Falcons Renew Kicking Competition Amid Special Teams Woes

CHARLOTTE, NC – The Atlanta Falcons fell disastrously to the Carolina Panthers in a 30-0 Week 3 drubbing in Charlotte. The offense will receive most of the attention after its dreadful afternoon, but the special teams' shortcomings need to be examined, as well. 

Several miscues plagued the Falcons and actively cost them points, left them in bad spots positionally, or helped the Panthers. As a result, the Falcons have decided to bring in additional competition at the kicking position, just days after signing Parker Romo and parting ways with longtime kicker Younghoe Koo. 

“We gotta bring competition in,” head coach Raheem Morris said Monday. “It’s what we’ve gotta do. You have to do that until you get it right. You cannot allow that to be the reason this stuff happens. You went 5-for-5 the week before, you went 0-for-2 this week, and you gotta bring in competition. That’s going to be something we work diligently at.”

Speaking of those continued kicking woes, the game got off to an inauspicious start. After the Falcons’ first drive of the game stalled out on the Panthers’ 31-yard line, the newly signed Romo came out and missed badly to the right on a 49-yard field goal attempt. 

The one positive moment for the unit came on a muffed punt, recovered by DeMarcco Hellams deep in Carolina territory, which resulted in four plays that went the wrong direction, but it was capped off by a second missed field goal (55 yards). This time, Romo sailed it to the left. 

“There’s some life knocked out of you when you miss those field goals,” Morris said on Monday. “You gotta find a way to bounce back. That’s not an excuse, that’s not a reason to allow that to happen, but you’ve gotta find a way to dig deep and gotta find a way to make somebody make a play.”

Romo finished the day 0-for-2, just one week after connecting on all five of his attempts in Minnesota and officially winning the job outright during the week. Now, there will be competition in Flowery Branch for the third week in a row. 

“Just stay level-headed,” Romo said about where his head is after missing the pair of kicks after Sunday’s game. “Doesn’t matter if it’s one kick or the other, make or miss. Move on, make the correction, and let’s go.”

Who knows how, or even if, making these kicks would have ultimately impacted a 30-point loss, but these were the closest opportunities the Falcons would have to scoring in this game. 

While the pair of misses rings loudly, they were far from the unit's only shortcomings. 

On one punt return, Ray-Ray McCloud was inadvertently tackled by his own teammate (Billy Bowman Jr.) while trying to make a return. 

In kickoff return, backup return man Nathan Carter backpedaled and slipped on one kickoff that went from the landing zone to the end zone, meaning they had to start on the 20-yard line. If he had let it carry into the end zone before touching it, the Falcons would have started on the 35-yard line. 

Later on in the 4th quarter, Natrone Brooks, who replaced Carter, misread a kick and let it slip between him and McCloud. He was quickly tackled, forcing the Falcons to start from their own 10-yard line on the subsequent possession. 

“Great job by those guys. That knuckleball kick, we knew about it, we talked about it, we trained for it. And we didn't handle the situation well at all,” Morris said. “What a great job by their kicker. What a great weapon that is by those guys. They took advantage of it all day. Something that we knew about. Something that we talked about. Something that we brought to the forefront, and we were not able to capitalize with our returners back there today, collecting those balls at the 10, getting those funny style kicks, being able to utilize those things on the field. And that's very disappointing.” 

In punt duties, the typically steady Bradley Pinion misfired a punt that went just 25 yards to the Carolina 31-yard line. This moment ultimately was nullified by a strong defensive stand, but it allowed the Panthers to flip the field on the Falcons on their ensuing punt. The Falcons had 1:01 to get points on the board before the half, but they were forced to start on their own 21-yard line. 

They picked up 47 yards on four plays, but time ran out on their possession. 

Special teams mistakes can be back-breaking for teams, or they can set you up to win football games. On Sunday, they played a critical role in letting this game slip away from the Falcons. 

Special teams may not have been the sole reason for Sunday’s blowout, but it symbolized Atlanta’s lack of execution across the board. If the Falcons are to climb out of their 1-2 start and prove they are legitimate playoff contenders, the margin for error on kicks, punts, and returns has to shrink fast, because games will only get tougher from here.