Predicting the Atlanta Falcons 2024 record game by game

Week 2 at Eagles: 1-1 (L)

Now this is a game the Falcons could win, and if they are legit they will win, but to err on the side of caution this is being put down as an L. The Buccaneers beat Jalen Hurts in the playoffs by playing cover 0: blitzing him, getting him off his spot, and forcing him to make errant decisions. Hurts is not the best quarterback under pressure, but I believe part of the problem was playcalling. Brian Johnson’s idea to counter cover 0 was running Aj Brown and Devonta Smith on-go routes. The play would not even be developed by the time Hurts was looking to throw, and he would be forced to throw it away. Now Johnson is gone and has been replaced with Kellen Moore—an underrated playcaller.

The Falcons lack cornerback depth outside of AJ Terrell, and guarding AJ Brown is no easy task. Terrell struggles against bigger stronger wide receivers and that is what Brown is. Smith will match up either against Clark Phillips or Dee Alford, both of which are favorable matchups for him. This game might get ugly fast if the Falcons’ secondary can’t keep pace with the WR duo, and they probably won’t be able to. 

The Eagles' offensive line, even without Kelce, is still good and the Falcons have no clear-cut pass-rushing weapons as of now. Hopefully, Bralen Trice and Arnold Ebiketie break out this season, but it will be tough for them against this O-Line. Not to mention the Eagles picked up a star running back in Saquon Barkley this offseason. The LB core is gonna have their hands full trying to contain him out of the backfield and Onyemata and Jarrett will have to be on their A-game to limit Saquon on the ground.

The Eagles' biggest weaknesses on the defensive side of the ball last year were their corners (Darius Slay slightly regressed and James Bradberry was terrible) and their LB core. They addressed both this offseason. The Eagles signed Devin White, who is not as good as he was in 2020 when he helped the Buccaneers win the Superbowl, but certainly an upgrade over a washed Darius Leonard. If Nakobe Dean breaks out like he’s supposed to the Eagles have two solid LBers.

In the draft, the Eagles took two corners: Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper Dejean. Both were highly touted coming out of college and should play well in the NFL. The Eagles also have CJ Gardner Johnson coming back to their secondary after a one-year stint with the Lions. He recorded only one interception last year but had six in his last year with Philadelphia.

The Eagles retooled a lot, have favorable matchups against Atlanta, have a home-field advantage, and are angry and looking to bounce back from their embarrassing playoff matchup last year. The Eagles win this one 30-20.