable rushing attack.
Key players: LB Ahmad Brooks, WR Bruce Ellington, TE Vernon Davis and LB Navorro Bowman.
