The Atlanta Falcons' defense impressed in Sunday's season opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers but left plenty of room for improvement.
Led by first-year defensive coordinator Jimmy Lake, the Falcons held the Steelers out of the endzone, forcing six field goals -- three in each half -- in the process.
Of Pittsburgh's 10 drives, six lasted at least seven plays. Atlanta, conversely, had only three such possessions. The Steelers won the time of possession battle by over 10 minutes, thus taking opportunities away from the Falcons' offense. Atlanta failed to record any takeaways. "But I was very proud of how they stood up and showed mental toughness and real grit down the stretch."Cornerback Mike Hughes made seven tackles, including a team-best three tackles for loss. Defensive tackle Grady Jarrett, playing in his first game suffering a torn ACL in Week 8 last season, had one and a half sacks, two tackles for loss and three quarterback hits.
The two ex-Pro Bowlers serve as a microcosm of Atlanta's defense, which transitioned from a 4-3 to a 3-4 under Lake this offseason. Much of the personnel from last year is the same -- among the Falcons' 11 starters, only Judon, Simmons and defensive tackle Eddie Goldman weren't on the active roster last year."I think we had little communication errors sometimes," Jarrett said.
Several Falcons defenders were happy with keeping the Steelers out of the endzone, but naturally, the losing outcome quelled most positive thoughts. When the Falcons review the film entering their Week 2 matchup with the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday Night Football, Jarrett said they'll see the need to reduce big plays -- a process that starts with the defensive linemen getting off blocks faster so the quarterback can't throw deep passes.
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