The Atlanta Falcons just dropped their Week 9 matchup against the Minnesota Vikings in a wild 37-33 loss. Having been with the Vikings for just a few days, Joshua Dobbs stepped in for an injured Jaren Hall and was able to fire off a go-ahead touchdown pass to Brandon Powell with just 20 seconds left. Taylor Heinicke’s ensuing Hail Mary attempt in the closing seconds came up short as Atlanta dropped its second straight game.
That loss now drops the Falcons to 4-5 on the year and even though they sit just one game out of first place in the NFC South, the calls for head coach Arthur Smith’s job has only grown louder. The Falcons have once again been inconsistent in the third year of the head coach’s tenure and another sub-.500 season where they miss the postseason is definitely in play.
What has driven Falcons fans (and fantasy managers) up a wall is Smith’s maddeningly inconsistent usage of the team’s offensive weapons that he drafted. Third-year tight end Kyle Pitts is a virtual non-factor in the passing game most weeks and has effectively been replaced by Jonnu Smith at this point. Rookie running back Bijan Robinson has shown flashes of his potential, but often finds himself sharing carries with Tyler Allgeier. The Falcons opted to use a top 10 pick on him instead of getting help for their front seven.
This sequence perfectly encapsulates how Smith has squandered his own handpicked talent:
The #Falcons just had a 2nd-and-goal from the 1-yard line.
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) November 5, 2023
– They did an end-around with TE Jonnu Smith for no gain on 2nd down.
– They rushed the ball with Tyler Allgeier for a loss of 4 yards on 3rd down.
I would like to remind everyone they used the No. 8 overall pick on…
And that doesn’t even touch the quarterback situation, where ineffective starter Desmond Ridder got benched in favor of Heinicke this week. Smith’s decision to ride with Ridder has been a head-scratcher, considering that they could’ve drafted a better option in this past draft.
Fortunately for Smith and the Falcons, they have a relatively easy schedule the rest of the way, with matchups against the Cardinals, Saints, Jets, and Buccaneers coming up within the next month. But if they continue squander opportunities like they had against the Vikings today, the organization will be making a head coaching change by the end of the year.