The Falcoholic
Kyle Pitts gets going and two defenders excel...while others do not.
The Atlanta Falcons moved to 4-0 in the NFC South and 5-3 overall. The Falcons didn’t slam the door shut on Tampa Bay the way fans would’ve hoped in the final quarter, but they did what it took to win, especially on offense.
Even with an overall disappointing defensive performance, two players still headline the up list, but two also headline the down list. Here’s this week’s 3 up and 3 down.
The 24-year-old has been heating up all month, and he broke out on National Tight Ends Day for two touchdowns and 91 yards. Pitts’s loudest critics will focus on the fumble that didn’t count, but they won’t mention how explosive he looked on that play as he split the defense and broke two tackles. They won’t mention how he fought through a penalty on his first touchdown catch and didn’t give up on his route, which Cousins rewarded him for, as the quarterback promised he would. They’ll continue to focus on his few mistakes, because evidently he’s the only Falcons player guilty of such horrid crimes.
The reality for weeks now is the good has far outweighed the bad. Pitts is on the most productive run of his career since laying an egg five weeks ago. Per PFF, among all tight ends, Pitts is fourth in yards (409) and third in yards after the catch (201). Earlier this season, I wrote how it would take time for Pitts to adjust to his new role in the offense and how Zac Robinson needed to adjust the vertical route calls for him. Since then, we’ve seen his growth and potential in this offense. Post-game, Pitts took full ownership of his goalline blunder, admitting he shouldn’t have left it in the hands of the refs. Pitts is growing up before our eyes, and it’s time for his critics to do the same.
What a bounce-back game for the Falcons top-paid corner. Terrell snagged his second interception of the season, and this one wasn’t an Andy Dalton gift; Terrell makes this play happen. The corner now has his first multi-interception season since his 2021 All-Pro season.
Terrell has been heavily criticized this season after inking the third most expensive per-year corner contract. Some of it has been unfair, and some justified, but he didn’t leave anything up to interpretation this Sunday. Yes, the Buccaneers were without their top pass catchers, but Terrell still found a way to make an impact, and that’s what the best corners in the game do.
Build the statue. Jessie Bates is the best Falcons defender of the past decade, and he’s building an argument for being their best defender of the 2000s. If his defensive coordinator got out of his way, he would be firmly involved in Defensive Player of the Year conversations.
Bates bailed out Jimmy Lake multiple times yesterday, making ridiculous...
