ATLANTA — The Atlanta Falcons had big plans for their offense when they made a coaching change in January, then followed up by investing heavily in quarterback Kirk Cousins as a free-agent addition in March.
Having an established veteran behind center and a fresh game plan on that side of the ball was intended to utilize the playmakers Atlanta added in the first rounds of recent NFL drafts: tight end Kyle Pitts with the No. 4 overall pick in 2021, receiver Drake London (No. 8 in 2022) and versatile running back Bijan Robinson (No. 8 in 2023).
However, as the Falcons (2-2) prepare for Thursday night’s NFC South Division matchup with the visiting Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-1), the Atlanta offense has yet to find its momentum.
The Falcons have shown flashes of promise by driving for go-ahead scores in the final minute of victories against the Philadelphia Eagles — Cousins was 4-of-6 passing, including a short touchdown to London in the 22-21 road win on Sept. 16 — and the New Orleans Saints, but Cousins hasn’t matched the overall production of Tampa Bay quarterback Baker Mayfield, who has led his team to the top of the division standings.
The Bucs are off to their fourth 3-1 start in a five-year stretch as they seek their fourth straight NFC South title. They have also won six of the past eight meetings with Atlanta, outscoring the Falcons by 51 points in those games.
The most recent evidence of mixed results for Cousins and the Atlanta offense came in Sunday’s 26-24 home win over New Orleans. Atlanta won against its biggest rival despite not producing an offensive touchdown — the Falcons scored on special teams and defense, while Younghoe Koo’s four field goals included the 58-yard winner on a penalty-aided drive in which Cousins was 1-for-4 — while Pitts was held without a catch in the game as Robinson ran for only 28 yards.
Falcons coach Raheem Morris said he’ll take the win and let others fret about the numbers.
“Really for me, stats are for losers,” Morris said after Sunday’s victory in the second game of three straight at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
The 48-year-old Morris has worked mostly on defense in his coaching career, including as the coordinator for the Los Angeles Rams the past three seasons, but he was hired as the replacement to Arthur Smith, the former Tennessee Titans offensive coordinator whose three-year tenure as Atlanta’s head coach yielded a trio of 7-10 records that stretched the Falcons’ streak of seasons without a winning mark or a playoff berth to seven.
To head up the offense, Morris brought on board Zac Robinson, who had worked for the Rams since 2019 an assistant on that side of the ball but is in his first season as a coordinator. Both acknowledged this week that improvement must come and the offense can’t always rely on the defense and special teams to produce the points.
“Have we reached our peak of what you want to play and how you can be best?” Morris asked on Monday before answering his own question. “No. But I think that’s a part of what the season is. I think that’s a part of steady improvement, steady growth, and I love that about our football team. I think we know that, I think they know that, and I think we’re really comfortable being able to go out there and win football games however we can.”
Cousins, 36, is a four-time Pro Bowl selection now in his 13th NFL season, having played his first six seasons in Washington and his past six in Minnesota. He missed the second half of the Vikings’ 2023 season due to an Achilles tendon tear, but that didn’t keep the Falcons from signing him to a four-year contract for $180 million ($100 million guaranteed).
Through four games for Atlanta, he is 77-of-119 passing (64.7%) for 864 yards, four touchdowns and four interceptions. He has been sacked six times, and his six rushes have gone for a combined minus-2 yards.
AP photo by Chris O’Meara / Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield, shown during Sunday’s home win against the Philadelphia Eagles, is off to a strong start in his second season with the team.Meanwhile, after reviving his career in his first year with the Bucs — and signing a three-year contract extension in the offseason — Mayfield, the No. 1 pick of the 2018 draft, has started this season 91-of-129 (70.5%) for 984 yards, eight touchdowns and two interceptions. He has been sacked 15 times — seven of those came in a 26-7 loss to the Denver Broncos on Sept. 22 — and his 12 carries have gained 65 yards. In the Bucs’ 33-16 win over the Eagles last Sunday, Mayfield threw for two touchdowns and ran for another.
His 106.9 passer rating is fourth in the NFL entering the fifth week of the season, and he is fourth in passing yardage and second in touchdown passes.
He has been helped by having talented targets.
Wide receiver Mike Evans, who became the all-time leading scorer in franchise history during the win against the Eagles, has 18 catches for 214 yards and three touchdowns this season, when the team’s leading receiver has been Chris Godwin (27 catches, 322 yards, three touchdowns). Eight players had at least one catch for Tampa Bay against the Eagles, including tight end Cade Otton’s six for 52 yards.
“I think that it really makes it difficult for the defense,” Godwin said. “It’s one thing when a guy is going off, because you feed the hot hand, right? But if we’re able to spread the ball around that much, everybody gets involved. … You can mix in your quick game, your deep passing game, play-actions, screens.”
Godwin attributes some of Mayfield’s success to the comfort level that comes with being with the same team for a second season.
“And yes, this is our first year in this offensive system, but it’s his second year with this group of guys, and I think the camaraderie that we built last year really helped,” Godwin said. “… The adversity that we faced when we all stuck together, I think, really helps this year. I think it’s just a natural maturation process, just for him as a player.”
Liam Coen is in his first season as Tampa Bay’s offensive coordinator, but he’s a face familiar to Atlanta’s staff after working for the Rams as an offensive assistant in four of the past six seasons (he was the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at the University of Kentucky in 2021 and 2023).
As for the Falcons, their offensive coordinator believes more consistency is close because “there’s been games where we’ve executed really well,” Robinson said. “We’re trying to find that mix to where we know we’re close to getting over the hump with some things, and guys are just — they’re eager. They want to be the most explosive offense and the best offense in the NFL.”
One thing that would help is cutting down on the yellow flags. The Falcons committed nine penalties for 76 yards on Sunday and already have 30 penalties for the season.
“We can’t have those,” Robinson said. “There’s certain situations we’re trying to avoid, and obviously it’s at the discretion of the refs to call those. And you’ve got to just keep playing, and so those have been tough.”