Atlanta Falcons should temper expectations for Mike Davis

The Atlanta Falcons found their starting running back in free agent Mike Davis. Davis is going to have an impact but Atlanta’s run game is still going to be towards the bottom half of the League.

Looking at the Atlanta Falcons off-season one of their most popular moves was signing free-agent running back Mike Davis. Rightly so considering the terrible run game Atlanta has trotted out consistently over the last two years.

Now expectations are high for Davis who is going to be a quality starter but may not quite measure up to all expectations.

Perspective is key when projecting exactly how much of an impact Mike Davis can have on the Atlanta Falcons offense

He is a great addition but isn’t a top-ten running back. The most rushing yards he has put together in a season came last year with 642-rushing yards.

Prior to this, his career-high came back in 2018 with 514-rushing yards with the Seattle Seahawks. He has been a productive player in his career and is a welcome addition in Atlanta this isn’t to point out his shortcomings.

Rather to temper expectations about who exactly Atlanta has lined up at running back. At his best Davis is going to finish the season with 600-rushing yards and average around 3.5-yards per tote.

His slight decrease in yards per touch is factoring in what is a very questionable run-blocking line in Atlanta. They certainly have a myriad of weapons on offense but their one shortcoming is the lack of certainty surrounding the offensive line.

Being excited about Mike Davis makes sense, however, he is a player who is going to increase the Falcons’ run efficiency. However, don’t expect the seventh year back to come in and be a 1,000-yard rusher. Neither the Falcons nor Davis are built for that.

Signing Davis was a win for a team that appears to be headed into a season that will rely on their offense to outgun opposing teams. Davis will bring balance and stability something the Falcons have lacked at the position for a long time.