The Steelers Must Capitalize on the Falcons Weaknesses
By Lori Paddock
Every time the Steelers venture into the NFC South to play an opponent, most would statistically think the Steelers should be favored and find plenty of weaknesses to exploit. Right? Right? Well, apparently not. Why?
Mike Tomlin was quoted a few weeks ago after yet ANOTHER mind-boggling loss that now it not the time to look for commonalities among the losses. I would beg to differ. While you can’t begin to over-think a loss, you must be analyzing what went wrong in EVERY game and IF there are commonalities that can be fixed this season, you make the move to fix them.
If you read the Craig’s Instant Reaction after last week’s win against the Bengals, I think you will find at least one common thread. I know the other staff at NPC are saying it too. The secondary needs work, a lot of work. Most of the articles this week at least touch on it.
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If a team can exploit that, then the Steelers don’t have much of an answer and no matter how good Ben, Bell, and Brown are, it’s hard to win from behind. Not impossible, but hard.
The Atlanta Falcons are 5-8 and for several years have failed to capitalize on what looks to be a talented team at the start of the season. Whether it is unfortunate injuries or poor play, the Falcons often leave their fans shaking their heads.
I lived in Georgia for four years and for the handful of fans who are willing to consider something beyond college football, the teams in the south aren’t making it easy to be a fan. I was in a region that got Atlanta, Tampa Bay, Carolina, and Jacksonville games. Seriously, it is hard to stay interested in the NFL in that region.
There are the die-hard fans, but the crowds at the sports bars are much larger on Saturdays during the fall. The pressure to win includes keeping a fan base that has a lot of love for the SEC. Talk about a tough audience. Steeler Nation is demanding, but college ball doesn’t compete with the Steelers. Let’s hope the pressure keeps up in a negative way for the Falcons and to the Steelers advantage.
The Steelers need to keep their momentum from the win over Cincinnati and press their advantage. I hope they don’t lean back and think they can coast in this game. Who would think they would? That has never appeared to happen, right?
Don’t be fooled. The Falcons’ Monday night loss to the Packers was not a blow-out.
I’m foolish to even think that right? Every team tries to win every game, and they just sometimes look unprepared and flatfooted against their opponent, particularly those with a losing record, like the Atlanta Falcons. Don’t be fooled. The Falcons’ Monday night loss to the Packers was not a blow-out.
Green Bay made the most of their advantage in the second quarter and try as they might, Atlanta could not do enough. They tried. They did not roll over and give up. The Steelers need to be prepared for a team willing to gut it out. Also, they are still playing for something. Unlike in other divisions where a 5-8 team might be ruled out by now, the Falcons are tied at the top of the division with the 5-8 Saints (who, by the way, the Steelers lost to).
The Falcons have talent. Even if Julio Jones isn’t 100%, he’s still a threat. It’s too soon to know if he is playing this weekend. I can understand the Falcons waiting on deciding. He’s their playmaker. I can just see him getting by the secondary if he gets a chance. Steven Jackson may not necessarily be the same threat he was a couple of years ago, but don’t give him a chance to burn you. He still can.
With that said, the Atlanta weaknesses seem to be somewhat similar to the Steelers. Once the opposing running back or receiver gets past Atlanta’s coverage, they are getting big gains. Mike Smith and Matt Ryan discussed some of this at their media day and it looks like they plan to work on it according to Smith:
"We didn’t tackle well in the first half, and it’s just not the physical part of the tackling. It was the leveraging the short passes. They wanted to have their running backs involved in the passing game; that was very evident, and I think we’ll see the same thing this week. Their running back is one of their top receivers. He gets the ball not only carrying it, but gets in the passing game as well.”"
However, Bell is having a monster year and as long as the offensive line can give him gaps or Ben can get a short pass to him, he’s been amazing. I mean, isn’t he exciting to watch? I know I hold my breath anytime I see him repeatedly go into a jumble of people, but Bell’s got some grit. Just give him some space and let him go.
I hope the Falcons don’t come up with an answer for that. That Atlanta weakness fits in well with current Steeler strengths. Heck, I’d love to see another 94-yard touchdown this week too, but you don’t want to give Atlanta too much time with the ball. Matt Ryan isn’t a slouch quarterback.
I’m hopeful. I’m hopeful every time the Steelers play because I believe in my team. However the losses against Tampa Bay, New Orleans, and the New York Jets make me a bit jumpy. Personally, I think the win against the Titans is nearly in this category because it just felt like the Steelers were out of sync even though they pulled it out.
The Steelers wins and losses are a bit manic this year. There have been some really high “highs” followed by some amazing “lows.” Atlanta is also a team that has a lot of talent and some of their losses were close; some weren’t.
I am hoping for a coherent game plan that exploits the Falcon’s weaknesses and minimizes the Steelers weaknesses so that the Steelers maintain the lead the entire game. It’s not a lot to ask for, right? Can we have a game with some excitement but not at the heart attack level? Well, I can hope. I am also hoping for another record-setting game for the offense. Too early for Christmas? Nope! Here we go Steelers, here we GO!