Atlanta Falcons are soft on both sides of the ball

After watching the Atlanta Falcons embarrassing performance Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings, one thing is still perfectly clear, the team is still soft.

The Atlanta Falcons were dominated on both sides of the ball and if it weren’t for a couple of cheap scores towards the end of the game, the Falcons would have been shutout. It is clear that this team is still soft on both sides of the ball.

For the majority of the game, Matt Ryan was once again constantly under pressure. I was impressed by the performances of rookie first rounders Chris Lindstrom and Kaleb McGary, but the rest of the line, especially Jake Matthews, were bullied all game long. Unfortunately, it appears that Lindstrom will be in a walking boot for the next 8 weeks according to Vaughn McClure of ESPN.

The defensive line, outside of a couple of impressive moments for Grady Jarrett, was absolutely useless. They were blown off the ball all game long. The Vikings offensive line was so dominate that Kirk Cousins didn’t even have to do anything.

Cousins finished the game 8-10 for 98 yards and a touchdown. When a quarterback only has to throw the ball ten times, you know the offensive line is doing their job and the opposing defensive line isn’t. Vic Beasley was virtually useless and Takkarist McKinley is still struggling.

It’s only the first game of the season, but with a very difficult schedule throughout the year, the Atlanta Falcons do not have much time at all to try and fix what did and didn’t work in week 1.

The fan in me believes the Atlanta Falcons will be fine and can fix these issues, but the skeptical person within finds it hard to believe that the offensive and defensive line will just magically become tougher over night. This has been an issue with the Atlanta Falcons for a very long time now. They just aren’t tough enough right now.

The defense may have speed, but they don’t have the intensity or strength needed to be an elite defense.