ATLANTA (AP) — Even the woeful NFC South, where no team has a winning record, can’t hide the Atlanta Falcons’ offensive shortcomings.
Three straight setbacks, including an ugly 17-13 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, has left the Falcons 6-6 and feeling the pressure. Only a tiebreaker advantage over Tampa Bay has kept the Falcons atop the division.
Now the Falcons must prepare to visit streaking Minnesota, which has won five straight.
Veteran defensive tackle Grady Jarrett knows the Falcons must solve the flaws which have been exposed in the losing streak.
“It’s now or never,” Jarrett said. “You have to flip the mindset fast.”
Kirk Cousins threw four interceptions in the loss, matching his career high. Coach Raheem Morris said he didn’t consider playing rookie Michael Penix Jr. against the Chargers and won’t think about benching Cousins this week.
Morris acknowledged the Falcons can’t expect to win when turning the ball over four times. It was the latest example of Atlanta’s offensive decline.
In the three-game losing streak, Cousins has thrown six interceptions with no touchdowns. The Falcons were held under 20 points in each loss.
What’s working
If not for the rash of interceptions which has contributed to the scoring problems, more attention would be devoted to the surge of big plays on defense.
The defense forced two fumbles and set a season high with five sacks, including two by Arnold Ebiketie. The Falcons ranked last in the league with only 10 sacks before finding success with their pass rush against Justin Herbert.
Herbert was forced to hold the ball while looking for an open receiver, so some credit for the pass-rush success belongs to Atlanta’s secondary.
The Falcons gave up only two first downs in the second half and 187 yards for the game.
What needs help
Cousins, 36, was expected to be the reliable leader on offense after he signed a four-year, $180 million contract. The four interceptions were his most since 2014 with Washington.
Cousins now will be in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons as he returns to Minnesota, his NFL home from 2018-23. Cousins has thrown 13 interceptions, one shy of his career high set in 2022. His passer rating of 90.8 is his lowest since his 86.4 mark as a part-time starter in 2014 with Washington.
“Certainly when you haven’t played at the standard you want to a few weeks in a row, you know, you do want to change that, turn it around,” Cousins said.
Stock up
Running back Bijan Robinson had his busiest day of the season, perhaps in an attempt to take heat off Cousins.
Robinson’s 26 carries set a career high. He ran for 102 yards with a touchdown, his third 100-yard game of the season. He also was heavily involved as a receiver with six catches for 33 yards.
With 135 yards from scrimmage, Robinson has eight games this season with more than 100 yards combined as a rusher and receiver, the second-most in the league.
Stock down
Tight end Kyle Pitts had no catches on only two targets. He has only six catches in the last four games after appearing to establish momentum for a big season with two seven-catch games in a span of three weeks in October.
Morris noted the Falcons have “so many people that we’ve got to get the ball to” but noted he’d like to see Pitts more involved.
Injuries
Younghoe Koo’s hip issues were such a concern that kicker Riley Patterson was signed to the practice squad on Friday and added to the active roster Saturday. Patterson was on the inactive list as Koo was good on two of three field goals, missing from 35 yards.
Koo has made 21 of 29 attempts this season. He did not have more than five misses in any of his first five seasons with Atlanta.
Key number
70 — WR Drake London had nine receptions for 86 yards, giving him 70 catches for the season. London, a 2022 first-round draft pick, is the first player in team history with at least 65 receptions in each of his first three seasons. While Ray-Ray McCloud III led the team with a career-best 95 yards on four catches against the Chargers and Darnell Mooney has had some big games, London has been the most consistent receiver.
Next steps
The Falcons face a difficult test Sunday in their visit to Minnesota (10-2), which has five straight wins and is 5-1 at home.
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