Week 2: Atlanta Falcons vs. Carolina Panthers | Atlanta Falcons Pregame Show
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The Atlanta Falcons are set to host the Carolina Panthers in Week 2 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, aiming to bounce back after a disappointing loss in Week 1. A major storyline entering the game is the uncertainty surrounding the starting quarterback position, as head coach Kevin Stefanski has not yet named a starter and may wait until Sunday to make the decision. The broadcast highlights the performance of Cooper Rush from the previous week, noting his ability to manage the game and distribute the ball effectively to key playmakers like Bijan Robinson and Drake London. Analysts emphasize that regardless of who takes the snaps, the primary objective for the quarterback will be to find these talented weapons quickly, leveraging their speed and skill to create explosive plays rather than trying to manufacture offense through complex schemes.
The discussion also delves into the Falcons' defensive evolution under head coach Jeff Oliver, specifically focusing on their ability to generate pressure without relying heavily on blitzes. Against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 1, the defense successfully pressured Aaron Rodgers using only their front four, allowing them to maintain better coverage against the pass. This strategic shift is seen as a significant improvement over the previous season's aggressive blitzing tactics. Key defensive contributors like Zaidar Smith and newcomer Sydney Brown were praised for their impactful performances, with Smith recording two sacks in limited snaps and Brown leading the team in tackles. The coaching staff's emphasis on assigning specific roles to players has helped integrate new personnel effectively, turning potential roster fillers into game-changing assets who understand their responsibilities and can make immediate impacts.
On the opposing side, the Carolina Panthers are coming off an offensive explosion against the Chicago Bears, where they scored 37 points despite ultimately losing due to a porous run defense that surrendered nearly 300 rushing yards. The analysis points out that while Bryce Young emerged as a dynamic playmaker with Jaylen Coker providing a secondary receiving threat, the Panthers' inability to stop the run was a critical flaw that led to their defeat. For the Falcons, stopping the run is paramount, particularly against Bijan Robinson, who continues to defy expectations by forcing missed tackles and gaining significant yardage even in simple running schemes. The matchup between Robinson's elusive style and the Panthers' defensive line is expected to be a highlight, with Robinson's ability to read blocks and bounce outside proving difficult for defenders to handle. Additionally, the Falcons' running backs, including Brian Robinson, offer versatility that can keep defenses honest and open up play-action opportunities for the passing game.
Key strategic elements for the upcoming game include controlling the line of scrimmage and managing turnover margins, which analysts believe are crucial for winning close contests. The Falcons' offensive line must create enough space for their running backs to operate effectively, while the secondary needs to contain Bryce Young's ability to extend plays and make things happen outside the pocket. The Panthers' frequent use of empty sets is noted as a tactic that informs the quarterback about defensive alignments early, allowing him to exploit mismatches or target specific zones. Ultimately, the game will likely hinge on whether Atlanta can establish their running game early to control the clock and limit big plays, while simultaneously protecting their own ball and capitalizing on opportunities to create turnovers against a Panthers offense that is still finding its footing after a high-scoring but ultimately unsuccessful performance in Week 1.
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HERE'S DEJAN ROBINSON. TOUCHDOWN
ATLANTA. Up to AJ Terrell. Touchdown
Atlanta. Drake London. Terrell's going
to pick it. How about that? 30 midfield.
It's a foot race. Going to sail it to
the end zone. Pitts is there. IT'S AN
ATLANTA TOUCHDOWN. WOW.
OW. STRIDE IT OUT. JESSE. TOUCHDOWN
ATLANTA. It's intercepted. Savior Watts
has got another one.
We welcome you guys back to Ticketmaster
Studios as we get you guys ready for
week two in the NFL. Falcons are
returning home to Mercedes-Benz Stadium
and they're hosting the Carolina
Panthers. Now, both of these teams did
lose in week one and they're both hoping
to win, but only one can. Taylor
Vizmore, Derek Rackley, Will McFaten,
we're back with you guys for week two
and man, what a fun week one. It was
across the NFL.
>> Definitely was there was a lot of
exciting. I think the anticipation like
everybody was so excited to just get
back to football and see NFL action
again starting all the way back to last
Wednesday all the way through the
weekend. There was definitely some
exciting games. Not quite in the uh win
column that the Atlanta Falcons are
looking for, but going to try to change
that here week two.
>> Going to try to change it. But something
to speak about as we kind of get into
this show is that earlier in the week,
Kevin Spansky, the head coach of the
Falcons, made it clear that he has not
named a starter for week two when it
comes to the quarterback position. and
he probably won't make that decision
until game time on Sunday. So, well, let
me ask you this as we go into week two.
I actually want to look back at week
one. Obviously, Cooper Rush probably
wasn't the initial plan for this Falcons
offense to have as a starting
quarterback. What but what were you able
to see and what Cooper Rush was able to
do as a quarterback, also as a game
manager as well?
>> Yeah, I think he operated within the
plan of the offense, right? And when you
have somebody like Bjan Robinson who you
want to get the ball to as often as you
can. I thought Cooper Rush did a very
good job of doing that. I thought they
started to get Drake London worked in
more in the second quarter in the second
half. And that is going to be kind of
the key I think for whoever is at
quarterback is just distribute the ball
to your playmakers. I thought Cooper
Rush did a very good job of that in week
one again in a little bit of a a rush
action as well.
>> Yeah. I mean, I think anytime you have a
veteran quarterback, even though he's
been a career backup, Will, there's
probably some nerves. There's probably
some butterflies. And then there's
probably some things that after he was
out on the field in a regular season
game, that he wanted to go back and look
through and say, gosh, I could do that a
whole lot better, or I need to make this
adjustment to help those around. He, you
know, he talked in his press conference
this week saying that there's so many
talented playmakers around him. His job
is just to try to get the ball into
their hands. So, I think with another
week of experience, another week of
familiarity and what Tommy Reese is
trying to do from a play calling
perspective and then just understanding
like I've got to take my opportunities
to get the ball into the hands of these
guys. It's not like you have to
manufacture offense when you got so many
talented weapons around you. Taylor,
>> you bring up those playmakers and that
was a conversation about Cooper Rush's
performance on Sunday was his um
inability in a way to get the ball to
the playmakers. as Drake Lyndon had two
receptions and Jan Dodson and um Zakias,
excuse me, both had one reception each.
But then you look at the guy on the
screen right there, number seven, Bjan
Robinson, I mean the talent is
undeniable. He had eight receptions. He
ran almost every single time you looked
at the field, he was running somewhere,
doing something. How important is it to
have someone like Bjon Robinson who can
get in there, get really good yardage,
but also bail you out when you need it?
I mean, he is the ultimate equalizer, if
you will. I mean, there were so many
plays last weekend, guys. And it's not
only last weekend, it's every single
time I've seen him where he gets the
football, I'm like, gosh, that's a
tackle for loss. Or I'm like, that's
going to probably be a no gain. Right.
In my head, like as an analyst, I'm just
thinking about this like there's nothing
there. He's probably going to get
tackled and then all a sudden I look up
and he makes it seven yards. Yeah. Or he
catches the ball like he did on the
touchdown and I'm like, "Oh, he's got a
little seam there. It might be a first
down." And he takes it the distance.
Right. It's just every single time I
watch him, I'm like, "This guy is
amazing. I understand why every well,
the Faults paid him, but everybody in
the NFL would want to pay him as much
money as he would demand." But it's
because every single time he touches the
ball, he makes exciting things happen.
He puts you in a position to help win
games.
>> Yeah, Rack, he makes the ordinary plays
exciting and he makes the insanely hard
plays look ordinary. Like, that's how
good he is. even the first catch of the
game that he had that kind of like swing
pass out to the to the right flat
one-handed snag kind of just kept going.
It's like he does that like it's
nothing. And one of the coolest aspects
was seeing Bjon in front of the Steelers
crowd because you could see how special
of a player he was based on just their
reaction. And this is a fan base that
saw Le'Veon Bell at his peak like Bjon
is different and so he is Mr. Do it all
for this offense and I think they're
going to give him the rock as often as
possible
>> guys. Something I think that's really
fun about watching Bjon throughout all
the seasons that he has played so far in
the NFL is you know how good he is and
then he still impresses you which is
makes watching him so much more fun
every single Sunday. But I think when
you look back at the game in general I
think a lot of people had questions
about what this defensive front was
going to be what the defense in general
was going to be. and I walked away
pretty impressed with this defense be
from this defensive front, excuse me,
and what they were able to accomplish
when it came to Aaron Rogers and and
their offensive line with the Steelers.
What were you guys able to take away um
from the defensive front side and from
the Falcons?
>> Yeah, I think the biggest thing was they
talked a lot kind of this off season
after blitzing a lot last year. They
wanted to be able to generate pressure
with their front four. They only blitzed
11% of the time on Sunday against the
Pittsburgh. And so that to me shows an
evolution in their ability to get
pressure. We saw Zidarius Smith get a
pair of sacks against Aaron Rogers. They
were able to move him off his spot very
frequently and not having to send that
extra rusher allows you to play more
coverage and blanket everybody
downfield. So I thought that was a
really big step in the right direction
for this group. Even though Jeff has
seen these guys in the off season
through training camp, it's still going
to be a learning process, right?
figuring out how can I use these guys on
this 20s 26 team because it's not the
same team as last year. It's not the
same personnel. So, every single year,
Taylor, you kind of have to adapt and
figure out what's going to work. Am I
going to be playing more man, more zone?
Am I going to pressure more with just
the front four? Do I going to have to
bring extra? And then what does the
opponent what does the challenge present
to us from the opponent? Well, and I
think when you watch what he's able to
do year and year out, even before he was
here with the Falcons, when he was with
the Jets, and then with the Falcons
before the Jets, you were able to see
how good of a teacher Jeff Obi really is
and how much he loves this job and loves
what he does. You brought up um Zadarius
Smith, excuse me. He was in there for 16
snaps. 16 snaps. Had two sacks. It's
like the greatest sack, you know, number
per snap count ever. Awesome. And then
also someone that really impressed me
was actually Cydney Brown. He was in
there for 29 snaps of the game. Led the
led the team in tackles with seven
tackles. And that's what I mean what by
his ability to coach and to teach is
these guys. They might not be like the
biggest names in the league like a Jesse
Bates is like an AJ Terrell, but he uses
them and and critiques them on what
they're best at so they go out on Sunday
and they can perform at a very high
level. And credit to those guys like
Sydney Brown, the newcomer to this team,
like recognizing early on like I'm not
just here to fill a roster spot. Like
I'm here to go make a difference. I'm
here to go make plays in the game. And
he did that.
>> Yeah. Go ahead.
>> Well, and one of the coolest things that
he said today, too, was that he he's a
fan of giving guys very clear, specific
roles because that simplifies their
preparation. It allows them to take
ownership of that. And Sydney Brown, I
thought, was a great example of that on
Sunday.
>> All right, let's go ahead and switch to
the Carolina Panthers because, man, what
a game. I mean, they that was the most
insane offensive game. And for me, what
I learned about that team was there
might be some issues on the defensive
side of the ball because they gave up 59
points to the uh Chicago Bears. You
guys, let me start with you guys. What
did you guys learn from watching that
Carolina Panthers game?
>> Yeah. I mean, the first thing I was
looking for going into it because they
have addressed their defensive line,
let's say, this off seasonason in a big
way, and the biggest uh free agent
signing that they had was Jaylen
Phillips. So, I really wanted to see how
he was going to look in this defense.
You mentioned, you know, the high amount
of rushing yards that they gave up. I
don't necessarily put that on an edge
rusher. He got a sack. He was pressuring
Caleb Williams throughout the afternoon.
So, I think that he is a great addition
to their defense and somebody the
Falcons are going to have to look out
for.
>> Yeah, Phillips is one of those guys that
consistently throughout his career, he's
kind of averaged somewhere in that five
to 10 sacks a season. I think it's a
reason why the Carolina Panthers brought
him in and he was able to make an impact
in that game last week. I saw the other
side of the ball and I think we all knew
about Bryce Young if you've been
watching the Falcons against the
Panthers last couple years. We knew
about Ted McMillan from last year, but
maybe this Jaylen Coker and him emerging
in that game last week. So, what I
learned is now Bryce Young might have
really good chemistry with two wide
receivers this year because he had an
outstanding game last week. We showed
the stats. That was just his third
100yard game of his career and he did it
in week one against a very challenging
opponent that a lot of people are kind
of saying is going to be one of the
favorites in the NFC. So that's one
thing Atlanta's going to have to make
sure they keep a mind mindful of is yes,
you got to be able to stop the run, but
last year I think it was Bryce Young
against or with Ted McMillan now because
he was the talented rookie led all
rookies in yards last year. Now they've
got two guys that you're going to have
to make sure that these guys are slowed
down in the passing game so he doesn't
have another one of those 350 plus
performance nights.
>> Yeah, that was the second time in Jaylen
Coker's career that he had over a 100
receiving yards. Really great showing
from him. And I think what was more
impressive was when you looked at the
stat and what the stat line actually
was. He had 138 yards, but only 36 of
those yards were yards after the catch.
That speaks highly for Bryce Young. And
we'll get into Bryce Young later when we
talk about the matchups about this team
and and going against the Falcons. But I
agree Jaylen Jaylen Koker kind of popped
for me and I think a lot of people were
expecting to see Tedaro McMillan be the
number one guy in that game and that's
probably what the Bears were kind of
counting on and then here comes Jaylen
Coker out of nowhere and puts on a show.
>> Absolutely. I mean, anytime that you
have multiple options in the passing
attack, it just makes it that much
harder to defend. And we know that the
Panthers have a good rushing offense
with Chuba Hubard leading the way.
They've got Jonathan Brooks in there.
But if they can find a multifaceted
passing game where it's not just T
McMillan and they have layers and
options and really that explosive
downfield element is what Jaylen Coker
brought with some tremendous catches.
That is what you're looking for to
really unlock an offense that has
evolved over recent years. Well, and
let's let's be honest, sometimes the
game takes shape and it just you you get
thrown for an audible for lack of better
word, right? The Chicago Bears just
started scoring a bunch of ton of
points. So, when you're playing catch-up
mode in the NFL, guess what? You chuck
it through the air. You have no choice
because you got to chew up yards and
points quickly. And so, that's what
happened. And it worked out in in
Carolina's favor to an extent, right?
They were able to put 37 points on the
board, but it still wasn't enough to
beat the Bears. Well, that's what I want
to talk about is this Panthers defense
and really the Chicago offense because
what a game it was. And obviously you
can see these defensive stats presented
by Microsoft Co-Pilot here. And I
actually went back and looked at the
minutia of the game from the Panthers
last week and 59 points allowed. Six of
the seven touchdowns that the Chicago
Bears had were rushing touchdowns. 291
yards on the ground from rushing alone.
That's huge, you guys. And then
obviously I wanted to see like how many
times were they just running these big
chunk plays or were they running the
ball that much? In the first um quarter
alone they had 17 offensive plays. 11 of
them were rushing plays. And I think
what was interesting was Dave Canales
had said this and Kevin Stfansky has
said this early on in the season as well
is you have to establish the run early
and often. And I don't know that people
understand establishing the run. This is
establishing the run. Okay. 72 yards in
the first quarter is establishing the
run because then in the second quarter
and on they were able to go downfield
and get some things going down down down
the field and and really pull away in a
way um from the Carolina Panthers. And
it all started with the running the
running game and and the lack thereof of
the rush defense that the Carolina
Panthers had.
>> Had to have been maddening for the
Carolina Panthers to score 37 points
>> and to lose in the fashion that they
did, but also to give up the amount of
rushing yards they did. Like I can't
imagine what it was like in that
defensive meeting because those type of
stats are they're not only humbling like
it kind of gets everybody looking at
each other like, "Oh, did you see that
play?" Like, "Oh yeah, I missed that
tackle. Oh yeah, he just gashed our
defense right there." Like some like
that's kind of embarrassing. Like
stopping the run is like a toughness
thing when it comes to the NFL. And if
you can't stop the run as a defense, I'm
telling you, they're just going to keep
feeding it and then all of a sudden the
explosive passing plays are going to
come behind it. And I think Carolina saw
that last weekend.
>> Yeah, you used the term embarrassing.
That is exactly how Jaylen Phillips
described it to reporters after the
game. But the biggest thing was the
missed tackles, right? And we know Bjon
Robinson is as good is as good as
literally anybody in the NFL at forcing
miss tackles. He forced 12 against the
Steelers. The Panthers allowed nearly
five yards after contact to the running
backs in or Chicago's running backs in
this last game. So when you look at a
player who can make everybody miss and
never allow a clean shot on him with a
defense that just gave up that kind of
yardage after contact, the the formula
is there for a perfect storm.
>> I mean, you bring up Van Robinson and
the missed tackles that he can acrue
over time. And then you look at this
Chicago game and what they were able to
do on the ground. Our DJ Shockley is
actually in the film room talking about
Van Robinson and how he can be his best
self against Carolina this week.
>> All right, guys. Let's talk about
something that everybody loves to see
and watch. our man Bjan Robinson and the
things that he can do with the ball in
his hands is quite remarkable and we say
it every year that how can this guy
continue to surprise us? Well, just
point to last week where he had 12
missed tackles in the ball game and
continues to make things look easy in a
national football league. Now, this it's
a simple inside zone. This is it should
just hit right up through here. He does
a good job of seeing color, seeing
vision, but then using that vision to
bounce it outside. So, you're going to
get a little cross block coming across
here with Warner. Now, this is what you
like here. You got a guy sitting right
in the hole where he should hit. Van
sees it. But the vision of him to
understand, you know what, let me bounce
this thing here. Put his right foot in
the ground, jump, stop, go left, and
still keep the same speed to go left is
what makes it. This should be a zero one
yard gain. But watch what he does. Does
an unbelievable job of hitting it left.
And you see the small window getting
vertical and now falling forward for
another two, three yards. Oh yeah, he
broke two or three tackles on that as
well. the vision to see the hole saying,
"Oh, inside zone, that's not there.
Let's bounce it. Let's get outside."
That's what he did on that particular
play. And he continues it on every
single run. That doesn't show up on the
stat sheet, but shows how special it is.
This is the one that you draw hits the
ground a little bit because of what he
does before he even makes a move. Simple
swing screen out to to Bajan out here to
the right. But here's the Oh. Oh,
nothing's out of reach. One hand on him
with the left. Come on back here. But
then what he does after, he doesn't just
catch and fall to the ground like a lot
of guys would because it's an unorthodox
catch. Does a really good job of here
setting up his block, understanding Hoop
has his guy leveraged on the outside. So
guess what? He says, "You know what?
Here I got leverage. I got guys coming
from the inside. Let's bounce to his
outside." Then you say, "Okay, they got
him cornered, right? This guy should
make the tackle. He's got the sideline
on him. You got guys coming from the
inside. You got there. This guy won't
even touch him. does such a good job of
getting vertical north and south again
creates another five yards off that
where it should have been probably a two
yard gain but he is special. Now here's
what's going to be interesting. The
Falcons run a lot of this as well. Duo
inside combos inside and Carolina. But
watch what happens to the Dline on this
particular play here. The Bears do a
really good job of just washing
everything down. Watch this D line here.
Look at this. Everybody's getting washed
down here. Wash down. Wash down. These
backers get washed down as well. This
guy's gonna get washed down. And watch
the hole you hit up in here. Boom.
Unbelievable job here. Good blocking by
this receiver. You got guys here in the
hole ready to make the play, but it's
not there. This Chicago Bears team ran
for 291
yards against this Carolina Panthers
defense. But John Robinson is a lot
shifter than that guy. Expect him to do
it as well. Continues to make this run
game look special. I expect this run
game to continue to be at a high level
versus the Carolina Panthers as well.
>> All right. Thank you so much, Shock. And
we will talk about Bjon a little bit
more, but later in the show because now
it's time for the matchups to watch. And
obviously you guys, I think we kind of
talked a little or uh 30,000 foot view
last week. And this week we're really
bringing you real matchups that you need
to be watching on Sunday. We'll start
with you, Will. What are some matchups
that you're watching this week?
>> Yeah, well, we talked about Bryce Young,
but let's talk about him specifically
versus Atlanta's secondary. And they had
their work cut out for him in week one
against Aaron Rogers, but Bryce Young is
a little bit of a different animal. And
the last time out against uh Atlanta,
448 yards, three touchdowns, no
interceptions. So the Falcons are going
to be looking to get right against Bryce
Young in week two. And in that first
game against the Chicago Bears, we kind
of saw a different Bryce Young. He was
really pushing the ball down the field.
Obviously, playing from behind plays
into that to some degree. However,
Atlanta's defense, I think, is very well
equipped to kind of give Bryce Young
some troubles. We saw AJ Terrell on
Thursday's injury report logged a full
day of practice. So hopefully he's able
to be out there and you'd have your all
your corners set to go. But really what
the Bears did first half to second half
was adjust and play much more man
coverage, which means man-on-man locked
up, running with the receivers as
opposed to zone in the first half.
>> And Bryce Young was carving up the Bears
zone in the first half.
>> Very different story in the second half
once they switched to man. So I think
man match is what Jeff said on Thursday
that the Falcons like to run. He said AJ
Terrell, in his opinion, the best
boundary corner in the NFL. Let's see
him and T McMillan and see if Bryce
Young, you know, really can if they can
put the clamps on Bryce Young in this
vertical offense.
>> Yeah, Rock, obviously last Sunday you
saw Aaron Rogers take some real shots
downfield and Mike Hughes kind of showed
up. AJ Terrell showed up a couple times.
Avon Terrell, what what did you see from
the secondary last week that prepares
them for what Bryce can do this week?
>> Couple things, physicality and
competitiveness. That's what I like
because we talked a little bit about
this earlier in the week on the podcast,
but they were trying to force feed the
ball to DK Metaf, but they were making
it extremely difficult because if you're
Aaron Rogers, you're going to say, "I've
got one of the more physically imposing
wide receivers in the NFL. I got to try
to find a way to get the football in his
hands." And he did. But it was seemed
like time after time the secondary, they
knew where he was going to go. They knew
at some point he was going to take some
shots downfield. They'd like to see if
they can get Metaf to elevate up over
the top of the defense, get that
explosive play. And by and large, they
were able to hold him down, which is
what you want to see from your secondary
because at some point people are going
to take shots against you. You just
can't afford to give up the shot plays.
Now, every once in a while, you're going
to give up a penalty, and we've seen
that. And unfortunately, as a defensive
coordinator, you have to just accept
that it's going to happen, especially if
you're coaching them up to play physical
and not back down to any challenge. I
would imagine it's going to be the same.
You don't have necessarily the same
physical stature of the wide receivers
this week, but we just talked about it.
They got two really good ones. They're
going to try to take their shots against
the secondary.
>> Well, and it was interesting Jeff's um
press conference on Thursday, he
mentioned how similar Aaron Rogers play
or Bryce Young plays to Aaron Rogers. I
mean Aaron Rogers came first so Bryce
Young plays like Aaron Rogers and how
elusive he is and how and his ability to
make make things happen and the way that
you're able to make things happen and
flip the field is you have time and who
gives you time the trenches. What is
your match up that you're watching?
>> Yeah. So we're going to stay with Bryce
Young here a little bit and it you know
what's kind of shocking to me is just
like a couple years ago Bryce Young was
struggling right and all of a sudden he
has found a resurgent and now we're
talking about like we got to really do
something here against Bryce Young.
Credit to him for kind of reviving his
career a little bit. Lost his job and
then he again week one 360 passing
yards, second most in his career. And we
talked about the game against Atlanta
last year was the most yards that he had
in his passing career. So I think this
matchup is a little bit more front
seven, right? Little bit different front
seven that we thought was going to come
into this season, but still it doesn't
matter. You got to find a way to cage
him up. Now here's where it gets
difficult, guys, is Bryce Young I think
is slippery, right? He's one of these
guys that I wouldn't say is a an elite
running quarterback, but he's very
strategic in how he keeps plays alive.
And somehow he just finds his way to
slip out of the pocket or slip out of a
tackle. And all he does is just gets
outside a little bit. And then that's
where any quarterback in the NFL can be
dangerous is when they extend plays,
when you get into scramble drill, right?
So, what's the focus for this front
seven is you got to cage him in, but
yeah, you got to make sure that you're
not running so wide on the outside that
you give him the lane in between the
tackles because he will just tuck it
down and take a seven yardd gain if we
give it to him, right? So, this is all
the things that you talk about as a
player, gap, integrity. I'm not going to
try to get into all those specifics, but
you've got to have your rush lanes
covered because he's going to take
advantage of a small opportunity and
unfortunately, well, that's when the big
plays do come. So, I think it's a great
challenge by guys like Devon Diablo,
Brandon Doris, Zadarius Smith. He needs
to get free again. He's got We got to
see him do his what does he call it? The
dog crawl or something like that.
Something like that.
>> We got to see some more dog walks this
weekend inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium
because that means this front seven is
having an impact against Bryce Young.
>> I I'm going to hop into the X's and O's
really fast cuz I do want to know how
>> I thought you said you were going to hop
in and dog crawl.
>> No, I will not be doing that. Thank you.
I might be a dog. I'm not going to dog
crawl. Not today. Thank you. Um, here's
the thing with Bryce Young, because I
mean, everyone knows how elusive he is.
He's slippery, like you said. He loves
making plays outside the pocket, but
something interesting that I've been
watching from the broadcast last week is
how often they go into empty and how
what that allows him to do. Kind of talk
to me quickly, just X's and O's, why
that's helpful to start an empty for a
guy like Bryce Young who likes to work
outside the pocket.
>> Well, a lot of times, Taylor, it it it
declares what the coverage is going to
be. it. The defense has to make an
immediate adjustment. Yep. Are you gonna
stay safeties back and you're going to
take a linebacker out there or your
nickel or dime defender or are you
walking a safety down in the box? And so
now as a quarterback, you now know what
the what the what the secondary is and
where your shots are downfield. Right?
So depending on how they adjust to your
empty set, you now look at the safeties
and you say, "Okay, I obviously know
what the play is, but if they're going
to play it like this, I know that I've
got this shot to the corner in the
sideline because of how the defender
is." or if they keep two safeties back,
there's no way that they can defend
along the line of scrimmage. So, I might
have my quick little screen play to the
outside, get the ball in the hands of
playmakers, and then once you go empty,
you see where you have the most
favorable matchup. Now, I don't know
what Carolina thinks their most
favorable matchup from a personnel
standpoint is against Atlanta, but every
week you go into a game and you kind of
unfortunately, it sounds bad, but you
find a person that you're gonna pick on,
right? like this person right here we
don't feel does this great whether it's
defending zone or it's man or
communication when it comes to rub
routes whatever the concept may be
that's why they go into empty because it
declares thing early for the quarterback
and then he finds out where I'm going
with the football before it's even
snapped
>> yep all right so that's just something
to note and to something to watch on
Sunday is how often this Carolina
Panthers offense goes into empty also
something another team that goes into
empty a little bit and quite often is
the Atlanta Falcons offense that's who
I'm talking about because you you go you
go into empty when Bjan Robinson's on
the field because you can do just about
anything with this guy. And look guys, I
want to talk about this side of the
graphic right here as he goes against
Carolina because this is the last two
games that they played against Carolina
last year. Obviously lost both of those,
but what he was able to do on the ground
against them says the whole story. 176
rushing yards, two tuds against the
Carolina Panthers. It's and two both of
those obviously came in the second
matchup against them at home. He excels
against this Ezro Ao defensive front. He
excels against them. And what's
interesting too is when you look at
Brian Robinson stats, he also excels
against them as well. We mentioned it
earlier about how this defensive front
is seemingly struggling early on. And
and if you need someone to get get
something going early and often, it's
going to be Bjon Robinson. And you also
have Brian Robinson who can step in and
do the very similar things and also is
not afraid to get hit either.
>> Yeah. I mean they they feel pretty good.
I mean I think Atlanta felt pretty good
with Tyler Algier in the back field as
well. But but this 2026 version you're
feeling like yes you've got two very
competent running backs back there. But
as we all know and we've seen Will that
when Bjon Robinson comes out of the game
it's a snap or two, right? because you
just really can't afford for him not to
be out there, especially once you get
closer to the third down because he's
arguably your best weapon in making
somebody miss picking up a first down
and keeping the drive going.
>> Well, and again, he does it in so many
ways that it's you can split them out in
these five wide sets. You can bring them
in. They had snaps with Brian Robinson
and Bjan Robinson back there as well.
So, the versatility aspect allows you to
unlock and open up your offense in a big
way. But Brian Robinson, to your point,
was running it really, really well when
he was in there as well. So, I think the
Falcons love where they're at with their
run game. The offensive line was moving
bodies. They're going to have their work
cut out for him against a big defensive
line on Sunday, but I have all the
confidence in the world in that
offensive line and the backs find them.
>> Something to know about those two games,
he had 13 carries in the first one. 72
yards, and obviously the second one, 23
carries, 104 yards, and that's where the
two touchdowns come in. Brian Robinson
played them um once last year and then
once the year prior, averaged about six
yards per carry. That's a lot. That gets
a lot done on first down.
>> Feels comfortable.
>> Yeah, it feels pretty comfortable
against this Ezra Abero defensive front.
But let's go ahead now to the keys of
the game. Everyone's favorite. We all
got one. And let's see who's starting
today. Will is going to start with his
keys of the game. Go ahead.
>> Yeah, you got to dictate the line of
scrimmage. That is, you know, the
trenches are where the games are won. We
just talked about the running backs.
Give them as much running room as
possible. I want all the daylight in the
world for the Robinsons. So, I need
Chris Lindstöm. I need Jake Matthews. I
need everybody up front to move those
bodies and create some running lanes.
>> Can we like throw some shoulder pads on
Will and see if he can help like
>> get that line of scrimmage going?
>> I think we might need to. I mean, you
want me to dog crawl. You want him to be
on the line of scrimmage. What are you
finding a way to keep it?
>> What are you adding to the program?
>> Contain Bryce Young. We talked a lot
about him in this game. I think he's
feeling playing with a lot of
confidence, not only in the game last
year, what he did last week, his
receivers. We didn't talk a lot about
their running game, but if they're able
to get the running game going, we got to
find a way to contain Bryce Young and
don't let him go off script and get
those big plays down the field.
>> That's what he's adding to this team is
he's just coming here with keys. He's
just here to do a job. Nothing fun, just
doing a job. My key to the game this
week is to control the turnover margin.
Look guys, Kevin Sapansky said it in his
press conference on Monday that almost
every team that lost in week one, they
lost the turnover margin. If you win the
turnover margin, you're probably going
to win the game. It's not foolproof, but
most likely going to happen. So, let's
control the turnover margin. There were
some things that the Falcons gave up
last week in terms of interceptions and
forced fumbles, all those different
things. Hold on to the ball and take the
ball away. Pretty simple, right?
>> I mean, in theory, it's pretty simple.
Execution of it sometimes a little bit
more difficult, but yes.
>> Yeah. So, control the turnover margin.
We are so excited to have you guys back
in Mercedes-Benz Stadium this Sunday.
The game will be on Fox at 1:00 if you
are not able to make it. It's going to
be so much fun, though. It's going to be
rocking. Can't wait to see you guys
there. We have a Thursday night football
game coming after that against Green
Bay. So, we will have this show on
Tuesday next week. So, make sure to um
catch us on there. But until then, we'll
see you guys Sunday as the Falcons take
on the Panthers. Bye, guys.