In Week 12 of the 2020 NFL season, the Las Vegas Raiders will travel to Atlanta to take on the Falcons. We look at their offseason and how the Raiders can win.
The last time the Raiders met the Atlanta Falcons, the teams were in significantly different places then they are today. It was the 2016 season, the last season in which the Raiders had made the playoffs. In a very close game, the Falcons edged the Raiders in Oakland 35-28. The win by the Falcons set the all-time match up series at 7-7.
So this year who will break the tiebreaker?
The 2016 season also culminated in the Falcons losing the Super Bowl in epic fashion to the New England Patriots, but that is a story for another time.
The Week 12 match up will be an interesting one, as usually that late in the season the indicators are pretty strong about who are the contenders and pretenders. Both teams have not come close to that 2016 season in terms of success since, but both were knocking on the door of a playoff berth in 2019.
The match up in Atlanta will look slightly different, as new faces on both teams will play a large part in this game and could also decide the game in favor of one or the other.
The Falcons looked like a very different team later in the 2019 season. Head coach Dan Quinn was in an unusual situation in 2019, as he had anointed himself defensive coordinator. After a very rocky first half to the season, he relinquished defensive play-calling duties to linebacker coach Jeff Ulbrich.
With Ulbrich in charge of the defensive calls, the Falcons came alive late in the season and won their last four games, which included a win over eventual NFC champion, the San Francisco 49ers.
Can the Falcons ride the momentum of their late success into a new season? Or can the Raiders find a way to stifle quarterback Matt Ryan and come away with a tough win in Atlanta?
Las Vegas Raiders 2020 Opponent Review: Atlanta Falcons
Atlanta Falcons additions and subtractions
The Falcons had a very busy offseason. The biggest move though possibly could have been what they lost. The Falcons have had a highly potent offense in recent years, and lost a major piece to that offense in tight end Austin Hooper.
Hooper was awarded a huge contract by the Cleveland Browns at a price the Falcons could not match. The two-time Pro Bowler had been a key target for Matt Ryan in recent years and will be sorely missed.
Replacing Hooper will be Hayden Hurst. Acquired in a trade with the Baltimore Ravens, the former first round pick had fallen down the pecking order, and was the second tight end in the Ravens offense behind Mark Andrews. With a bigger role, he will look to replace Hooper, a task he may or may not be up for.
Another key player, or not so key player in this case is Vic Beasley. Beasley had led the NFL in sacks in 2016, but he has failed to live up to the lofty expectations he had set for himself. The Falcons did not re-sign him, and he signed a free agent deal with the Tennessee Titans.
In his place, the Falcons signed Dante Fowler. The pass rusher was a former top-five pick, and is someone who has had an up and down career until 2019, when he had 11 sacks for the Los Angeles Rams. He will look to continue this momentum in Atlanta and will be one for the Raiders offensive line to keep an eye on.
The Falcons also replaced another Pro Bowl player in running back Devonta Freeman. Freeman, a former two-time pro bowler like Hooper, had his fair share of moments, but also more than that, his fair share of injuries. After signing a massive deal in 2017, the Falcons released the oft-injured back this offseason.
In the place of Freeman, this could be possibly the riskiest or rewarding free agent deal in the 2020 offseason. That would be the signing of Todd Gurley. Gurley, who will be 26-years-old at the start of the season, is back in the state of Georgia where he played his college ball. This is a peculiar signing for the fact we do not what to expect from Gurley.
The former two-time All-Pro has been one of the best running backs in football over the last few seasons. The talent is not the issue. Like Freeman, it is his health.
Gurley was diagnosed with arthritis in his knee, and with this diagnosis became used less and less in the Rams offense in 2019. After being cut by the Rams, he immediately signed on a one-year, $5.5 million contract. The deal looks like it could be a low-risk, high-reward situation for the Falcons, or it could blow up in their face.
We will have to find out Week 12 if Gurley will be a problem for the Raiders, or for that matter, even on the field.
The Falcons also cut former first round pick and cornerback Desmond Trufant. In his place, the Falcons used their first round pick on cornerback A.J. Terrell out of Clemson. Hopefully the Raiders can exploit the young corner come Week 12.
Las Vegas Raiders 2020 Opponent Review: Atlanta Falcons
How can the Raiders beat the Atlanta Falcons
Now this is tricky. The Falcons are one of those teams you can’t ever seem to pinpoint. They are a very dangerous team at times, but can also be very shaky. If the later half of the season is any indicator, the Falcons may be in tow for a huge improvement in 2020.
The Raiders revamped defense, especially in the linebacking department will have a tough task keeping up with Matt Ryan and his assortment of weapons. One of those being Julio Jones, who is one of, if not the best wide receiver in the sport. The secondary will have to play to their best ability to match up with the Falcons receivers, a task not many teams can accomplish.
With that being said, you should not expect the Raiders to be in a defensive tug of war with the Falcons, as points will be scored, and points will be needed to win this match up. Quarterback Derek Carr will need to find his receivers early and often, as well as getting enough touches to running back Josh Jacobs.
Scoring early and often will be key in the Raiders hoping to pull out a win in Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
We are not sure what to expect from running back Todd Gurley. A return to form is not impossible and the defensive line may need to be ready to stack the box in case he is indeed a threat. Although, the major focal point of this offense is Ryan. Maxx Crosby and his fellow linemen will have to pressure Ryan all game to have a chance to pull this one out.
There are plenty of keys here to victory, but if Derek Carr and Co. can consistently put up points on the board, the defense can pressure Ryan enough and maintain some stability in coverage, this could possibly be a win for the Raiders