For the Falcons to win, as we’ve chronicled throughout the week, their offense will need to be better and less prone to turnovers, and the defense will have to tackle well and avoid the kind of sloppy, disinterested play that arguably cost them both Tampa Bay games in 2015.
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Winston was 23 of 33 for 281 yards, using just about every weapon at his disposal.
Mike Evans is a talent at wide receiver and Austin Seferian-Jenkins looks improved in 2016.
Another long drive resulted in Matt Bryant’s third field goal, and the Falcons got the ball back one more time with 1:52 remaining and no timeouts.
“There’s lot of things for us to clean up and tighten up before we get on the plane and head to Oakland”, Falcons coach Dan Quinn said about preparing for Week 2.
Asked who presented the game ball, Koetter said “Take a guess”.
Quinn’s Falcons and Winston’s Buccaneers renew the NFC South rivalry in Sunday’s opener that could help reveal which team might make a move up in the division.
Winston was the star, but the Buccaneers displayed balance. On the ground, Terron Ward rushed for 62 yards and two touchdowns in 22 attempts while Simms added 25 yards in six rushes. Veteran Dwight Freeney, who led Arizona with eight sacks last season, was signed as a pass-rush specialist.
Gerald McCoy, Kwon Alexander and Robert Ayers Jr. led the defense with sacks. But when toe met leather for real, these were the salient numbers: The Falcons scored one touchdown in four possessions that bled into the Red Zone, and they yielded 371 yards and 31 points to the Buccaneers.
“It was just an important part to stay true to the process of getting back where he’s healthy and feeling right, make sure that he got the right stuff that he needs for the plays to make that connection between him and Matt [Ryan] feel right”.
Tampa Bay’s last winning season was 2010. Sims looked as if he would get a nice 15-yard gain to the Falcons’ 10 as he was approached by four Atlanta defenders. RB Devonta Freeman was held to 20 yards rushing on 11 carries. The young linebackers, Jones and Campbell, also showed their potential, landing a couple big hits and key stops, but still showed they have room for development and improvement. Koetter was Atlanta’s offensive coordinator under Smith.
Koetter was offensive coordinator of the Falcons from 2012-14, and his defensive coordinator is former Atlanta head coach Mike Smith.
Koetter said returning to the Georgia Dome as the visiting coach was “weird” – a description he repeated. “It was weird last year and weird this year”. “But that’s the nature of the National Football League”.
NO SACKS: The Falcons may be exhausted of hearing they ranked last in the league with 19 sacks last season and have ranked no higher than 28th since 2012. He was hurt covering a punt in the first quarter. Atlanta defensive end Brooks Reed returned after leaving in the first quarter with a shoulder injury.
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So with the strong passing offense in mind and the defense’s ability to lock down in the fourth quarter, it’s easy to get optimistic about the next game.
