Like the official standings, NFL power rankings are an imperfect way of measuring just how good each team is. There are advanced stats that can give us a better idea of where the Atlanta Falcons stand compared to the competition, but you don't need to look at them to know that they belong near the bottom of the pile.
That much became evident pretty early in Sunday's road loss to the Pittsburgh Steeers. While their defense performed well, the Falcons got horrible results at quarterback and kicker, and star running back Bijan Robinson was the only offensive player who stood out in a good way.
As expected, Atlanta has taken a tumble in the latest weekly power rankings from The Athletic. After upsetting the "Superteam" Rams in Australia, the San Francisco
49ers took the top spot, followed by the reigning champion Seattle Seahawks. If you're looking for the Falcons you'll have to scroll all the way down to No. 29 on the list, which is three spots lower than last week.
"There wasn’t much optimism in Atlanta, even when Tua Tagovailoa was signed to be the presumptive starter. But things were especially bleak with Michael Penix Jr. still not 100 percent and Cooper Rush in at quarterback. Yet somehow, the Falcons still managed more yards per play (4.2) than the Steelers (4.1) in a boring game that could come to symbolize Atlanta’s plight this season."
The latest Intel suggests the Falcons want Michael Penix to start this week against the Carolina Panthers in a must-win matchup, but it doesn't seem that Penix is ready for live action just yet, having just returned to 11-on-11 work a couple of weeks ago.
We'll have to wait and see what Falcons head coach Kevin Stefanski says this week in practice, but it looks like Cooper Rush may be in for another start in Week 2.
The rest of the players can play their absolute best, but it's just not going to move the needle much until the QB situation is settled.
This article originally appeared on Falcons Wire: Falcons fall to No. 29 in The Athletic's Week 2 power rankings
