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Prisco’s Pick:
The Falcons are playing on a short week after beating the Eagles with a last-minute touchdown. The Atlanta offense was much improved from Week One, which is a good thing. The Chiefs looked sluggish on offense against the Bengals, but they will get it gong here. Their speed shows up on the fast track.Chiefs 32
Falcons 23Five Things to Watch on Sunday | Bengals vs. Falcons
from Chiefs.com
Here are some notes to know going into the gameSep 20, 2024 at 02:23 PM
Matt McMullen
Chiefs ReporterThe Kansas City Chiefs will hit the road for the first time this season as they travel to Atlanta for a matchup against the Falcons on Sunday Night Football.
Here are five things to keep in mind heading into game day.
1. Here’s a look at the final injury report for both teams.
The Chiefs have a relatively clean injury report heading into Sunday’s game, and as a result, Kansas City doesn’t feature a single player carrying an injury designation into the matchup.
As for tailback Isiah Pacheco, who suffered a fractured fibula in last week’s victory over Cincinnati, the latest update is that he had surgery on Wednesday and was placed on Injured Reserve. He is out a minimum of four games, and because he’s not currently on the active roster, he won’t appear on the injury report.
In lieu of Pacheco, the Chiefs signed Kareem Hunt to the practice squad earlier this week. Hunt was plenty busy as a member of the scout team over the last several days, but he won’t be elevated for Sunday’s game, according to Head Coach Andy Reid.
Looking at the Falcons, Atlanta didn’t list any player injury designations ahead of Sunday’s game, indicating a clean bill of health.
2. Running back Bijan Robinson is the key to the Falcons’ offense.
Robinson was the No. 8 overall selection in the 2023 NFL Draft, and through two games this season, he’s certainly playing like it. The former University of Texas star has rushed for 165 yards on 32 attempts, averaging 5.2 yards-per-carry. He was also particularly effective in Atlanta’s victory over the Eagles last week, rushing for 97 yards on just 14 carries.
The 22-year-old Robinson averaged 6.9 yards-per-attempt in that game while ripping off four runs of double-digit yardage and breaking three tackles along the way.
He’s been effective, and the Falcons haven’t been shy about using him. In fact, Robinson – who also has nine catches for 68 yards – has been responsible for 48 percent of Atlanta’s offensive advancements this year. In other words, Robinson has touched the ball on half of the Falcons’ offensive plays through two games.
It’s all to say that in order to slow down the Falcons, the Chiefs will have to contain Robinson’s production, and for what it’s worth, Kansas City has been effective against opposing running backs this season.
The Chiefs have held opposing tailbacks to a combined average of just 3.8 yards-per-carry on 30 attempts, and on those carries, Kansas City has yielded just one run of 10+ yards.
Here’s a player-by-player breakdown of that production, with the only outlier being Bengals’ running back Chase Brown, who found some success on limited carries:
Derrick Henry: 13 carries for 46 yards (3.45 yards-per-attempt)
Zack Moss: 12 carries for 34 yards (2.83 yards-per-attempt)
Chase Brown: 4 carries for 31 yards (7.75 yards-per-attempt)
Justice Hill: 1 carry for 3 yards
If the Chiefs can put together a similar performance against Robinson, it would go a long way toward containing the Falcons’ offense as a whole.
3. The Falcons’ play-action passing game will be something to watch.
The importance of stopping Atlanta’s rushing attack is even further amplified by the presence of Kirk Cousins at quarterback, who has historically thrived within the play-action passing game.
In 2022, Cousins’ last full, healthy season for the Minnesota Vikings, he ranked second among all quarterbacks with 203 play-action dropbacks. Additionally, from 2022 through the first eight games of 2023 (before Cousins’ season-ending Achillies injury), he threw 17 touchdowns off play-action – the third-most of any quarterback behind only Josh Allen (21) and Jared Goff (19).
Conversely, on non-play-action snaps during that same span, Cousins threw 15 of his 19 interceptions.
Cousins has simply thrived in play-action situations during his career, but for whatever reason – whether it be adjusting to a new offensive scheme or due to his injury recovery process – Cousins has led a Falcons’ offense that has posted the third-lowest play-action rate in the NFL through two weeks (13.6%). Only Geno Smith (11.8%) and Brock Purdy (12.8%) have tallied a lower percentage of play-action dropbacks so far, but Cousins’ inclusion on this list may be somewhat misleading.
Atlanta ran zero play-action snaps in Cousins’ Falcons debut vs. Pittsburgh, making him the only starting quarterback to do so in Week 1. Last week against the Eagles, however, was a different story. Cousins ran play-action on 26 percent of his dropbacks in that game, completing 5-of-8 passes for 53 yards.
It’s likely the Falcons will continue that trend as Cousins continues to get more comfortable in Atlanta’s offensive scheme, and the Chiefs’ defense will need to be ready for it.
4. Atlanta’s red zone defense has been impressive so far this season.
The Falcons have held opponents to a 2-for-7 mark in the red zone this season, which includes a 2-for-5 figure against Philadelphia last week. Specifically, the Falcons prevented touchdowns last week despite Philadelphia drives that marched to the 9-yard line, the 11-yard line and the 10-yard line.
The week prior, Atlanta lost to Pittsburgh despite holding the Steelers out of the end zone altogether (although they did allow six field goals).
It’s a solid group, but one area they’ve struggled is with missed tackles. Atlanta has missed the fourth-most tackles of any team so far, which partially explains why the Falcons have yielded the sixth-most rushing yards (323) of any team. Specifically, running backs Saquon Barkley and Najee Harris combined for 12 broken tackles against Atlanta, rushing for 165 yards.
The Chiefs’ running game will obviously be without Isiah Pacheco on Sunday, but the opportunity remains for a productive night on the ground.
5. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes can make some (more) NFL history on Sunday.
Mahomes is no stranger to setting records, and he has a shot at another one on Sunday night.
The 29-year-old Mahomes has won 76 career regular-season games as a starting quarterback, matching Tom Brady and Roger Staubach for the most quarterback victories through 100 career starts in NFL history. Mahomes will start the 99th career game of his career on Sunday, meaning that if the Chiefs win, he’ll claim the record for himself.
Mahomes will aim to do exactly that on Sunday night as the Chiefs look remain perfect on the season in a prime-time matchup with Atlanta.
Tostitos Inside Scoop
from Chiefs.comGame Preview
from The Associated PressChiefs’ Mahomes leads reigning champs into Atlanta to face Cousins and rejuvenated Falcons
By PAUL NEWBERRY
Updated 11:51 AM CDT, September 19, 2024ATLANTA (AP) — Patrick Mahomes has guided the Kansas City Chiefs to two straight Super Bowl titles and two consecutive last-play wins to open this season.
There’s no shortage of swagger in his game.
Now, he’s matched against Kirk Cousins, a quarterback who’s suddenly feeling a lot more confident about where things stand with the Atlanta Falcons.
Cousins guided the Falcons on a 70-yard drive in the final two minutes for a stunning road victory over the Philadelphia Eagles this past Monday night, looking very much like a guy who was worth that four-year, $180 million contract he received in free agency.
“It’s so important to find ways to win,” Cousins said. “That’s how you put together a great season. When you have these games that could go either way, you find a way to have it break your way. That’s the way this league is and so when we can find those inches, it can really change the tale of the season.”
Atlanta (1-1) will look to build on that momentum when it hosts the reigning champs in another prime-time game Sunday night.
“You want to play these moments and these big-time games,” said first-year Falcons coach Raheem Morris, whose team is looking to break a streak of six straight losing seasons since its last playoff appearance in 2017.
continue reading5 things to watch as the Chiefs play the Falcons on ‘Sunday Night Football’
from
ArrowheadPride.comThe first road test of the season will come in primetime.
By
Ron Kopp | Sep 20, 2024, 4:54pm CDTAfter a two-win home stand to start the season, the (2-0) Kansas City Chiefs are traveling to play the (1-1) Atlanta Falcons in Mercedes-Benz Stadium in the Week 3 edition of “Sunday Night Football.” Kickoff is set for 7:20 p.m. Arrowhead time.
It will be a tough test for the Chiefs and their young roster. The Falcons will be using this primetime opportunity to honor owner Arthur Blank. He will be inducted into their ring of honor. The team will be offering complimentary concessions as part of the celebration.
If free food doesn’t fuel a rowdy crowd, Week 2’s comeback win over the Philadelphia Eagles on “Monday Night Football” has surely given Atlanta energy.
While Kansas City has narrowly escaped with victories in the first two weeks, the margins on the road will be slimmer — especially with one big injury on the Chiefs’ offense. That’s where we begin five things to watch on Sunday night.
1. The backfield without Isiah Pacheco
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Photo by David Eulitt/Getty ImagesStarting running back Isiah Pacheco is out for an extended period after fracturing his fibula in Week 2. In response, the team signed practice squad back Keaontay Ingram to the active roster and signed former Kansas City running back Kareem Hunt to the practice squad.
Hunt may generate the most excitement among Chiefs’ fans, but undrafted rookie Carson Steele is likely to get the first opportunity to fill Pacheco’s role. In the preseason, Steele’s downhill running style forced nine missed tackles over 11 rushes; 81 of his 87 rushing yards came after contact.
Veteran back Samaje Perine profiles as the passing-down back to complement the starter, but he could see more overall work, too. In 2023, he averaged 4.5 yards per carry over 53 rushes for the Denver Broncos.
However the Chiefs dice up the backfield snaps, there should be chances to make plays. Atlanta has allowed 323 rushing yards over the first two weeks after facing the league’s fourth-most rushing attempts.
2. Corralling the Falcons’ playmakers
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Photo by Cooper Neill/Getty ImagesOn every snap, the Atlanta offense gives defenses a lot to think about. It starts with running back Bijan Robinson, who has averaged 5.7 yards per touch over the NFL’s ninth-most opportunities. He will put a lot of pressure on Kansas City’s linebackers, who will need to make sound tackles in the running lanes and keep track of him on passing plays.
On the outside, wide receiver Drake London will command attention from the Chiefs’ best in third-down and red zone situations — but he also plays a part in Atlanta’s strong rushing attack. That’s what Chiefs’ defensive backs coach Dave Merritt noted from studying London.
“Drake is a pretty daggone good blocker. He reminds me of an old Hines Ward, throwback-type blocker,” Merritt told reporters in a press conference on Thursday. “The No. 1 thing we’ve been working on this week is making sure we take care of the first contact — which is our pressure key. Then we can get to the running back.”
The Chiefs also need to have eyes on tight end Kyle Pitts, a unique athlete at a position the team has struggled to contain during the first two games.
3. Challenging an experienced Atlanta secondary
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Photo by Cooper Neill/Getty ImagesThe Falcons have talented veterans in the back end who have specific experience against Kansas City quarterback Patrick Mahomes. Free safety Jessie Bates was part of the Cincinnati Bengals’ defense that upset the 2021 Chiefs in the AFC Championship — and strong safety Justin Simmons has five career interceptions against Mahomes. That’s the most of any NFL defender.
Cornerback A.J. Terrell joins this duo to form a disciplined, sound coverage unit. Kansas City offensive coordinator Matt Nagy has seen it on film.
“They keep a lot of things in front of them,” he said during Thursday’s press conference. “Against Philadelphia, they did a really good job of tackling. They’re physical. They understand the scheme… For us, it’s about, ‘How do we play fast?’”
The Bengals’ sound coverage got the best of Mahomes in Week 2, throwing off his timing (and comfort) while throwing from the pocket. If there are similar issues in Atlanta, alarm bells could start ringing.
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