Atlanta Falcons 2020 Season Preview
Chris Ransom follow @DraftUtopia Posted on 8/31/2020.
Atlanta Falcons Free Agency Recap
Atlanta signed running back Todd Gurley and wide receiver Laquon Treadwell in Free Agency. On defense they added Dante Fowler Jr. where the Falcons will use a third 4-3 defensive end at 4-3 right outside linebacker which is where Fowler will line up. Tyeler Davison was on the New Orleans Saints before he signed with Atlanta at defensive tackle.
Atlanta Falcons Draft Recap
The Falcons drafted two immediate starters. That was first round pick A.J. Terrell out of Clemson. The other is Sterling Hofrichter, a punter out of Syracuse, that Atlanta drafted in the seventh round of the 2020 NFL Draft.
Atlanta Falcons Quarterback Summary: Matt Ryan is still the starting quarterback with Matt Schaub as the backup. Third stringer Kurt Benkert is on the bubble in Atlanta. The Falcons brought in Jake Rudock, Kyle Lauletta, and Kyle Slotter to push Benkert for that third string gig.
Dirk Koetter enters his second season in his second stint as offensive coordinator with the Atlanta Falcons. This was a position Koetter excelled at under head coach Mike Smith in Atlanta and he did well with Dan Quinn as the head coach too. Greg Knapp is the quarterbacks coach in Atlanta.
Atlanta Falcons Running Back Summary: Todd Gurley is now the feature back. Brian Hill, Qadree Ollison, and Ito Smith are all competing for the remaining three running back spots behind Gurley.
Running back coach Bernie Parmalee began the season as a special teams assistant. He took over as the running backs coach in 2020.
Atlanta Falcons Wide Receiver Summary: Julio Jones is Atlanta's #1 flanker receiver. Calvin Ridley is Atlanta's secondary receiver. He adjusted to this role after Mohamed Sanu got traded to New England. Laquon Treadwell and Russell Gage are competing for the slot receiver job.
Dave Brock was the running backs coach in 2019, but will take over as the wide receivers coach in 2020 after Raheem Morris got promoted from assistant head coach/wide receivers coach/passing game coordinator on defense in 2019 to defensive coordinator in 2020.
Atlanta Falcons Tight End Summary: Atlanta sent Baltimore a 2020 second round pick for their 2018 first round pick Hayden Hurst after losing Austin Hooper to Free Agency. Ben Steele is the new tight ends coach as he takes over for Mike Mularkey.
Atlanta Falcons Offensive Line Summary: Atlanta has Jake Matthews at left tackle, James Carpenter at left guard, Alex Mack at center, Chris Lindstrom at right guard, and Kaleb McGary at right tackle. Rookie third round pick Matt Hennessy out of Temple is versatile enough to play center, left guard, or right guard on Atlanta's interior offensive line.
Chris Morgan is the only offensive positional coach from the Super Bowl 51 squad that is still on the staff. That's one bright spot for Atlanta as far as coaching goes. Morgan did so well he got promoted to running game coordinator in 2019 after being Atlanta's offensive line coach for five years. Having Chris Morgan back with a fully healthy offensive line is huge.
Atlanta has enough talent to be a top 10 offense in points scored and total yards per game. This is a top 15 passing offense and a top 25 running offense. If they had consistent coaching across the board, you could argue this would be a top 5 offense in every offensive category.
Atlanta Falcons Defensive Line Summary: Atlanta is going to put Takkarist McKinley at the LEO which is where most 4-3 right ends line up with Allen Bailey complimenting him at 4-3 left end. Grady Jarrett and former New Orleans Saints defensive tackle Tyeler Davison will start at 4-3 defensive tackle.
Head Coach Dan Quinn specializes in developing defensive linemen. Dan Quinn will be able to strategize and work with the defensive line more without having to worry about calling the plays. Jess Simpson had a rough first year in the NFL after previously coaching at Miami FL in 2018 as their defensive line coach, while Miami FL's defensive line took off without Simpson.
Atlanta Falcons Linebacker Summary: Atlanta will have Dante Fowler Jr. at 4-3 right outside linebacker. Deion Jones will start at 4-3 middle linebacker. Foysade Oluokun will start at 4-3 left outside linebacker.
The Falcons have Jeff Ulbrich returning as their linebackers coach. That's one bright spot. Jeff Ulbrich also got promoted to assistant head coach.
Atlanta Falcons Defensive Backs Summary: Atlanta has A.J. Terrell as their #1 field cornerback with the 2020 first round pick out of Clemson replacing Desmond Trufant. Isaiah Oliver will play the #2 boundary cornerback role across from Terrell. Keanu Neal is going to start at strong safety with Ricardo Allen playing free safety.
Defensive coordinator Raheem Morris was the passing game coordinator in 2019 as he enters his first year as defensive coordinator with the Atlanta Falcons. Joe Whitt Jr. is the defensive backs/secondary coach that will be working directly under Morris.
The Falcons defense looks worse. If Terrell breaks out as a rookie corner, and these safeties stay healthy, then maybe Atlanta can wield a top 10 pass defense, but the rest of this defense may end up struggling in 2020.
Atlanta Falcons Special Teams Summary: Atlanta has one of the best special teams units. They have Younghoe Koo at kicker, Sterling Hofrichter at punter, and Brian Hill as a return specialist. Ben Kotwica enters his second season as the special teams coordinator with the Atlanta Falcons.
Atlanta Falcons Worst Case Scenario: The Atlanta Falcons struggle again due to injuries. Injuries are the only thing that can keep Atlanta from making a comeback. They finish 3-13 and are in the running to be last in the NFC South Division.
Atlanta Falcons Best Case Scenario: Atlanta does enough to avoid last place in the NFC South Division. It's gonna be tough for Atlanta to be a top 2 team with the New Orleans Saints returning as division champs and Tom Brady joining this division. It sucks knowing you have to play the guy who helped New England come back from 28-3 in Super Bowl 51 twice a year now. Atlanta ends up starting the year 5-2 before finishing 6-10 after going 4-0 in their first four home games.
Atlanta Falcons 2020 NFL Schedule
Week |
Date |
Opponent |
Time |
Cable Network |
Result |
Week 1 |
September 13 |
VS  |
1 PM EST |
FOX |
L |
Week 2 |
September 20 |
AT  |
1 PM EST |
FOX |
L |
Week 3 |
September 27 |
VS  |
1 PM EST |
FOX |
W |
Week 4 |
October 5 |
AT  |
8:15 PM EST |
ESPN |
L |
Week 5 |
October 11 |
VS  |
1 PM EST |
FOX |
W |
Week 6 |
October 18 |
AT  |
1 PM EST |
FOX |
L |
Week 7 |
October 25 |
VS  |
1 PM EST |
FOX |
L |
Week 8 |
October 29 |
AT |
8:20 PM EST |
FOX |
L |
Week 9 |
November 8 |
VS  |
1 PM EST |
CBS |
L |
Week 10 |
|
Bye Week |
|
|
|
Week 11 |
November 22 |
AT  |
1 PM EST |
FOX |
L |
Week 12 |
November 29 |
VS  |
1 PM EST |
CBS |
W |
Week 13 |
December 6 |
VS |
1 PM EST |
FOX |
L |
Week 14 |
December 13 |
AT  |
4:25 PM EST |
FOX |
L |
Week 15 |
December 20 |
VS  |
1 PM EST |
FOX |
L |
Week 16 |
December 27 |
AT  |
1 PM EST |
FOX |
L |
Week 17 |
December 29 |
AT |
1 PM EST |
FOX |
L |
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