Going into the 2026 NFL season, very few writers were high on the Atlanta Falcons. ESPN consistently ranked them and their roster among the five-worst in the league and practically nobody had them winning more than seven games.
There's a reason the games aren't played on paper, because after four games right now Atlanta looks like a serious dark-horse contender in a crowded NFC field.
First, the Falcons have to win their own division to get to the playoffs because more than likely two Wild Card teams will be emerging from the three-headed hydra (and one Harry the Hunter) that is the NFC West. On that score, Carter Bahns at CBS Sportshas named Atlanta the best team in the NFC South.
"Atlanta's offensive skill position players are as elite as any
in the NFL, and now they have a quarterback who can give them the ball. Bijan Robinson is fully unleashed, and Drake London can do his thing again. Kyle Pitts got involved in the receiving scheme again in Week 4, too. There is no defense in this division that can keep all of those weapons in check so long as Penix keeps playing at a serviceable level."
So, what can stop these Falcons? A string of injuries to important players is always the easiest answer to that question for any team, so let's just ignore that scenario for now.
The next major challenge is a brutal slate of games on the schedule. Atlanta is probably catching a break this week as it looks like Lamar Jackson won't be suiting up for the Ravens due to an ankle injury, freeing Jeff Ulbrich to focus all the powers of his league-best run defense against Derrick Henry.
If the Falcons take care of business on Sunday night, they'll just be jumping from the frying pan and into the fire. Next up are the Chicago Bears, who rank in the top three in offensive and defensive yardage. Then it's the 4-0 San Francisco 49ers, who are at the top of practically every NFL power rankings list right now.
The third game in this run is the only reprieve, as the Falcons play the imploding 0-4 Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
After that it's right back into the fire to face Joe Burrow and a radically-improved Cincinnati Bengals defense for a very early kickoff in Spain. Next are the undefeated Kansas City Chiefs, who have a healthy Patrick Mahomes and another potential MVP candidate in reigning Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III.
The Falcons get their bye week after the Chiefs, followed by two more difficult matchups - first against the Detroit Lions and their elite offense, followed by the Minnesota Viings and an elite defense.
For those not bothering to count at home, that's six potentially really tough matchups in seven games. If the Falcons can get through that stretch at 4-3 or even 3-4 it will be proof that they're ready to contend with anybody going into the stretch run of the schedule.
This article originally appeared on Falcons Wire: Red-hot Falcons named best team in NFC South
