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The Atlanta Falcons played an exciting game Sunday night, defeating one of the best quarterbacks to ever play professional football. The injuries to Vic Beasley, Ryan Schraeder, and Courtney Upshaw are concerning, but the team has to move on. That early bye week isn’t looking so bad now.
Meanwhile, it’s Tuesday, which means it’s time for power rankings. Many outlets are bullish on the Falcons after the big win. Let’s break it down.
ESPN: 1st (up six spots)
Falcons fans can drop any concerns about Steve Sarkisian running the offense. FPI has the Falcons as the second-rated offense so far this season, and Matt Ryan is averaging nearly 10 yards per pass attempt. The Falcons are just the fourth Super Bowl loser to start the next season 2-0.
NFL.com : 4th (up one spot)
The offense looks faster. Which will, in turn, make this year's road division matchups in Tampa and Carolina fascinating, especially given how both those defenses have been playing. Still think Dan Quinn's group wins the NFC South.
CBS Sports: 1st (up one spot)
They still haven't quite clicked on offense yet, but it's coming. When it does, watch out.
Bleacher Report: 5th (up three spots)
Listen, I know I've been skeptical of the Steve Sarkisian offense. I didn't know if it would be able to get going the way Kyle Shanahan's offense did last season, and I didn't know if the run game could be the same. Well, it all got going in a big way against the Packers.
SB Nation: 5th (up five spots)
Sports Illustrated: 2nd (up five spots)
Unsurprisingly some outlets still aren’t convinced this is a top three team. That’s fair, but at some point, it’s not low-level competition and it’s not injuries. Your thoughts?