The Falcons had a functional offensive line before multiple injuries scuttled their depth and had them scrambling to patch together an effective group.
After some adjustment periods as new players worked into the lineup, the line appears to be rounding into an efficient unit once again. The latest evidence of improvement came during the 27-17 victory at Tampa Bay on Sunday.
In addition to allowing the Buccaneers to hit quarterback Matt Ryan just once in 40-drop backs, the offensive line helped running back Steven Jackson gain a season-high 81 yards on 16 carries. Jackson’s 5.1 yards per carry against the Bucs were the most since he averaged 7.1 yards in his Falcons debut at New Orleans in the 2013 season-opener.
Jackson said the offensive line is rounding into form as center Matt Stone and right tackle Ryan Schraeder gain experience and the group develops cohesion.
“We are not satisfied by 81 yards but I think the young guys have done a really good job of stepping in and doing their jobs and being thrown in the fire,” Jackson said. “I think you’ve just got to just pat those guys on the back. There’s been a rotation there up front and for those guys to jell so quickly together for not only myself but the other running backs, you’ve got to give them the credit and us backs just do what we do.”
Against the Bucs, the Falcons also used “jumbo” tackle Gabe Carimi and tight end Levine Toilolo extensively as run blockers.
According to Pro Football Focus, they used Toilolo as a blocker on all 28 running plays and Carimi on 14.
“That was probably one of our most efficient run games this season,” Falcons coach Mike Smith said. “We got Steven rolling. We wanted to do it with bigger bodies in the game. It was not a though of spreading it out. We wanted to put big bodies on line of scrimmage. (Carimi and Toilolo) were an integral part of it.”
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