Bogged down by the weight of their own mistakes and poor luck, Atlanta can be the team to get right this season.
A team coming off six straight losing seasons under two head coaches. A new head coach who was briefly an interim for that same team, but was passed over in favor of the man he just replaced. Three top ten picks on offense who have, to varying degrees and over different timescales, seen their production limited by injuries and scheme. A well-respected defensive star returning from a major injury. A front office, a coaching staff, and even an owner with much to prove after multiple quarterback-related debacles and a long grind of losing.
These 2024 Atlanta Falcons are loaded with redemption stories in the making. There isn’t a team in the NFL that doesn’t feel disrespected and in need of proving themselves—you can bet on the Chiefs seizing on some perceived slight to say that nobody believed in them at some point in their inevitable AFC Championship run this year—but few have a more compelling constellation of comeback possibilities than Atlanta. This is a team that has been thoroughly counted out, hyped up and then justifiably discarded for poor results, and has spent long enough in the muck that it will be noteworthy if they stagger to their feet.
Why should the Falcons be considered a likely candidate to seize this entirely made-up honor I’m prematurely bestowing on them? Besides the genuinely interesting story lines I mentioned above, they have:
- Perhaps the single-largest upgrade at quarterback in the entire NFL, going from turnover machines in Desmond Ridder and Taylor Heinicke to a reliably sharp passer in Kirk Cousins;
- A gifted offense with a top-shelf offensive line, young weapons who have underperformed more by dint of the offense and quarterback they were working with than their own talent, and now Cousins;
- A defense-first coaching staff clearly built with an eye on getting a young group up to speed and playing at their full capabilities;
- One of the better special teams groups in the league, at least in this blogger’s humble opinion;
- Finally, one of the league’s easiest schedules on paper, in a division where every team is deeply flawed.
Who else is in the conversation? The always woeful Jets and Aaron Rodgers, both of whom have much to prove after a long grind of a season and offseason. The always overlooked Cardinals, who finally have a healthy Kyler Murray and some really exciting young talent. The Browns, who haven’t been able to turn the largest guaranteed quarterback contract ever and a lot of talent into consistent success. And perhaps the Vikings, a team that will be counted out without Kirk Cousins and looking to prove they’re a lot closer with a lesser quarterback room than people suspect. But the Falcons stand out even in this group because of the opportunity afforded by a weak division, their significant talent upgrades, and the leap they appear poised to take by virtue of existing talent ready to take another step.
We have been burned so many times that no one’s particularly thrilled about the idea of putting a hand on that stove and counting on it being heat-free. Regardless of our expectations and our optimism, the Falcons have an opportunity to finally rid themselves of the disappointing and mocking labels that have been appended to them in recent years by being the comeback franchise of the 2024 NFL season, and it’s vital that they seize on that chance.