With the 2024 NFL schedule announced, I want to go through each of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ opponents and dive deep into the makeup of each team, including a recap of their offseason moves, key storylines to watch, and their series history against the Steelers. Starting with the top of the schedule in Week 1, today I will be previewing the Atlanta Falcons.
There is a lot of optimism surrounding the Falcons for the 2024 season with a new coaching regime, and a veteran QB in Kirk Cousins they paid $180 million to acquire in free agency. They had a solid foundation for their team in 2023, but many believe poor quarterback play held the team back with Desmond Ridder starting for most of the season in his second year as a pro. They will get to put that theory to test in 2024 with Cousins, and they drafted QB Michael Penix Jr. in the first round for good measure. They are working with a similar overhaul of the quarterback room that the Steelers had this offseason.
Here is a breakdown of notable additions and departures since the end of the 2023 season for the Falcons:
Additions:
– QB Kirk Cousins
– WR Darnell Mooney
– TE Charlie Woerner
– WR Ray-Ray McCloud
– WR Rondale Moore (trade)
Departures:
– TE Jonnu Smith
– KR/RB Cordarrelle Patterson
– DE Calais Campbell
– CB Jeff Okudah
– WR Mack Hollins
– CB Tre Flowers
Draft Class:
– QB Michael Penix Jr
– DT Ruke Orhorhoro
– OLB Bralen Trice
– DT Brandon Dorlus
– ILB JD Bertrand
– RB Jase McClellan
– WR Casey Washington
– DT Zion Logue
They had a few more notable departures than additions in free agency, but that is going to happen when you invest $180 million in a quarterback to help compete in the immediate term. The bulk of their draft picks were used on the defensive side of the ball. Orhorhoro, for example, should make a nice replacement for Campbell, who remains a free agent at 37 years old.
The Falcons slightly outpaced the Steelers in 2023 with their rushing attack, finishing with 2,159 rushing yards. It was Bijan Robinson’s rookie season and he finished just under the 1,000-yard rushing mark. He formed a backfield duo with Tyler Allgeier, but that division of labor figures to skew a bit more toward Robinson in Year 2 to build off his impressive 4.6 yards per carry as a rookie. Having a legitimate threat at quarterback should help Robinson see less stacked boxes and create more opportunities for him.
The Falcons added Zac Robinson as their offensive coordinator on Raheem Morris’ new coaching staff. Robinson is a name that was linked to the Steelers at one point, and he comes from the Sean McVay coaching lineage, spending the last five seasons working with him in Los Angeles with the Rams. It will be interesting to see the type of offense the Falcons ultimately end up using. They used a lot of wide-zone concepts the last few years under Arthur Smith, and that is what McVay’s offenses have typically been known for, but they pivoted to more gap schemes in 2023.
It is worth noting that TE Kyle Pitts recently stated that he feels like a rookie again with the new coaching staff and offensive system. Like the Steelers, there will be some growing pains early in the season with a new offense in place.
Falcons 2023 record: 7-10
Falcons three-year split: 21-30
Falcons-Steelers series record: 15-2-1 (Steelers)
Series record in Atlanta: 8-2 (Steelers)
Most recent matchup: 19-16 Steelers (2022)
One interesting dynamic to watch in this matchup is the fact that the Falcons defenders have a pretty good idea of what Steelers OC Arthur Smith likes to do. On the flipside, Smith knows a good deal about their defense and potential weak spots to exploit. It remains to be seen which side of that holds the true advantage, if any. This will be the debut of both Cousins and Russell Wilson with their new teams, and both teams will be featuring new offensive systems, so that will also be an intriguing aspect to watch unfold.
Falcons 2023 by the numbers:
Offense–
Scoring: 18.9 PPG (26th)
Passing: 207.3 Yds/G (22nd)
Rushing: 127 Yds/G (9th)
Defense–
Scoring: 21.9 PPG (18th)
Passing: 202.9 Yds/G (8th)
Rushing: 118.2 Yds/G (20th)
The Falcons did lose a couple corners in free agency who combined for 12 starts in 2023, but their passing defense sticks out to me as a potential concern in the matchup against the Steelers. There is still no clear option opposite George Pickens on the outside in Pittsburgh, and half of the receivers competing for the No. 2 or 3 spot are ex-Falcons. Expectations should probably be tempered for a breakout passing game in Week 1 for Russell Wilson and the Steelers.
With the running game in Atlanta already solid in 2023, they have a chance to be a pretty good offense overall if Cousins can provide the necessary lift to the passing game. The last three seasons he was healthy, Cousins passed for over 4,200 yards. That would be a pretty significant boost if he can replicate that success in Atlanta.
Oddsmakers opened up the spread with the Falcons as 2.5 point favorites at home. A lot can and will change between now and the start of the season. Either team could make more roster moves, injuries could occur, and players emerge in training camp to be more significant contributors than originally thought. As of now, this should be one of the more intriguing Week 1 matchups in the NFL with the number of offseason changes made and the debut of two successful veteran QBs.
