The Atlanta Falcons' defense has been a major disappointment through six games, but there is reason to believe things could start turning around in the coming weeks.
Following Sunday's 31-23 loss to the Chicago Bears, Atlanta has fallen to 2-4, with injuries continuing to pile up on an already depleted defense. And for the second consecutive week, it was Jeff Ulbrich's unit's inability to slow down a high-powered offense that saw the Falcons drop a close game.
However, with star cornerback A.J. Terrell nearing a return from injured reserve and pass rusher James Pearce Jr. approaching the end of his eight game suspension for violating the NFL's personal conduct policy, Atlanta could soon get two of its most important defensive players back.
And for a unit that desperately needs some help, those reinforcements can't arrive soon enough. And for even better news, the Falcons designated Terrell to return from IR and he practiced on Wednesday--which suggests he should be in line to play for the first time since Week 2 on Sunday.
Falcons need to survive another brutal stretch until they get their stars back
Of course, the Atlanta Falcons still have some serious problems to deal with before those reinforcements arrive.
Sunday's loss to Chicago only made matters worse. Linebacker Divine Deablo exited with an arm injury, rookie Kendal Daniels suffered a frightening neck injury that required him to be stretchered off the field on a gurney, and defensive back Billy Bowman Jr. also left with a hamstring issue. And C.J. Henderson didn't play at all in Week 6 due to a hamstring injury.
Fortunately, Falcons head coach Kevin Stefanski provided encouraging news on Daniels Wednesday, saying he would practice and was not entering the NFL's concussion protocol, so he has a shot to play as well.
Still, the growing injury list leaves Ulbrich with even fewer options heading into another difficult matchup. Atlanta hosts current MVP frontrunner Brock Purdy and the undefeated San Francisco 49ers in Week 7, giving the Falcons little time to regroup after Sunday's disappointing performance.
And at 2-4, they can't exactly afford to keep losing while waiting for their defense to get healthy. They'll now have to try to slow down Purdy, Christian McCaffrey, George Kittle, and Mike Evans (if he plays) all while dealing with Raheem Morris returning to Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
That's what makes the next few weeks so important.
Getting James Pearce Jr. back won't automatically fix Atlanta's defensive problems, especially with Jalon Walker already ruled out for the season. The pass-rush actually performed pretty well without him for a group that lacks a lot of talent.
A.J. Terrell's return also won't solve everything in the secondary, since he struggled before the injury. But there's a pretty significant difference between asking Ulbrich to make things work with a depleted roster and giving him two of the defense's most talented players back.
The Falcons have shown flashes of being a competitive team this season, although their inconsistency has made it difficult to know what to expect from one week to the next.
If Atlanta can find a way to stay competitive until they return to full strength, there's still a chance this defense looks considerably different over the second half of the season.
The problem is that the Falcons are quickly running out of room for error. And with the way they've played lately, waiting another couple of weeks for these reinforcements might prove more difficult than it sounds.
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