Most would say it couldn’t get worse than a 30-0 road loss to the Carolina Panthers. But the Falcons’ performance in front of the home crowd against the 1-6 Dolphins somehow made that debacle look tame.
Coming into the game, Miami was lifeless. Their only win came against the formerly winless Jets, and they had just been blown out by 25 points by the Browns in a game where Tua Tagovailoa threw for 100 yards with three interceptions. Many thought head coach Mike McDaniel might be fired before facing Atlanta, as both current and former players were turning on the coaching staff and each other.
The Dolphins were dead — until they got the chance to play the Falcons, something that’s quickly becoming a theme under Raheem Morris, who continues to struggle keeping his team focused from week to week.
Atlanta’s injury list was a long one. Kirk Cousins started in place of Michael Penix Jr., while Drake London, Zach Harrison, Jalon Walker, Billy Bowman Sr., and Divine Deablo were all unavailable. That made it a tough hill to climb, but it doesn’t excuse the absolute lack of energy from the entire roster. The Dolphins came out with an attitude from the opening whistle. The Falcons felt it and then folded, allowing Miami to do whatever they wanted on both sides of the ball for 60 minutes.
The Falcons didn’t even look like a professional football team on Sunday. Cousins was completely out of sync with his receivers and appeared every bit of 37 years old. The play-calling was nothing short of egregious. They rushed for just 45 yards while surrendering 141 on the ground and four passing touchdowns. There wasn’t a single positive takeaway from the performance.
Stinkers happen in the NFL. Even elite teams occasionally fail to show up. But when it happens twice in a month — especially at home following a loss — that’s when it becomes unacceptable.
Nothing about this coaching staff inspires confidence. Once again, they were thoroughly outcoached, this time by a staff most don’t expect to survive the season. Raheem Morris has had plenty of opportunities to prove he can lead an NFL team — 83 games, to be exact — and has compiled a gaudy 32-51 record. As long as he’s in charge, this inconsistent mess is exactly who the Falcons are going to be.
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Photo: Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire