Falcons snap counts from a big road win over the Buccaneers

This was one of the more straightforward efforts of the year, as Atlanta decisively bested Tampa Bay in everything but the turnover battle, which is why this one was so close. There were no major twists and turns in the snap counts this week, but there are still interesting notes.

As is custom, we’ll run them down along with the counts, starting right now.

Offense

Desmond Ridder: 65

Jake Matthews: 65

Matthew Bergeron: 65

Drew Dalman: 65

Chris Lindstrom: 65

Kaleb McGary: 65

Drake London: 55

Jonnu Smith: 35

Kyle Pitts: 34

Tyler Allgeier: 33

Van Jefferson: 32

Cordarrelle Patterson: 26

MyCole Pruitt: 26

Mack Hollins: 23

Keith Smith: 22

Scotty Miller: 14

KhaDarel Hodge: 12

Bijan Robinson: 11

Tucker Fisk: 2

---

Again, the central mystery with Bijan Robinson concerns why he played at all. I’m never going to begrudge a player for being unable to play—these guys really don’t like to be sidelined and Robinson must have felt like garbage to not be out there—and I don’t share the fantasy-and-gambling-fueled outrage over the lack of playing time in light of that. What I don’t understand and has not been properly explained is why, with Robinson not feeling well, he played 11 snaps at all, and why he got his sole carry late in the game. Arthur Smith clearly felt there was an advantage to doing so, likely in terms of how the defense responded to having Robinson in the game, but this might be one of those situations we never fully understand. Given the win and given that Robinson seems to be okay, that’s not the biggest deal in the world, but it was a puzzling Sunday.

The other major note this week? Van Jefferson appears to have passed Mack Hollins for playing time, and whether that’s going to be matchup-dictated or a permanent change is still unclear after a couple of weeks. Hollins offers you more as a blocker and has that size advantage, but the Falcons clearly like Jefferson after importing him from the Rams and may prize his speed and solid all-around game going forward. I’d certainly expect to see more of him against Tennessee, especially after the Titans just traded away terrific safety Kevin Byard and weakened their secondary in the process.

Finally, we got to see Cordarrelle Patterson. The trick for Patterson is simply staying healthy, as he wore down late the past two years and was brought along slowly this season. When he is, the veteran is still a bruising, talented back who can make a real impact on the game for Atlanta, as he thankfully did Sunday.

Defense

Richie Grant: 73

A.J. Terrell: 73

Kaden Elliss: 73

Jeff Okudah: 69

Nate Landman: 56

Dee Alford: 55

Calais Campbell: 50

Bud Dupree: 48

David Onyemata: 42

Grady Jarrett: 41

LaCale London: 32

Arnold Ebiketie: 31

Lorenzo Carter: 23

Zach Harrison: 22

Ta’Quon Graham: 21

DeMarcco Hellams: 17

Mike Hughes: 4

---

This week was noteworthy for how frequently we saw the reserves, a must in a game with so many defensive snaps. LaCale London not only played a lot but seemingly played quite well, and given that he’s done so two weeks in a row as a practice squad call-up and there are no established reserves on the interior of the line, he might be in line for a roster spot at some point in place of Albert Huggins or Joe Gaziano. Ebiketie continues to gain playing time and Carter’s ticked up, as well, with Graham returning to action after a long layoff. Atlanta’s playing so well up front most weeks and have a deep bench to draw on between the active roster and the practice squad, and it’s nice to feel confident in that group.

Also, DeMarcco Hellams is clearly the third safety with Jaylinn Hawkins off to the Chargers, and the team seems likely to continue prioritizing 10-20 snaps per game for him when it makes sense to mix him in. They’re quite obviously high on the rookie’s potential.

Special teams

DeMarcco Hellams: 17

DeAngelo Malone: 17

Mack Hollins: 14

Micah Abernathy: 14

Tre Flowers: 14

Keith Smith: 12

Bradley Pinion: 11

Tae Davis: 11

KhaDarel Hodge: 10

Richie Grant: 9

Arnold Ebiketie: 8

Zach Harrison: 8

Calais Campbell: 7

Tucker Fisk: 7

Liam McCullough: 7

Nate Landman: 6

Lorenzo Carter: 5

Matthew Bergeron: 4

Chris Lindstrom: 4

Jake Matthews: 4

Kaleb McGary: 4

Cordarrelle Patterson: 4

Scotty Miller: 4

Storm Norton: 4

Ryan Neuzil: 4

Kyle Hinton: 4

Younghoe Koo: 4

Dee Alford: 3

David Onyemata: 3

LaCale London: 2

Ta’Quon Graham: 2

MyCole Pruitt: 1

---

The return of Cordarrelle Patterson, kick returner was a joy on Sunday, as well. He’s still got it, and I’ll be stunned if he doesn’t break one or two 40-plus yard returns this year before all is said and done.

Hollins and Flowers going from starting role to more part-time ones—Flowers is not really playing on defense now, while Hollins obviously is still going to pull down a significant number of snaps as a quality blocking wide receiver—brings them back to special teams roles where they’ve both excelled in the past. The shifting lineups are going to shake things up a little bit in that regard, and it mostly went well on Sunday, though Tampa Bay managed a quality return a week after Washington almost housed one before Flowers’ heroic tackle.