We are now almost halfway through the regular season and we still have no clue who these Atlanta Falcons really are. One week they're capable of beating the best team in the NFL, the next they look like they could lose to an SEC team.
At the moment they're closer to the latter than the former, coming off a humiliating loss in Tampa that saw the Falcons get shut out as Michael Penix threw four interceptions - and frankly he was lucky it wasn't six or seven.
Heading into Week 9 Atlanta has fallen in The Athletic's latest power rankings. They're at No. 23, down two spots from last week - which is pretty generous, actually.
"Twice now, the Falcons have gotten some national attention. First with surprising wins over Green Bay and New Orleans. Then again
with an upset of the previously unbeaten 49ers. Each time they get people’s hopes up, though, things go south. Quarterback Michael Penix Jr., who is trying to prove he can be Atlanta’s quarterback of the future, threw a career-high four interceptions in a rainstorm Sunday."
To be fair, Penix should not have been asked to throw as much as he did. The Buccaneers had the right idea by going all out for the run - and the Falcons should be better suited to do exactly that than any other team in the league.
Riding Bijan Robinson 90% of the time may or may not have resulted in a win, but it would have at least given Atlanta a chance in the elements. Head coach Kevin Stefanski should take the blame for this loss as much as his starting quarterback.
It won't get any easier, either. Next up is a very early kickoff against the Cincinnati Bengals, who have won three straight thanks to a blazing hot Joe Burrow. After that they'll face the Kansas City Chiefs, followed by the Detroit Lions. We could be at the beginning of an extended losing streak for the Falcons.
This article originally appeared on Falcons Wire: Falcons drop in The Athletic's Week 9 NFL power rankings
