The Atlanta Falcons are on the right track again. Well, at least it does for now, after the team downed the Indianapolis Colts on the road in brutal fashion, securing a 34-6 win at Lucas Oil Stadium.
The team’s performance in Saturday’s contest was vastly different from what they put up in the brutal 27-7 home loss to the Denver Broncos. To say the latter left a bad taste in the mouths of Falcons fans is probably an understatement.
Here’s a look at what changed between the two contests, and what to take away as the Falcons continue to near the regular season:
The Quarterback Battle Between Tua Tagovailoa And Michael Penix Jr. Isn’t As Over As We Once Thought It Was
It wasn’t all that long ago that the majority of analysts expressed that Tagovailoa was practically a lock for the starting quarterback spot, and that notion was more than reasonable for a number of reasons.
While Penix and Tagovailoa both share an extensive injury history, Penix has been the one most affected lately, and it didn’t help his case that Tagovailoa was projected as both the better fit for the offense and the better overall passer.
Tagovailoa’s had some concerning moments in practice that have drawn doubt, and he’s not shown enough ahead of the season to emerge as the clear starter. With Penix now cleared for all football activities, the true quarterback competition has begun… and it may turn out a lot differently than a lot of us originally thought it would.
Falcons Put Things Together In The Trenches
Everything starts up front, and a team cannot be truly successful on either side of the ball if they are not first and foremost strong in the trenches. The Falcons were that on Saturday, with both the offensive line and the defensive line performing at a high level.
The O-line consistently made way for run lanes and opened up the deep passing attack, while the defensive line applied constant pressure that made it difficult for Indianapolis to make anything happen in any facet of the offense.
Considering this has been one of the biggest areas the Falcons needed to improve, it is a huge reason for optimism, given they can sustain this level of performance in the trenches.
The Preseason Is Just That, The Preseason
It’s easy to lose sight of what the preseason means: when teams hit the field for the first time after a long offseason. The Falcons were among the teams some had already written off after the first game, with many taking to social media with negative season projections.
While it may be easy for some to get caught up in it all, the preseason is a time for teams to work out kinks, develop players, evaluate rookies, and figure out some of what succeeds and what fails. The polar opposite between how Atlanta presented itself against the Broncos and how it dominated the Colts just a week later illustrates that perfectly.
With so many variables, it will be interesting to see how the Falcons put it all together when the preseason concludes, and they face the Pittsburgh Steelers on the road in Week 1 of the real action.
That game is set to kick off at 1 p.m. ET on Sept. 13 at Heinz Field.
Three Takeaways From Falcons’ 34-6 Preseason Win Over Colts