The Falcoholic
I said repeatedly this week that this was a game the Falcons couldn’t afford to lose. That had very little to do with big picture standings and upcoming schedules, though obviously those mattered to, and much more to do with how bad the Dolphins had looked thus far in 2025. If they got right against the Falcons, even an Atlanta team missing Divine Deablo, Michael Penix Jr., and Drake London, it would be a stain on the Falcons’ honor and a worrying sign that they were simply not good enough to make any real noise this year.
Unfortunately, that’s exactly what happened. Extra unfortunately, it was even worse than that, because the Falcons didn’t just lose this game, they got blown out and embarrassed at home. Their vaunted run game, their pass defense, their focus on special teams, all of it was dust on the wind against a Miami team that looked rejuvenated and ready for the challenge. Paired with the offensive line collapsing, the run defense playing poorly yet again, and the passing game looking even worse with Kirk Cousins than it did with Michael Penix Jr., this was a wholesale collapse. I did entertain the scary thought they would lose this one, but never did I imagine they’d lose this one so badly.
Remember, the Dolphins were 1-6 on the year, Tua Tagovailoa was coming off maybe the worst game of his career, and they were legitimately hapless throughout much of the year. They looked like a juggernaut against Atlanta, with Tua managing four touchdown passes, their ground game dominating, and the defense holding Atlanta in check until the Falcons got an afterthought touchdown down 34-3 in the fourth quarter. This was not a narrow loss to a bad team or a blowout loss to a good one; it was the worst of all worlds.
I genuinely do not know where the Falcons go from here. Getting embarrassed to this degree twice in one season, and losing multiple games where the offense has been so anemic that you can barely even mount an attempt at a comeback, is a terrible reflection on the coaching staff, front office, and players alike. Arthur Blank seems exceedingly unlikely to blow this thing up entirely just seven games into the season, but he’s also got to be furious with this team’s performance. I don’t necessarily think offensive coordinator Zac Robinson is safe, and I no longer think Raheem Morris and Terry Fontenot survive the season if it’s going to be defined by games like this. This team may not be as talented as the most optimistic among us want to believe it is, but it is certainly more talented than this. As the Falcons slip further and further into sadness, especially with the expectations for this year, the prospect of this team doing a hard, sudden reset no longer seems remote. Anything that helps the Falcons avoid losing to the worst teams in the league in blowouts repeatedly is, in my opinion,...
