Atlanta Falcons vs. Cincinnati Bengals: Breaking Down Atlanta's Game Plan
The Atlanta Falcons take on the Cincinnati Bengals in a matchup of teams that look like potential playoff teams. The Bengals defense had some issues in its first game without Mike Zimmer making the calls, while the offense looked much better with Hue Jackson at the helm.
The Falcons will have to figure out how to attack the defense this week and get the same results that they wound up with against the New Orleans Saints. They'll also have to figure out how to stop A.J. Green and Andy Dalton with their defense. But Gio Bernard could be the true wild card scheme-wise.
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In order for the Falcons to beat the Bengals, they'll have to make scheme adjustments in regard to Jake Matthews ankle injury too. Each individual aspect of the team is going to have to be planned and executed the way it's drawn up, or it could be a long day in Cincinnati for the Falcons.
Offense
Pass Protection
Without Jake Matthews, the Falcons will need to protect Gabe Carimi at left tackle. That is assuming Carimi stays at left tackle. Carimi was a weakness in Week 1, allowing one sack and four hurries against a good pass-rushing team in the New Orleans Saints.
On the flip side, the combination of Justin Blalock, Joe Hawley, Jon Asamoah and Lamar Holmes combined for a total of seven hurries allowed and didn't let Matt Ryan get hit unless they were overload blitzed through Rob Ryan's unique schemes in his defense.
Atlanta needs to make sure it continues its spread-em-out, quick passing attack because that would allow it to force the Bengals to stay on their heels. The Bengals have a very straightforward scheme with their four-man pass rush consisting mainly of Domata Peko, Geno Atkins, Wallace Gilberry and Carlos Dunlap.
Peko, Atkins and Gilberry are going to be tough for the Falcons' right side of the line to handle if they aren't ready for them. Atlanta also has to handle the heavy blitzing schemes that Bengals defensive coordinator Paul Guenther ran in the first game of the season.
Running the Ball
The best way to establish a successful offense against the Bengals is to run the ball effectively. So the Falcons will have to make sure they do the things that made them successful versus the Saints. They need to block effectively up front while also rotating their running backs to keep them fresh.
By having five different players carry the ball—Steven Jackson, Matt Ryan, Jacquizz Rodgers, Devonta Freeman and Antone Smith—the Falcons differentiated the rushing attack enough that the Saints were always kept on their heels. But the real success came from the blocking.
Jake Matthews will be missed this week, but Gabe Carimi and Justin Blalock did a very good job against the Saints opening up holes on the left side. Joe Hawley and Jon Asamoah were also able to drive back defenders with Hawley able to take on linebackers at the second level effectively.
The question on the line is Lamar Holmes. He's developing into a good pass-blocker, but he still lacks the ability to be that dependable road-grading right tackle Atlanta had in Tyson Clabo. Hopefully, he can improve in this facet this week, because his 6'6", 335-pound frame should be bulldozing defenders.
Passing the Ball
When it comes to passing the ball, the Falcons need to do exactly what they did versus the Saints all over again. Continue to pass block well and make sure Matt Ryan has enough time to throw to his group of weapons who could dominate anyone.
Roddy White and Harry Douglas need to continue to be the intermediate headaches for opposing defenses while Julio Jones continues to blow the top off any defense he faces. Devin Hester needs to continue to emerge as a legitimate wide receiver in today's NFL as well.
The biggest thing that needs to happen, though, is for Levine Toilolo to have a breakout game. The Falcons are playing a Bengals defense that doesn't have great coverage linebackers healthy this week, so they need to attack the middle of the field with the 6'7" Stanford product.
By running clear through the middle of the defense with receivers and tight ends, the Falcons could open up the screen game on the outsides for running backs Antone Smith, Devonta Freeman and Jacquizz Rodgers. Opening up the outsides for screens could lead to even more big plays than last week.
Defense
Coverage
This should be the easiest thing to take care of scheme-wise. The Falcons' toughest test of the day will be containing A.J. Green. He's going to get his yards, but if they can bracket him with Desmond Trufant or Robert Alford and one of the safeties on every play, they can minimize damage.
The issue they really face is how they cover Giovani Bernard coming out of the backfield. They essentially need to have a spy on him all game, and ideally, linebacker Joplo Bartu can handle the duties. Unlike the Saints, the Bengals don't have a ridiculous amount of weapons who need to be covered.
Mohamed Sanu and Brandon Tate don't inspire confidence that they can create separation the same way Brandin Cooks and Marques Colston did. Because Tyler Eifert and Marvin Jones are out, the Falcons go from having to cover four or five targets every play to just two or three.
Ideally, the Falcons can use a scheme that focuses primarily on stopping Green, and the rest will fall into place. Stopping Bernard will definitely be tough to do as well, but if they can contain him to under 40 yards through the air, it will be a good day.
Pass Rush
The Falcons pass rush against the Saints was the weakest aspect of the team. A big reason for that is the Falcons' unwillingness to send more than four rushers at a given time. The Falcons were making sure they had the right amount of cover guys back against one of the best blitz-handlers in the league in Drew Brees.
They won't have that same issue against Andy Dalton. He's not as mobile as Brees is and doesn't handle pressure as well as Brees does. The Falcons should be able to scheme pressure both inside and outside against Dalton so that they can get to him early and often.
When they scheme against the offensive line, they need to worry about overloading one side or the other because the Bengals offensive linemen can handle four-man rushes pretty easily. Mike Nolan needs to get back to his heavy blitzing roots, or the Falcons will have another long day on defense.
Without any pressure, the Falcons are basically resigned to trying to cover for more than three or four seconds, which is almost impossible in the NFL. But if they can add a blitzer and not get burned, pressure should be abundant against the Bengals.
Run Defense
Run defense is by far the easiest thing the Falcons need to worry about. The Bengals ran the ball 26 times but were only able to gain 79 yards versus the Baltimore Ravens. The Falcons have improved their run defense quite a bit since the 2013 season as long as everyone is healthy.
If the Falcons remember that they have Corey Peters on the roster and have 3-4 sets of Peters and new nose tackle Paul Soliai and new defensive end Tyson Jackson on the field on run downs, they should be able to contain the Bengals' mediocre run offense.
Giovani Bernard is a threat to take one to the house at any time. But if the Falcons can contain him, he'll maintain his 3.4 yards-per-carry average from the first game. After him, Jeremy Hill is a solid big back who provides a change of pace.
The Bengals padded their rushing numbers with a pair of reverses to their wide receivers too. As long as the Falcons can maintain good gap discipline and contain Bernard from gaining a huge chunk, there's no reason as to why they won't be able to stop the young back.
All stats used are from Pro Football Focus' Premium Stats (subscription required), ESPN.com, CFBStats or NFL.com. All combine and pro-day info is courtesy of NFLDraftScout.com. All contract information is courtesy of Spotrac and Rotoworld.
Scott Carasik is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. He covers the Atlanta Falcons, college football, the NFL and the NFL draft. He also runs DraftFalcons.com.
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