Falcons Still Super Bowl 53 Contenders After Loss to Eagles
- The Falcons lost 18-12 to the Eagles in the 2018 NFL season-opener
- Matt Ryan and the Atlanta offense displayed the same struggles in the red zone as last season
- See how the Falcons’ odds to win Super Bowl 53 were affected
The 2017 Atlanta Falcons were largely held back due to their inefficiencies in the red zone. The team only converted 50% of their red zone trips into touchdowns (23rd).
Steve Sarkisian, who was in his first year as offensive coordinator with the Falcons, took a lot of heat for the offense taking such a big step back from their elite level under Kyle Shanahan the previous season.
| 33.8 (1st) | Points Per Game | 22.1 (15th) |
| 415.8 (2nd) | Yards Per Game | 364.8 (8th) |
| 295.3 (3rd) | Passing Yards Per Game | 249.4 (8th) |
| 120.5 (5th) | Rushing Yards Per Game | 115.4 (13th) |
| 61.9% (9th) | Red Zone TD% | 50% (23rd) |
And a lot of the criticism focused on the team’s refusal to utilize 6’3″, 220-pound Julio Jones. The wide receiver only scored three TDs in 2017 and his receiving yards per game were the lowest since 2012 – his second season in the league.
All that was going to change in 2018, though. Sarkisian was going to get Julio Jones the ball and return this Falcons offense to prominence.
However, Atlanta wasted little time proving nothing has changed in the 2018 NFL season-opener last night.
One word. Embarrassing.
Falcons have drives down to the PHI 1, PHI 5 and PHI 15. No points on any drives.
Red zone was their prime offensive weakness & Sark didn’t fix it. Embarrassing.
— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) September 7, 2018
What was most concerning was that Jones was not even on the field for two of their four plays inside the six-yard-line on their first drive of the game, which resulted in a turnover on downs.
And it was very fitting that the game ended the same way the last meeting did between these two – in the NFL Divisional Round of the playoffs – with a goal line stand. At least the ball was going in Julio’s direction, though.
Falcons Odds to Win Super Bowl 53
| Team | Odds on 09/01/18 | Odds on 09/07/18 |
|---|---|---|
| Atlanta Falcons | +1500 | +2000 |
The good news for Falcons fans, and those who have laid money on them in futures markets, is online sports betting sites are not writing them off just yet.
The loss did allow the Jacksonville Jaguars (+1800) and Los Angeles Chargers (+1800) to leap them, but they still have the tenth-shortest odds to win Super Bowl 53.
And let’s keep in mind, that was an extremely tough Philadelphia Eagles defense Atlanta played last night, who most believe got better from 2017, and were playing at home.
Are the Falcons a Good Bet to Win Super Bowl 53?
It’s not time to abandon hope on the Falcons winning Super Bowl 53. But it may be time to start considering other teams.
Which team, you ask? Head over to our Super Bowl 53 Odds Tracker, which will be updated at the end of each week in the NFL season, to weigh your other options.
After working in TV, Matt turned his focus towards numbers, specifically odds. He has been with us since 2016 and serves as SBD's Editor-in-Chief, credited with creating our futures trackers, SBD's score predictor, SBD Sharp, and his own model for calculating NFL SOS, among other products.
