- 6 months ago
Chris and Beau Morgan discuss the Atlanta Falcons' challenging new schedule, focusing on the difficulty of early road games and prime-time matchups. They evaluate the team's defensive approach to stopping the run and explore how the offense will integrate various receiving threats and tight ends. Finally, they reflect on the front office's professional approach to roster building and draft selections.
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00:00Bo, your initial reaction, I know mine, it's going to be a situation where if the Falcons
00:06want to prove themselves and want to get the naysayers in Vegas wrong, they're not going
00:10to have the easy path to do so, but it should be a challenging one that if some of the
00:15guys
00:15that we'll talk about over the course of the next 15 minutes or so come to play, they should
00:20be able to take care of some business.
00:23Yeah, they didn't do you a ton of favors, honestly.
00:27They gave you a late bye, Chris, which is good.
00:30This is kind of a throwback for you and me, like going back in the day.
00:33Yeah, I know.
00:34They gave you a late bye, and I'm appreciative of that, but what, three of the first four
00:40games on the road, and three of those are at prime time back-to-back-to-back, so it doesn't
00:48really bode well, especially opening in Pittsburgh, going to the division champion in Carolina,
00:53Green Bay, obviously on the road on a Thursday night.
00:57The Monday night game in New Orleans is a little bit of a Katrina-esque, the 20th anniversary
01:03of when they went back to the Superdome, which we, I know Oren's sitting back there like, yeah,
01:10we all remember the Steve Gleeson game, which is not a great memory for us, but it is for
01:15them.
01:15And then Baltimore, it's weird that they gave us three prime time games all in a row.
01:19I don't really know what to think of that, but I will say this, with the late bye, the
01:26early Thursday night game kind of plays into what the NFL has, kind of the pattern they've
01:30shown, at least for the Falcons the last few years.
01:33What do you put in terms of importance in the Week 2 home game against Carolina to establish
01:39yourself not only against the division opponent, but Bo, somebody that has really had your number
01:45in a way that has been uncommon the last couple of years?
01:50Well, Chris, I mean, I think the thing that you've got to do is show Bryce Young that
01:55he's not, you know, Patrick Mahomes, because he feels like he's Patrick Mahomes against us
02:01the last two of three games.
02:04The last two times he's came to Mercedes-Benz, he's lit you up.
02:10People remember the game in Carolina a little bit differently than it actually played out last
02:17year because you got beat so badly because your offense was so bad, but he only threw
02:23for maybe 130 yards in that game, if that, and they had a lot of short fields to deal
02:29with.
02:30That's what helped them, you know, kind of put that score way out of touch.
02:33But I think if you're talking about just what they did in that Carolina game, they've got
02:37to shut Bryce Young down.
02:39They've got to show him that, hey, you don't own us.
02:41We've got a pretty good defense.
02:43We're going to put you in the ground, and we're going to make you feel it, and you're
02:46not going to run all over us because he's had a field day in Mercedes-Benz the last couple
02:51of times.
02:51I guess you think he's playing at Alabama again when he comes back to the Benz.
02:56Yeah, and you mentioned the running game.
02:59They're going to have tough tests right off the bat with Josh Jacobs, with Derrick Henry,
03:03with CMC, with the new revamped backfield with Kansas City.
03:08So what do you make of that, juxtaposed with the fact that they didn't go out and specifically
03:13get a big run-stuffing defensive tackle, which I think a lot of people here in Atlanta, myself
03:18included, were clamoring for?
03:21Well, I think we all were.
03:23They did get Ontario Thompson, who is a little bit more fit for that, and Ashaan Hand, who
03:32is a guy that seems to be more fit for that.
03:36We talked about this morning, Mike Johnson and I, the David Onyemata departure is going
03:41to be really huge because he was really an anchor last year inside.
03:46So you hope that Zach Harrison coming back from injury, which if you notice, that stretch
03:53where he was out was when you started getting gashed.
03:55Devon Diablo is a difference maker, and that's where you've got to hope that maybe Christian
04:01Harris is a guy that can slide in and be another run-stuffing, kind of run, really not even
04:09run-stuffing, but a run-fit linebacker because this is an attacking defense.
04:13They want to get upfield, and the linebackers, if they're quick enough, if they make the
04:17right read, they're key in the run game.
04:20But I do believe that they're trying to fill it with Laquel London, Thompson, who they
04:24drafted, and then Hand, and I think those guys are trying to fill it with.
04:29But the linebackers play a part in that, too, that sometimes they've got to come up and
04:33take on blocks and not try to skirt around because when you try to skirt around, it creates
04:39a gaping hole, which some of those guys you just rolled off, they'll exploit that.
04:45Oh, yeah, and as they did last season with CMC and Jonathan Taylor and even the performance
04:51of Atua, ironically, who was able to, obviously, throwing the ball, get you right up the middle,
04:56and the receivers seemingly did the rest there in that one at the Benz last year.
05:00All right, so you finish the season three division games back-to-back-to-back.
05:05That's going to be, obviously goes without saying, a huge test.
05:09What do you make of that decision by the schedule makers, and then what do you make of the division
05:13overall?
05:13I've been saying, we just talked with Wes Durham a couple of minutes ago.
05:16I think the South is going to be vastly improved this year.
05:21Yeah, it's something that I'm not sure if you remember, not saying you don't, I just
05:26remember them talking about it, and they put an emphasis that they wanted division games
05:31late because basically what we all know about the NFL is everything seems to play out for
05:36the most part in the last four to five weeks.
05:39You know, divisions are one.
05:40This division in particular, you had three, eight, and nine teams, and then a seven and
05:46what, ten team in New Orleans where they all were right there, you know, three-way tie for
05:51the division.
05:52So that's a back-loaded schedule to literally play out the division in their eyes.
05:58I'm very interested in the fact that they gave us Carolina late, which will be essentially
06:04a possibility of another cold weather game, an Elements game.
06:10You don't think of Charlotte as an Elements game, but being January 9th, January 10th, that
06:16could very well be a game that's played in the Elements, and the weather has the fact that
06:20we've seen that before on Thursday nights late in the year where, you know, you get
06:23a rainstorm in there or all-night rain, and it's cold, and it kind of affects the games.
06:27Remember the Desmond Ritter game where he throws the horrible interception?
06:30That was a sloppy game played in the weather.
06:34I like the fact, Chris, that we got two of them at home.
06:37You know, you get Tampa, and then you get New Orleans at home, and then it's also sandwiched,
06:43though, between Cleveland and Washington, which, as you know, cold weather, potentially
06:48pretty cold, and then two home, and then you got a potentially cold again.
06:52So, I like the fact that we did kind of space out a couple of those cold weather games, but
06:57look, it's all back-loaded to play out the schedule so they can put some of these games.
07:02If you notice that the Week 16 and Week 18 games are both TBD, those could be Saturday
07:08afternoon games, Saturday night games, depending on how things are playing out, where this team
07:13is.
07:14And I know you've talked about it.
07:16I follow your show quite a bit.
07:18I know you've talked about the fact that the quarterback situation and what it is, what
07:21it isn't, it's a pretty big deal.
07:23That plays into how these games look late in the season.
07:27Oh, absolutely.
07:28I mean, depending on who's in there and how they've performed, have they made a switch?
07:32Have they made two switches at that point?
07:34Everything is up in the air until we see what Tua and Panix can do.
07:38All right, so when it comes to looking at the sort of methodology behind the madness here
07:45as we continue to try to break it down, I'm looking at a lot of situations here where the
07:50Falcons are going to have to prove themselves that they can do what they did last year, and
07:55that is run the ball effectively with Bajon Robinson.
07:58But in order to do that, whoever's quarterback, Bo, is going to have to throw the ball.
08:03They're not going to be able to, and if you've been listening, you know I'm big on this.
08:07I just don't want them to run Bajon Robinson into the ground.
08:11So how much, how involved do you think O.Z., Jahan Dotson, and Zachariah Branch are going
08:17to be in the offensive game plan?
08:21Well, I think it's a really good question, actually.
08:25Excuse me, but think about what those three guys you just named do.
08:30Let's just say, and I'm not saying I'm leaning one way or the other.
08:34It's just a hypothetical, but if Tua is the guy, you mentioned it earlier, that Tua came
08:40in here and kind of beat you up.
08:42Well, he didn't beat you up by going over the top, you know, like every single time.
08:47He worked the middle of the field, Chris.
08:49He used short little routes, little shallow drags, little crossing routes, and let these
08:54guys get the ball in their hands.
08:57Dotson, Olamide, Zachariah Branch, they're all three pretty good at that, especially
09:03Zachariah Branch.
09:04That was kind of his specialty at Georgia.
09:06I know Oren's a big Georgia fan, he'll tell you.
09:09Like, it was like screen city for him.
09:11Part of that was the limitations of Gunnar Stockton, I believe.
09:14Part of that was, why are we overthinking it?
09:17Get the guy the ball in space and let him do his thing, whether it's a screen or what.
09:21But, so I think those three guys are going to play a pivotal role.
09:25Do I think that Zachariah Branch has a pretty good spot of being one of those top first three
09:32guys that were all out there on the field?
09:33I do.
09:34But I also know that Kyle Pitts and Drake London, both last year, they excelled when those two
09:42were rolling off the biggest numbers, not necessarily standing there on the field together, but when
09:48they were rolling off the biggest numbers, they were both in that power slot.
09:52So, you know, no matter who is behind the center or in the pistol or the shotgun or whatever
10:00formation we want to talk about, they're going to have to work the middle of the field.
10:04And Tua is an expert at that and a little less refined these days at going deep.
10:09And Penix is a little bit of the opposite.
10:12But that doesn't mean we haven't seen Penix light up the middle of the field, go back to
10:15Washington a couple years ago.
10:18So, that throw to Kyle Pitts to tie the game, last I checked, that was the middle of the
10:22field and he knew where it was going to be.
10:25So, they're going to have to work the middle of the field and those guys come up huge.
10:28And in fact, it's funny because we have a couple of guys that can take the top off, but
10:33we also have a lot of guys that can work the middle of the field and that can do some
10:37yak
10:38stuff.
10:39And this team has really missed some yards after the catch explosiveness.
10:43And you've got that with Zachariah.
10:46I think Dotson brings a little bit of that.
10:49You know, Olamide does as well.
10:50And I mean, who the hell knows with Cash Jones, with him moving, I don't know if that means
10:55anything.
10:56I mean, there's a really good chance he doesn't make the roster.
10:58If he does, he's a practice squad guy.
11:00But it'll be interesting to see his progression.
11:04And if he does make this team, it would be one of those deals where he made it on special
11:07teams with doing, you know, being multifaceted, doing a couple of things.
11:11So, I do like what they've added, but it's one of those deals where you go back to the
11:16Matt Ryan days and you've added numerous shorter stature receivers where when Arthur came in
11:24here, Arthur Smith came in here, you went more the big bodied guy.
11:27So, it's kind of interesting to see the shift.
11:30One thing that's been said, you know, no matter where you talk about it, this station, TV,
11:36radio, wherever you hear it, Stefanski loves the tight ends.
11:39Stefanski loves the tight ends.
11:41Well, do you think there's enough there behind Kyle Pitts with Warner and Hooper to execute
11:47it the way that he wants to?
11:51Well, I think you'd be remiss if you didn't mention a guy named Joshua Simons, as it is
11:58listed on the depth chart.
11:59He's the, he came out of a smaller school, he went to South Carolina for a year, he was
12:03on the practice squad last year.
12:05He's the guy that can really catch the ball in the backfield.
12:08I'm not 100% sure how good his blocking is, to be honest with you, but I know he's the
12:12guy that can absolutely do it from the receiving end.
12:16I wanted, with Kyle back, I wanted more of a Charlie Kohler type.
12:22I mean, a legit blocking tight end that also can run routes.
12:27Austin Hooper is a little bit cheaper version of that in his career.
12:32He can do the end line blocking, and of course you know what Charlie Warner is.
12:35He's this H-back kind of hybrid guy.
12:39But yeah, I think so.
12:41I would be interested to see how many two tight end sets they have.
12:45And let's just say that they're not traditional two tight end sets, that Kyle Pitts is not
12:50lined up as your traditional tight end.
12:53Again, I think the one thing that Austin Hooper being back does, he's more of an in-line
12:57blocker that can do some of that stuff.
12:59He can also run routes at a pretty good level.
13:02I don't think he's quite as good as he was when he first came into the league, but he's
13:06still a pretty good route runner, and he's probably a more seasoned blocker.
13:09So I think you can do some of that.
13:12I was glad that they didn't take the fan bait, which I know we've talked about, you've
13:17talked about, everybody on the station has talked about, probably everybody in the
13:19market talked about, about the fact that, oh no, David Njoku's out there, and the last
13:24thing we needed was another version of Kyle Pitts.
13:28I'm glad they didn't fall in that trap.
13:29I'm glad that they proved everybody wrong.
13:31But yeah, Chris, I do think that they have some guys that can play that tight end spot.
13:38And they've kind of got the best of both worlds.
13:40They've got the better receiver.
13:42Let's just call this.
13:44They've got the receiving tight end.
13:47They've got the mixture tight end where he does both.
13:51And then they've got the blocking tight end.
13:53And that's Pitts, Hooper, and Warner.
13:55So they've got the best of everything kind of covered all in one with all three guys.
14:00Before I let you go, we talked about this with the Western voice of the Falcons as well.
14:04But I just, I love hearing everybody's opinion on it because I just think it's been so consensus.
14:09It's just, it's refreshing after the last couple of seasons here, Bo.
14:13And that is just what I think the direction and the job that Matt and Ian and Kevin have done
14:19so far.
14:20I've just been so impressed with not just the moves that they've made, but the way that they've presented themselves.
14:25I think it's just been truly professional and leading the franchise in a way that it needs to be led
14:31right now.
14:33Kind of less talk, more action.
14:35Would you agree?
14:35Yeah, 100%.
14:36Everything.
14:37Like everything, Chris, would you agree?
14:40And I find it is, I like to talk to different people.
14:42I feel like everything they've told you they're going to do, they've done.
14:46You know, hey, we're going to go trenches.
14:47They did that in some ways.
14:49We're going to go best player available.
14:50They did that.
14:51But, you know, kind of like they're not over-promising, under-delivering.
14:56They're just saying this is what we're going to do, and we're not going to talk too much about it.
14:59And they're kind of sticking to it, right?
15:01Yeah, well, a perfect example is Ian said defensive tackle was a position they viewed as one of the weakest
15:07in the draft.
15:08They had a chance to take Lee Hunter or Avion Terrell, and we all saw what they did.
15:13Yeah, it's a great point.
15:14And then you somehow, you got a player that a lot of people thought might go way before 48.
15:21At 48, you got Zachariah Branch, a guy that a lot of people thought would go before, what, was it
15:2779, I think?
15:29And you got him there, and then you weren't afraid to move back and continue to draft guys.
15:34And so, you kind of got what they feel is the best player available for some of the positions that
15:40not only do they need,
15:42but, you know, look at Daniels and some of those guys.
15:48I mean, it really, it kind of is intriguing.
15:52And, you know, to get a couple of the guys they got where they got them, I mean, Harold Perkins,
15:57like, I'm all in for that one.
15:59And that's a pick that, if it had happened three years ago, he'd have been top ten.
16:04But you have the change of position, an injury, and it kind of hurts the guy.
16:10And now you've got him.
16:11You've got a hungry guy that is extremely talented in so many ways and can play multiple positions.
16:16So, it is nice.
16:18I think you make a good point.
16:19And it's very nice to hear less talk and just more work, more kind of more work in it and
16:25not hearing different messages from different people.
16:30It's all unified, and it just seems like a business-type approach.
16:35Yeah, I don't need to be entertained by you.
16:37I just need to win football games at this point with eight straight seasons without the playoffs.
16:42Bo, appreciate it as always.
16:43We'll be catching you in the morning tomorrow for the full breakdown with the morning shift starting at 6 a
16:47.m.
16:47Thanks, man.
16:49Yeah, man, any time.
16:50Appreciate it.
16:50Have fun.
16:51All right.
16:51That is Bo Morgan, Squid Billy.