The Falcons’ 32-7 exhibition loss at Houston last Saturday may not have been a real game but it sure felt like a real shellacking to coach Mike Smith.
“There weren’t a lot of positive things getting on that bus, leaving from Houston as a team,” Smith said. “They keep score.”
Still, Smith said he found “some positives things” when he narrowed his focus to the performance of his top players rather than the entire team. Smith may not find such comfort if the Falcons misfire against the Titans in the third exhibition game on Saturday at the Georgia Dome.
Smith plans to play his starters the entire first half and the start of the second. Those players almost certainly won’t play in the exhibition finale Thursday at Jacksonville, so this provides the final chance for them to flourish in a game situation before the season opener against the Saints on Sept. 7.
“We are now on the doorstep of the 2014 season and in a couple weeks, we are going to be going out there and teeing it up and playing for real,” Smith said. “We’ve got a lot of things we’ve got to, first, get better at and, second, make decisions on.”
Here are five things to watch for in the Falcons’ exhibition game with Tennessee:
1. Will the starters finally perform well?
Against Houston, the Falcons’ first-team offense ended all four of its possessions with punts. The first-team defense allowed a 12-play, 69-yard touchdown drive.
Normally poor exhibition performances may not be much of a concern. But the Falcons finished 4-12 in 2013 and weren’t particularly sharp in the exhibition opener either. So it’s been a long time since they’ve played a good game of any kind.
A strong performance by the starters would boost the Falcons’ confidence. Another poor outing would mean they will have gone through the entire exhibition season with little to feel good about.
The Falcons say this game will be closer to the real thing.
“No doubt,” defensive tackle Jonathan Babineaux said. “I think in the first two games, we are getting our feet wet and back to playing football.”
2. Rookie Jake Matthews debuts at left tackle
The Falcons selected Matthews sixth overall in the draft and immediately made him the starter at right tackle with the idea was that he eventually would supplant Sam Baker at left tackle. That plan was accelerated when Baker suffered a season-ending knee injury against the Texans.
The Titans don’t have pass-rushing talents like Houston’s J.J. Watt or Jadeveon Clowney. But Matthews played left tackle for just one season in a spread offense at Texas A&M so his learning curve is steeper.
Pro Football Focus graded Matthews the lowest among Falcons starting linemen during the two exhibition games but that’s mostly because of a shaky opener that included two penalties. Matthews admitted he was nervous for that game and he rebounded with a stronger performance against the Texans.
3. Position battles at nickel back and right tackle
Lamar Holmes will start at right tackle knowing that he flopped there last year. Pro Football Focus rated him second-worst among the 76 tackles who played enough snaps to earn an evaluation in 2013.
Look for Mike Johnson to share snaps with Holmes. Johnson began last summer’s camp as the starting right tackle but suffered a season-ending ankle injury before the season started.
The nickel back is a quasi-starting position because a fifth defensive back is used so frequently against offensive sets with extra wide receivers. Robert McClain, Josh Wilson and Javier Arenas are competing for that position.
4. T.J. Yates as the No. 2 quarterback
Yates, acquired in a trade with the Texans on June 18, had just 12 practices before the exhibition opener against Miami. He was solid in that game but then he threw two interceptions in just 12 attempts against Houston, including one that was returned for a touchdown.
Yates likely still has the inside track to be Matt Ryan’s backup because of his three years of NFL experience. No. 3 quarterback Sean Renfree spent his rookie season last year on injured reserve.
5. Special teams fixes
Against the Texans, the Falcons had a blocked punt returned for a touchdown and a blocked field-goal attempt. The Falcons on Thursday signed special teams ace Eric Weems.
Weems played for the Falcons from 2007-11 and made the Pro Bowl as a returner in 2010. The Falcons already added Devin Hester to return kicks so they likely brought back Weems to shore up the team’s coverage units.
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