Atlanta Falcons vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Full Report Card Grades for Atlanta
The Atlanta Falcons are just one game out of the NFC South lead after beating the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 27-17 on Sunday. The overall report card for the Falcons this week would look much better than it does had they not poorly played on third down on both sides of the ball.
However, if the Falcons play like this every week, they would stand a solid shot of winning. The negatives were massively outweighed by the positives, as Atlanta gets to the meat-and-potatoes portion of its schedule.
Quarterbacks
1 of 10
Matt Ryan played a mediocre game against the Buccaneers. Through the first half he was just 12-of-19 for 134 yards and got sacked once. The second half wasn't much better, as he went 8-of-12 for 84 yards and a touchdown. The stats were solid, but nothing to write home about.
The throws were even worse, though. He wasn't on target too often and had to get bailed out quite a bit by his receivers. Ryan had a couple of third-down throws to Devin Hester in particular that were just off the mark which would have extended crucial drives. He should be able to rebound next week against a worse secondary in the Panthers.
Grade: C
Running Backs and Fullbacks
2 of 10
Steven Jackson had one of the best games that he's ever played in a Falcons uniform. On his 16 carries, he had 81 yards and supplemented that with two catches for 14 yards. Atlanta relied on him to carry the team, and he followed his blocks effectively to help sustain drives.
Devonta Freeman did a good job on the ground despite getting just three carries. And Jacquizz Rodgers was clutch with both of his catches. Atlanta needs to focus on a good mix for the running backs, though. As good as Jackson is, he's not a guy to get 18 touches every single week.
The run game did help control the clock. Atlanta had 29 minutes, 48 seconds in time of possession, and that's mainly because of the effective running game. Going 6-of-12 on third down has a lot to do with the running game, which gave Atlanta shorter third downs to convert too.
Grade: A
Wide Receivers and Tight Ends
3 of 10
Roddy White and Julio Jones had great games against the Buccaneers. Jones was destroying the combination of Johnthan Banks and Dashon Goldson all day for his eight catches and 119 yards on just 11 targets. Jones did drop a ball, though.
White didn't drop a ball on his targets. The six times Ryan threw in White's direction, he wound up catching the ball and making plays with it. That includes the lone touchdown on a drag route in the middle of the fourth quarter.
The only criticism here is that outside of a two-point conversion to Harry Douglas and a five-yard catch by Hester, the Falcons didn't incorporate any other receiver into the offense at all. Atlanta should look to spread it out a bit more in the coming weeks.
Grade: B
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Offensive Linemen
4 of 10
After playing their toughest competition of the year in London where the Falcons held the Lions defensive line to one of its worst games, the current configuration showed promise. Against the Buccaneers, Atlanta got another big test with Gerald McCoy.
The Falcons essentially neutralized McCoy as a pass-rusher, not even allowing him to hit the quarterback. In fact, they only allowed Ryan to be hit three times all game. And just one of those was a sack coming from great coverage by the Buccaneers.
Running the ball, Atlanta did well to create push for the backs, as they gained 4.21 yards per carry on designed running back runs. The Falcons also had just two plays stuffed in the backfield. If Atlanta is going to make a massive turnaround, this offensive line needs to stay healthy.
Grade: B
Defensive Linemen and Edge Players
5 of 10
Kroy Biermann and Osi Umenyiora had their most productive games pass-rushing against the Buccaneers. They each had one-and-a-half sacks and three quarterback hits. They forced Josh McCown to make some stupid throws. Jonathan Babineaux had a sack and a pair of hits to add to their pass rush.
The run defense also performed admirably, allowing just 2.94 yards per carry on designed runs by the Buccaneers. The Falcons also forced the Buccaneers into a ton of 3rd-and-long situations. However, they weren't able to get home on many of the 3rd-and-long situations, which allowed Tampa to convert too often.
They also allowed McCown to scramble around like a chicken with his head cut off and make the Falcons defense look incompetent up front. His five carries for 39 yards were all on scrambles, and every single one of them should have been stopped in the backfield for sacks.
Grade: B
Linebackers
6 of 10
Paul Worrilow had one of his best games, getting a pair of hits on the quarterback while also playing solid run defense. He also didn't get destroyed in coverage like he did against the Lions, as the Buccaneers had most of their running back-designed gains on designed screens outside.
Prince Shembo looked solid on the few plays that he was in. That included a double A-gap blitz where he slammed McCown to the ground while forcing a bad throw on a third down. Atlanta needs to get back to starting Shembo.
Joplo Bartu did have a solid game, as he wasn't targeted often. But the Falcons need to have him and Shembo rotate more at the spot next to Worrilow to have their best, most effective defense. Bartu doesn't have the pass-rushing prowess that Shembo has.
Grade: B
Secondary
7 of 10
Tampa's game plan was to attack Robert Alford on nearly every play. Outside of what felt like a handful of throws, Alford was the primary target when the Buccaneers went to their wide receivers. However, he had a crucial pass deflection, as did Desmond Trufant, to help end drives.
At safety, Kemal Ishmael and Dwight Lowery both had interceptions while not getting destroyed on deep passes. Outside of a single long play to Mike Evans for 34 yards, everything went for under 20, and most went for under 15 yards.
The secondary did its best work in run defense. The defensive backs had quite a few stops at the line of scrimmage and also didn't allow a designed run for more than nine yards on a single play. Atlanta needs its secondary to play like this every week...that is, outside of Alford, who brought the whole grade down.
Grade: B
Special Teams
8 of 10
Atlanta's special teams did a great job against the Buccaneers outside of one long 53-yard punt return. Except for that one return, Atlanta forced the Buccaneers to start inside of their own 20 with a combination of great punts or kickoffs by Matt Bosher—who averaged 48.0 yards per punt.
Atlanta did a great job of returning the ball as well. Hester averaged 26.5 yards per return on kickoffs and didn't drop a punt. On top of that, the Falcons' average starting position outside of turnovers created was at their own 34-yard line. That's an excellent way to set the team up for a win.
At kicker, Matt Bryant had an excellent game, as his 4-of-4 on field goals brought him to 600 career points with the Falcons. Atlanta had him kicking in some crucial situations, and Bryant was always ice-cold in his demeanor, kicking the ball through the uprights.
Grade: B
Coaching
9 of 10
Some coaching choices were just poor by Mike Smith on Sunday. Throughout most of the game, he stuck with an underperforming Kroy Biermann. Biermann did make up for his bad play with 1.5 sacks later in the game, but those were just coverage sacks.
On offense, the offense went through a lull where it couldn't sustain a drive, but when it mattered, Dirk Koetter called the right plays for Atlanta to get to 27 points. He needs to work on some things with his play-calling, including more no-huddle calls for Ryan. But for now, he's solid.
On defense, Atlanta decided to mix it up with blitz and coverage calls and played its second-best game of the season. The Falcons still need to clean up their play on third downs, as they allowed 12 of 17 to be converted. Better play calls would have definitely helped there.
Grade: B
Overall Grades
10 of 10
| Positional Unit | Grade |
| Quarterbacks | B |
| Running Backs and Fullbacks | A |
| Wide Receivers and Tight Ends | B |
| Offensive Linemen | B |
| Defensive Linemen | B |
| Linebackers and Edge Players | B |
| Secondary | B |
| Special Teams | B |
| Coaching | B |
| Overall Grade | B |
After the bye, Atlanta played like it needed to. The Falcons came out fast. They played strong defense for the most past and forced Tampa to play from behind all game. Add in some turnovers created and some pass rush to the mix, and it was just a good day for Atlanta.
A combination of proper coaching and overall good play was nice to see, but Atlanta still has some improvements to make. The Falcons should have destroyed Tampa Bay once again. If the Falcons can play like this every week, they might be able to win some more games during the season.
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.
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