Know your opponent: Carolina Panthers revisit Week 1 promise against Atlanta Falcons
Let’s transport back to Week 1, shall we?
The dawn of the Bryce Young era. The reintroduction of Frank Reich to the Carolinas. That September day in that Atlanta dome, where it was loud and fun and the 2023 seasons for the Panthers and Falcons were replete with possibility.
Now? ...
The Panthers (1-12) host the Falcons (6-7) at 1 p.m. on Sunday at Bank of America Stadium in uptown Charlotte, and with the rematch comes a visitation of their promising pasts — and a reminder of the fact that each of their seasons, in various ways, haven’t gone according to plan.
Carolina, of course, has gone farther off-track than its opponent. The team fired its head coach and two other assistants a few weeks ago. Its first-overall pick of a quarterback has struggled to the point where he’s answering questions about his confidence every week. The team’s offensive line has been mangled and arguably misused. The entire offense, in many ways, has squandered a great defensive season.
Atlanta’s campaign hasn’t been without its blemishes, either, though. Most recently: A loss last week to the Tampa Bay Bucs left the team no longer in the driver’s seat for the NFC South crown.
The Falcons opened as 3-point favorites over the Panthers, per FanDuel Sportsbook, with the over/under at 34.5.
Here’s a brief look at who this Atlanta team is now.
Desmond Ridder, Atlanta’s maligned quarterback
The passing game isn’t exactly a strength of the Falcons’ offense, and it has been a strange season for second-year quarterback Desmond Ridder as a result.
Ridder, a third-round pick in 2022, has earned and lost and earned the QB1 role all in this season. Ridder had the job until Week 8, when Taylor Heinicke entered in the second half of a loss at Tennessee, and he reclaimed it Week 12 after the team emerged from its bye.
The Cincinnati alum leads an offense that is 24th in the league in points per game (19.3), 20th in red zone scoring (52.63%) and 15th in yards per game (336.7). His numbers reflect the team’s mediocre performance to date. He’s thrown nine touchdowns and nine interceptions and is averaging a 40.4 QBR. He had one of his most prolific games of the season last week in the aforementioned loss to the Bucs: 26 of 40, 347 yards, one touchdown, one interception.
He should expect a difficult challenge against this underappreciated Panthers defense, which has been causing headaches all year, even as it has suffered and recovered from various injuries in 2023. Most recently the team held Derek Carr in check all game against the Saints — even forcing him into a turnover, which has been the one fair criticism of the group.
In Week 1, Ridder went 15 of 18 for 115 yards and one touchdown and suffered four sacks for 24 yards.
Bijan Robinson, Falcons future
The Falcons’ backfield accounted for all three of their offensive scores in their 24-10 season-opening win, and the running game has continued to be a strength for the team.
Bijan Robinson, the team’s first-round draft pick, had 10 carries for 56 yards and also added 27 yards and a touchdown as a receiver in Week 1. He’s getting about as many touches this late in the season: On the year he has 169 carries on — 13th most in the NFL — and 790 yards and four touchdowns. His backfield mate, Tyler Allgeier, scored two rushing touchdowns against the Panthers Week 1.
Both backs have had their ups and downs this season. Most recently, the two combined for 74 of the team’s 96 rushing yards. But the team still boasts one of the best rushing offenses in the league: 132.2 yards per game (sixth in NFL), 0.9 rushing TDs per game (10th), 31.7 rushes per game (3rd) and 4.2 yards per rush (16th).
Bryce Young remembers Jessie Bates III, rest of Falcons’ defense
Bryce Young’s first drive of his NFL life was a promising one — one that ended in an aggressive decision to go for it on fourth-and-1 in the red zone. But outside of that, his debut was mostly defined by Jessie Bates III.
Bates secured two interceptions in the season-opener. The picks gave the Falcons short fields and led to the first 10 Atlanta points. The game set Young on a path to throwing as many touchdowns (9) as interceptions so far in his rookie year and having a 29.4 QBR.
The other problem for the Panthers? The rest of the defense was tough, too, that day — and has been stingy all season.
The Falcons’ defense is only allowing 20.7 points a game (12th in the league), 313.9 yards a game (11th) and a 40.54 opponent red zone scoring percentage (second in the league). They’re particularly good at stopping the run, which has become the Panthers’ offensive identity in the past two weeks. Those stats: 0.4 rushing touchdowns a game allowed (0.4) and 110.9 rushing yards per game allowed (15th).
Linebacker Arnold Ebiketie (5.5), linebacker Bud Dupree (5) and defensive tackle David Onyemata (3.5) lead the team in sacks — and they, too, will be among the Falcons players hoping to repeat Week 1, one of the brightest points of the 2023 Falcons’ past.
