3 Reasons Atlanta Falcons are division favorites after Brady retires

Jan 16, 2023; Tampa, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady (12) walks off the field in the final minute against the Dallas Cowboys in the fourth quarter during a wild card game at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports /

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Jan 8, 2023; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Falcons running back Tyler Allgeier (25) runs the ball against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the second half at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports /

2. Atlanta will have the best rushing attack in the NFC South

Arthur Smith’s run game is simply missing a quarterback capable of forcing the defense to play honestly. If Desmond Ridder proves to be that guy this is an Atlanta Falcons team capable of beating anyone by controlling the clock with Cordarrelle Patterson and Tyler Allgeier running the ball right at opponents.

There is an argument to be made Atlanta’s rushing attack will be even better next season with Allgeier in year two and the Falcons able to bring in better depth behind Patterson and Allgeier.

Patterson is a mismatch with his ability to play receiver and Allgeier is simply impossible to tackle helping make this Atlanta run game so lethal. The problem for the Falcons was the fact Mariota couldn’t force the defense to respect his ability as a passer.

Defenses playing Atlanta needed to simply play the run and force Mariota to beat them. Even with this in mind, Atlanta’s rushing attack was one of the best in the league imagine how much better this could be with a capable quarterback.