Falcons’ Offensive Identity Crisis Deepens in Ugly Loss to Dolphins

ATLANTA, Ga – The Atlanta Falcons fell to the previously 1-6 Miami Dolphins in Week 8 by a final score of 34-10. There will be plenty of blame to go around after a loss like this, but the offense will be put under the microscope after another downtrodden performance. 

The Falcons' offense, playing without Michael Penix Jr. and Drake London, failed to generate anything of note for much of the game against what was the NFL’s worst defense in terms of estimated points added (EPA). Even without two central figures of their offense, the Falcons still figure to be good enough to generate some form of offense.

But that was not the case on Sunday.

Kirk Cousins looked frazzled throughout this game, completing 21-of-31 passes for 173 yards. He consistently looked like he was on a different wavelength than his receivers. It was not an uncommon sight to see a wideout running a different route than what he threw. 

Darnell Mooney was unable to step up as the team’s top option in the loss. He caught just one of his four passes for 11 yards, a continuation of his season-long struggles. 

The offensive performance was stunning at times, but the biggest surprise was their complete inability to run the football. 

Atlanta entered this game with the NFL’s fourth-best rushing attack and one of the league’s best running back duos in Bijan Robinson and Tyler Allgeier. That pair combined to rush for just 29 yards (2.23 yards per carry). They ran for just one yard in the first quarter and 10 in the first half. 

As a team, the Falcons ran for 45 yards, their lowest total of the season, against the league’s worst run defense.

“It all started right from the beginning, with not being able to run the football and control the game,” Falcons head coach Raheem Morris said after the game. “That's our lifeline, and when that's not working, it’s gonna look bad on us, whether it be defense, offense, or special teams. That’s our lifeline, being able to run the football offense.” 

The lifeline snapped, and the Falcons looked like a team adrift without it. They gained just 11 first downs in the loss, their lowest total since 2008, and converted just two of their 11 third-down tries.

The struggles on offense have been a trend for a team that has struggled to string together consistent performances. 

As 92.9 The Game’s Mike Conti noted, the Falcons have had 28 possessions since their tremendous first half against Buffalo. In that time, they have punted 10 times (with six three-and-outs), seven turnovers (including on downs), three field goals, two touchdowns, two kneel downs, two lost possessions after time expires at the half, one ended by penalty/time runoff, and one blocked field goal. 

For a team hoping to make a run at the postseason, games like this simply cannot happen. For this Falcons team, performances like this are becoming all too familiar. 

“This is the National Football League, and if you don't come ready to play, clearly, we were not today, these things could happen,” Morris said. “We've got to go out there fix those things.” 

The Falcons now own a scoring margin of minus-54 against the Panthers and Dolphins, by record, the two worst teams on their schedule. In their other five games, they are plus-20. 

Sunday’s loss is the second in a row for the Falcons, but the competition figures to get a lot more difficult from here. 

In Week 9, they are set to kick off a two-game road trip against a pair of streaking AFC opponents. Their first stop is in Foxborough for a showdown with the New England Patriots (winners of five straight games) before heading east over the Atlantic to take on the Indianapolis Colts (6-1 before the result of Week 8) in Germany. 

If they want to avoid a potential four-game losing streak, Atlanta will need to reset and do so quickly. The leaders in the locker room remained confident that this staff is the one to lead them there. 

“I'm very confident,” running Bijan Robinson said. “Zac does a very good job. He takes a lot of time out of his day to make sure that we have the best outing that we can on Sundays. Sometimes there's lulls and stuff, but I'm very confident in him.” 

Offensive guard Chris Lindstrom called the connection between the staff and the team “rock solid.” He blamed the overall lack of execution from the players.

“It's not a staff problem,” the team captain said. “They're amazing. [From a] preparation standpoint, we're fully prepared every single week. [We have] confidence in the plan, belief in the plan, we just need to go out and execute.” 

The Falcons sit in third place in the NFC South after the loss coincided with another Panthers loss on Sunday. Now a game under .500, the path to a postseason appearance grows increasingly difficult in a competitive NFC.  

Five of their final 10 games come against teams with a winning record, but today’s result reinforced that nothing can be guaranteed for this team moving forward.