In the Atlanta Falcons' disastrous Week 8 loss, Falcons fans watched the Tampa Bay Buccaneers run wild against a run defense that entering Sunday was averaging less than 90 rushing yards per game and was among the top five in the NFL in that area, yet they were historically gashed on the ground.
The Bucs ran the ball 56 times for 324 yards (5.8 YPC) and a touchdown while Tampa Bay failed to record a single completion on the game. They were the first team to not complete a pass and win since before disco died, and that should tell you everything about how bad the run defense was.
The Falcons have seen some incredible results from rookie linebackers Kendal Daniels and Harold Perkins Jr., but unfortunately, the 16-0 loss in rainy Tampa Bay was a step in the wrong direction in regards to their development, as the two youngsters combined for five missed tackles on the game.
However, the end result does not and should not solely fall on them. It's normal for rookies to experience some growing pains, especially when you ask two Day 3 picks to play an every-down role in the middle of the defense against one of the NFL's best run games in the pouring rain.
And given Divine Deablo missed his second straight game due to a forearm injury and they were both thrust into larger roles (Daniels as the green dot/MIKE and Perkins as a starter), this was always going to be a tough matchup for them.
Kendal Daniels and Harold Perkins are not at fault for the Falcons' Week 8 loss
It's easy to look at the box score and say Daniels and Perkins are to blame for this, but when a team runs the ball 56 times, it means you're going to rely on them a lot. But the truth is that even if the rain didn't play a factor, the Bucs were ready to pound the rock since Baker Mayfield is still not 100% and they want him to do as little as possible to win games.
There is a lot of blame to go around for this one, and while they are culpable to an extent, it's hard to deny the Dirty Birds put them in a tough situation. You'd think Jeff Ulbrich would've had some ideas on how to stop the run after coaching against Zac Robinson last season, and between the rain and their overall tendencies, we should have anticipated run every single play.
Ulbrich refused to adjust to anything the Bucs dialed up on the ground, so we can't be shocked Bucky Irving and Kenneth Gainwell ran free. The Falcons gave up 10 runs that went for 10+ yards, and that just cannot happen regardless of who starts at linebacker.
And while whenever one of the rookies was late in pursuit, Tampa Bay got a chunk run, so it's not like the guys on the defensive line made their lives any easier. Only four times were they stopped for a loss.
Even still, they both had some good moments in this game. Perkins sacked Mayfield on a third down, while Daniels was the primary tackler in clean-up on many of Irving's minimal gains. But the fourth-round pick out of Oklahoma isn't satisfied, and he's holding himself accountable for his performance.
“I got to be better, mainly just being able to stop the run as the Mike linebacker,” Daniels told the AJC's Daniel Flick. “It’s me versus the running back, and I should be able to get him down more times than I did.”
Kendal Daniels and Harold Perkins Jr. are two long-term pieces for this Atlanta Falcons' defense, and just like with Michael Penix Jr., one less-than-adequate performance should not undo all of the goodwill they have bought with the fanbase this season when coaching was the bigger issue.
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