By hiring the legendary Bill Callahan to be their new offensive line coach, the Atlanta Falcons invested heavily in their offensive line this offseason. After one game, it is already clear the group has plenty to clean up…
Atlanta's offensive line struggled to consistently create running lanes against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Sunday's 20-13 loss, particularly on the interior as the Steelers ultimately held Atlanta to just 238 total yards and 2 of 12 on third down.
Now there are legitimate reasons for some of that. Cooper Rush was making his first start after joining the team late, and the lack of a consistent downfield passing threat allowed Pittsburgh to devote more attention to stopping Robinson.
Still, Atlanta's offensive line has to be better. Chris Lindstrom is one of the league's highest paid guards, with a contract that carries a $26.25 million cap hit in 2026, Matthew Bergeron also received a massive four-year extension worth $96 million with $60 million guaranteed.
Bill Callahan gives Falcons a reason to expect improvement up front
Sure there were questions at right tackle after Kaleb McGary's retirement as Atlanta brought in Jawaan Taylor to compete for the starting job. But the team still had plenty of continuity with Jake Matthews, Lindstrom, Bergeron and Ryan Neuzil returning as starters. That made the interior struggles against Pittsburgh especially noticeable.
Atlanta's tackles also did not consistently open things up in the run game. SUre Robinson was able to create plenty on his own, but the Steelers did a good job preventing him from finding easy lanes.
The offensive line cannot be expected to dominate every defensive front it faces. It can be expected to make life easier for one of the NFL's best offensive weapons. That did not happen often enough in Week 1.
Callahan was brought in this offseason to elevate the offensive line, and the Atlanta Falcons entered the year believing the group had the foundation to become one of the NFL's best units.
There is a chance Week 1 looks worse in hindsight if Atlanta's quarterback situation stabilizes. Pittsburgh did not have to respect much of a deep passing attack from Rush, which made the Falcons easier to defend. But that cannot be the excuse for everything.
Atlanta needs its offensive line to win more of its individual battles, particularly on the interior. It needs to create cleaner opportunities for Bijan Robinson and give whoever is playing quarterback a more comfortable pocket--and that starts in Week 2 against a Panthers team that has its fair share of issues in the front seven. After all, they gave up over 300 yards on the ground to the Chicago Bears.
Tomorrow's matchup against the Panthers should provide the first opportunity to show that Week 1 was a warning rather than a trend for this Falcons offensive line. If Rush wants to have a get-right game, it starts with the offensive line keeping him upright.
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