NFL Analysis
9/17/24
4 min read
Kirk Cousins, Falcons Found Recipe For Offensive Success vs. Eagles
After a Week 1 overreaction, the Atlanta Falcons started to find their offensive identity during their Week 2 Monday Night Football victory.
In a thrilling comeback win, Kirk Cousins led the Falcons down the field for a winning touchdown with less than a minute remaining, pulling off the 22-21 win against the Philadelphia Eagles. The offense looked significantly more effective than Week 1, racking up 385 total yards compared to just 226 the week prior.
There weren't drastic changes, but the Falcons changed things up enough on Monday night to help unlock the offense and come away with the win.
Clicking From Under Center
One of the biggest differences in how the Falcons operated in Week 2 was putting Cousins under center. The 36-year-old quarterback averaged 12 pass attempts per game from under center with the Minnesota Vikings in 2023 but attempted just one such pass in Week 1, according to TruMedia.
Cousins was much more involved under center against the Eagles. He attempted eight passes not in the shotgun, completing five of them for 52 yards.
Those numbers don't sound like much, but they had a drastic impact on the run game, keeping defenses guessing as to what the Falcons might do with Cousins under center. Bijan Robinson saw legitimate success running behind Cousins instead of out of shotgun.
When the Falcons ran out of shotgun, Robinson carried the ball five times for just 19 yards. When they were under center, he ran the ball nine times for 78 yards (8.7 yards per carry) with four first downs.
By heavily utilizing outside zone concepts from under center, the Falcons could let Robinson pick up speed while using his vision and agility to make quick cuts for explosive plays.
The #Falcons did a great job of working Bijan Robinson on outside zone concepts from under center.
— Tyler Brooke (@TylerDBrooke) September 17, 2024
He averaged 8.7 yards per carry on runs under center last night. pic.twitter.com/Sua9E3V8O2
It's a slight tweak, but it allowed the Falcons to be so much more effective on the ground. It's a big ask for Cousins, who is 36 years old and returning from a torn Achilles, to run around on handoffs from under center.
However, it seems like a scheme change that will help Robinson be a top-tier running back in 2024.
Cousins Looked More Like Himself
There were times on Monday night when Cousins looked more like a late-career Peyton Manning, struggling to move around in the pocket and throwing passes with a lack of velocity.
That didn't stop him from shredding the Eagles defense.
Cousins generated 8.9 expected points added (EPA) as a passer on Monday compared to -10.1 EPA in Week 1, according to RBSDM. The biggest difference was Cousins could throw while under duress.
Cousins posted a 41.7 passer rating with two interceptions and two sacks when under pressure in Week 1. He was sacked just once when pressured 14 times on Monday night, completing 8-of-12 passes for 101 yards, one touchdown, and a 120.5 passer rating.
The middle of the field was Cousins' biggest friend in Week 2. He completed 11-of-12 passes between the hashes for 145 yards and a touchdown.
Arguably, Cousins' best throw came between the hashes while fading away, delivering an accurate ball downfield to Darnell Mooney for a touchdown.
EASY MOONEY 💰
— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) September 17, 2024
ESPN | NFL+ pic.twitter.com/O1pJ47rLSq
Cousins might not be the same player that he was as a younger quarterback, but he shook off the rust for an impressive Week 2 performance. More games like this should help the Falcons get back on track as playoff contenders.
