The Falcoholic
Another week, another primetime game against a team that has dominated the NFL in recent years, but finds itself suddenly on shakier ground. Last week the Falcons dispatched the always-great Buffalo Bills by pressuring the hell out of Josh Allen and taking advantage of holes in the Buffalo secondary and a weak run defense, and this week they’re going to try to do the same thing to the San Francisco 49ers by…pressuring the hell out of Brock Purdy or Mac Jones, taking advantage of holes in the 49ers secondary, and clubbing a suspect run defense. These things write themselves.
Just like last week, taking this opponent lightly would be a mistake, but there’s a path to victory that’s not difficult to make out. Let’s talk about the matchup ahead.
The 49ers have been a much sharper passing attack overall, have scored a few more points, and have a slightly better run defense. Everywhere else you look, the gap between this team and our Falcons is actually fairly significant.
San Francisco hasn’t been able to run effectively, has seen their defense largely turn in a middling year, and have neither protected the ball extremely well nor forced a lot of turnovers. That’s not a recipe for success, and at some point they’ll need to make real gains on the ground, defensively, and in terms of their turnover fortune to keep their winning ways going.
They’ve been absurdly unfortunate, mostly.
Perhaps there is something really wrong with the strength and conditioning staff in San Francisco, but chances are they’re just the victims of bad luck and bad circumstances. They’ve been without Brock Purdy much of the year, down Nick Bosa and George Kittle, and just lost Fred Warner to the season, among other ailments. That has put a strain on a proud, talented football team, one that has seen them scuffling a bit. They’ve rarely been more vulnerable in the last five years.
Beyond the injuries, the biggest change was probably a switch from Nick Sorensen to Robert Saleh at defensive coordinator. That added some familiarity and stability at defensive coordinator, a spot where DeMeco Ryans departed, Steve Wilks was fired after the defense regressed under his watch, and Sorensen’s defense cratered much further in 2024. That shift is making a difference, but injuries are also sapping the defense to the point that the coordinator can’t scheme and call his way out of it entirely.
The team lost Leonard Floyd, Maliek Collins, Javon Hargrave, Dre Greenlaw, Jordan Mason, Deebo Samuel, Isaac Yiadom, Talanoa Hufanga, and Charvarius Ward, declining to re-sign De’Vondre Campbell after he walked off the field and refused to play last year. That’s a long list of contributors gone, and they largely replaced them either through the draft or with budget options outside of Bryce Huff, who signed a hefty deal to help key this pass rush with Nick Bosa.
The rookie additions do look good, though. Mykel Williams is an...
