The Falcons Were Surprisingly Efficient In Play Action Last Year

Given the utter mediocrity of their running game, the Falcons were really very efficient when running play action last year. In fact, they were 43.8 more efficient than league average (8th best in the league).

What does that mean? Well, simply stated, it means our play action worked. It worked well, darnit! For whatever reason, the league still respected our running game in 2012. Shocking, right?

You'd have to think the Falcons will continue to periodically emphasize play action in 2013. When you're gaining an additional 1.6 yards/play and almost doubling your efficiency (as they did in 2012), it's not an option you can ignore. That said, the Falcons didn't use it ad nauseum last year. They used it just 17 percent of the time, less than the league average and more than just five other teams. With the addition of Steven Jackson, that may change. NFL defenses gave Michael Turner the benefit of the doubt, there's no reason to think they won't treat Jackson similarly.

Your thoughts?