FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — During the 2023 season, there were no games in which the Falcons scored 30 points. With their win against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday, the Falcons have now scored at least 30 points in three of their last four games.
That one comparison is pretty good summary of the leap Atlanta has made offensively this season. There are a number of different reasons for the improvement we've seen, including a new quarterback, new receiver and new offensive scheme. Not only do those changes have the Falcons atop the NFC South with a 5-3 record but they have also led to a lot of production for the team's top weapons.
Through Week 8, Atlanta has a top-10 passer (Kirk Cousins), a top-10 rusher (Bijan Robinson) and two top-16 receivers (Drake London and Darnell Mooney) in the NFL stat book. Oh, and Kyle Pitts, who currently ranks 23rd in receiving yards, is not far behind.
There's a lot of season left, though, so our editorial team is here to make a little prediction: Which Falcons' offensive player do you think is most likely to finish the year as a top-10 producer at his position?
McELHANEY: Kirk Cousins.
I feel like after everything I have written about him in the last 48 hours I have to pick Cousins. After a down performance against the Seattle Seahawks in Week 7, we saw Cousins rebound against the Buccaneers with — what Raheem Morris called — his "cleanest" performance to date. Mind you he threw for 509 passing yards the first time around.
Not only do I think Cousins is tracking towards a top-10 ranking in one category, like total yards passing, but I think we'll see him in the top-10 in multiple categories across the board as the season progresses.
After Week 8, Cousins is third in passing yards (2,106), tied for third in completions (185), eighth in yards per completion (7.8) and tied for fifth in touchdowns (14). I have no reason to believe these numbers won't continue to be near the top of the league. If anything, there's a chance they get even better as Cousins racks up more and more reps and comfort in Zac Robinson's scheme, something we're actively seeing happen in real-time eight weeks in.
Something else that I will add? Everyone else's production? Yeah, that can all be linked back to Cousins. His success is also the success of players like London, Mooney and Robinson. You can't have one without the other, which is why I am putting all my chips on Cousins. Where he goes, the Falcons go.
McFADDEN: I completely agree with Tori and think Kirk Cousins is the right pick here, but the fact that Atlanta has four players among the top 15 producers at their respective positions is something we should take a second to appreciate. This is exactly what fans hoped for when Raheem Morris brought Zach Robinson over with him from Los Angeles and added Cousins and Mooney to the offense.
The play designs put Cousins' weapons in advantageous situations, and he's done an excellent job sorting through everything quickly to find the open guy. Even when there isn't a clear opening for the football, Cousins has delivered. His completion percentage above expectation is 4%, which ranks fifth among all quarterbacks this season. His expected points added on pass plays is 53.1, which ranks seventh.
The Falcons knew they needed to upgrade their quarterback position this offseason, and the move to sign Cousins is paying off big right now. I don't see him slowing down; in fact, to Tori's point, I believe the best is yet to come for Atlanta's offense.
WAACK: Bijan Robinson.
The Falcons' second-year running back is averaging 68.3 yards rushing per game this season. That's more than 10 yards better than last season's average of 57.4 yards. And last year's total — 976 yards rushing — placed Robinson in the top 15 at season's end. He snuck in right at No. 15, actually, and he was the only first-year player to do so.
At this rate, Robinson should easily smash his 2023 total. It's simple math. If you take his current per-game average and extrapolate it out to a full season, Robinson would finish with 1,161 yards. That would have easily put him in the top 10 last year.
Of course, football isn't that simple. For example, Robinson has had a game where he totaled 103 yards rushing (in the Week 7 loss to the Seattle Seahawks), which is far more than his average. But he has also had a game where he totaled 28 yards rushing (in the Week 4 win against the New Orleans Saints), which is far less than his average. So, that estimated year-end total could vary drastically as the season progresses. It all depends on how Robinson performs.
Robinson will likely still have to break 1,000 yards rushing to crack the top 10, though. The No. 10 spot last year was 1,012 total. Baltimore Ravens running back Derrick Henry is already knocking on that door anyway with an NFL-best 946 yards rushing at the moment.
Regardless, Robinson is on pace to reach that career milestone He just has to keep it up through the second half of the schedule.
SUBHAN: Kirk Cousins is the most likely, Tori and Will outline it perfectly above. However, I want to spotlight another position group.
Drake London currently ranks No. 13 among all wide receivers with 525 yards, and he's just 23 yards behind the No. 10 spot. Looking at his production elsewhere, London is top five in touchdowns (5), receptions (48) and targets (68).
The third-year receiver has already surpassed his career high in touchdowns through just eight games. By all measures, London is having a career year. So, too, is his running mate Darnell Mooney. With 500 receiving yards and four touchdowns, Mooney is shortly behind London in those two areas.
There's a chance both could finish top 10 in a category or two. That's a stark change from last season when not a single receiver finished top-20 in those categories. Zac Robinson's offensive scheme and the addition of Cousins has benefited both London and Mooney.
