Falcons 2021 schedule predictions: Washington in Week 4

The winner of the weak 2020 NFC East was a team that shouldn’t be overlooked in 2021. Washington had questions at QB last year but will now field ... Ryan Fitzpatrick? Ok, so the QB question is still a valid one but the rest of this roster is solid to great. The defense in particular is a stout unit that finished second in yards allowed, fourth in points allowed and third in DVOA. Can Arthur Smith field an offense good enough to overcome this top 5 defense?

Our predictions

Falcons 14 - WFT 21

I’m really excited about what the Falcons offense will look like in the future. I’m a big believer that Kyle Pitts is going to be one of the best at his position and that Arthur Smith is going to build something great (at least offensively). Washington, however, is a team with a good amount of talent, even if their QB is a huge question mark. Atlanta will still be getting in sync with their offense by this point of the season and the WFT looks like a truly stout defense that could give them grief. Even though Atlanta will be at home for this one, I think it will be a tough game with Washington ultimately getting the W. - David Walker

Falcons 17 - WFT 26

I really don’t feel good about this matchup. Why? Well, when I view the depth chart of the Washington Football Team, I see what could be the best defensive front seven in all of football. One that could really give Matt Ryan and the Falcons offense plenty of trouble. It should be noted that I am really high on WFT this season as I see them winning the NFC East and making a possible playoff run. In order for the Falcons to pull this one out, their defense will have to be a juggernaut in this one also. Within the first month of the season, I believe they will still be getting things in order, which makes things a little easier for a really solid WFT roster. - Eric Robinson

Falcons 20 - WFT 34

The Falcons have had a tendency in years past to overlooked non-name-brand opponents. Now, I’m not saying that will happen under Arthur Smith (and it’s not even fair to insinuate as much). What I am saying is that I think a lot of teams will overlook the Football Team in 2021 and regret doing so. Washington is my personal darkhorse team this fall, and I think they have sneaky contender status if things break the best possible way. If the Falcons don’t come in with their absolute A-game, I think the score could get lopsided in a hurry. Even if they are lights out, Washington could prove too much. This will be a second measuring-stick opportunity for Atlanta’s defense after whatever the result of the Week 2 matchup against Tampa Bay is. - William McFadden

Falcons 21 - Football Team 24

I was tempted to go the other way just so we didn’t have uniform predictions here, but I share the anxiety about Washington’s defense for a team that (as Eric says) will likely still finding its footing on offense. Washington doesn’t look like they’ll be able to bring the kind of offensive firepower to bear that Tampa Bay will, but their 2020 D (ranked 2nd in yards, 4th in scoring, 5th in terms of interceptions and 1st in first downs allowed) was stellar and they might have better days in store on that side of the ball. Pair that with an offense that looks like it’ll be at least capable this year and you have a tough, potentially lower-scoring matchup that ought to be close and Atlanta may very well lose. As Will suggests, this will be an excellent test of how the Falcons offense fares against a challenging defense, and if they pass this and the Tampa Bay hurdles they’ll be looking pretty legit. - Dave Choate

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