How the Atlanta Falcons would fare in an NFL bubble

The Atlanta Falcons 2020 season is as much an unknown as anything else this year.

Will sports be played? Will the Atlanta Falcons get a chance to compete for a Super Bowl trophy? So far, the NBA seems to be the only league that’s figured it out and that’s in large part due to playing in a bubble.

That’s something the NFL can’t really do just by the sheer number of players, coaches, and equipment that it takes to pull off one game, let alone an entire season. But what if the Falcons had to play in a bubble this year? Would they be one of the first teams to get bounced or would they be climbing toward the winner circle?

And based on their roster and talent alone, there’s no reason to think the Falcons wouldn’t be successful. For starters, they should be used to playing without fans. The attendance at their games last season dropped drastically and the losses piled up. In fact, it would probably be refreshing for them to be the “home” team and not have more fans of the visiting squad there.

Beyond the extracurriculars, in a bubble it comes down to schemes, and who wants it most. There isn’t that intimidation of going into Lambeau Field for a winter game or having to deal with the Buffalo crazies up in New York.

The Atlanta Falcons have a lot of reasons to like their chances.

The Falcons have Calvin Ridley and Julio Jones as wide receivers, who could win almost any matchup. They also aren’t big trash talkers on the face of things. So that extra energy and strive for perfection comes in training camp and would shine even in games with virtual fans.

Then there’s the rock on offense in Matt Ryan. He’s one of the most consistent and focused quarterbacks in the game. Playing in a bubble wouldn’t phase him and it shouldn’t phase Dan Quinn. Offenses usually pump in fake crowd noise to practice and that would serve Atlanta very well instead of needing to pull out a W in Arrowhead or the Superdome.

The defense would be a big question mark, but it would be regardless. The Falcons wouldn’t have their crowd to rely on and it seems players like Takk McKinley and Deion Jones feed off that energy the most.

On that same token, we saw how Grady Jarrett and others showed up to camp. Bigger, stronger, and focused. Even with a season in doubt. That should tell Falcons fans that the attention to detail and passion aren’t gonna waver.

Let’s be real though, the Falcons on paper should match up well with any team, throw them in a bubble and add the weirdness of this year and they should be a dominant team if it came down to it.