The Atlanta Falcons made a number of moves in the offseason to further improve an offense that was already considered a dangerous one.
The teams biggest free agent signing was on the backfield when GM Terry Fontenot added RB Mike Davis, and they followed that up in the 1st Round of the NFL Draft when they added offensive playmaker Kyle Pitts with the 4th overall pick.
When you look at those two additions along with a few smaller ones and combine that with the hiring of Arthur Smith as head coach, a guy whose expertise is on the offensive side of things, the expectations for the Falcons offense is sky high.
While one might look at the players on offense and expect the Falcons to be among the top passing teams in the NFL, when molded the way that Arthur Smith wants it, there could be a much more even balance than would be suggested on paper.
John Fricke and Hugh Douglas chat about the Falcons offense and how it sets up to be able to beat teams a bit differently than in previous seasons.
"I think they're going to be pass first and run second, you go out and get Kyle Pitts, get an offensive lineman, and you put your chips into Matt Ryan," says Fricke. "Seems to me you want to be tea than wants to be what Matt Ryan is, a vertical passing team."
"Your personnel is going to have teams on high alert. They know enough about the offense to know there's some bonafide threats at the receiver position," explains Hugh Douglas. "You might run a one-back set that spreads them out and you might run the ball down their throat, but they have to honor the pass. It's not predicated that every week the falcons are going to come out and throw the ball, it might change from week to week."
"That's the beauty of having the type of offense that Coach Smith is going to put on the field," continues Douglas. "You have a running back that you know is going to pound the rock, so it's one of those things that you don't have to be the same offense every week."
