3 Atlanta Falcons that must step up in against San Francisco

ATLANTA, GEORGIA - DECEMBER 05: Head coach Arthur Smith of the Atlanta Falcons talks with Matt Ryan #2 during the first half against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on December 05, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - DECEMBER 05: Head coach Arthur Smith of the Atlanta Falcons talks with Matt Ryan #2 during the first half against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on December 05, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
3 of 4
Next
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA – DECEMBER 12: Cordarrelle Patterson #84 of the Atlanta Falcons smiles after winning 29-21 over the Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium on December 12, 2021 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA – DECEMBER 12: Cordarrelle Patterson #84 of the Atlanta Falcons smiles after winning 29-21 over the Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium on December 12, 2021 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) /

2.  The magic must continue for the Atlanta Falcons best player this season, Cordarrelle Patterson

Cordarrelle Patterson has easily been Atlanta’s best player this season. It doesn’t matter where he lines up or how he gets the football when he touches it you know something good is about to happen. Whether it is a clutch touchdown catch or a short-yardage run for a key first down Atlanta has counted on Patterson to help fuel their offense.

The magic must continue on Sunday if Atlanta wants a chance of an upset. They need to scheme to put the ball in Patterson’s hands as much as possible whether that is at the running back or receiver position.

San Francisco doesn’t have the personnel to slow Patterson down.  Ideally, Atlanta will use Patterson out of the backfield primarily with Mike Davis and establish the run as they have the last three weeks.

It doesn’t matter where he lines up as long as Atlanta feeds him the football consistently. If they don’t they have no chance in this game and this game will quickly turn into a blowout. That is how key Patterson is in an offense struggling to find big plays from their underwhelming options.