Behind Enemy Lines: Atlanta Falcons

After seeing themselves fumble away the game against Tampa Bay, the Atlanta Falcons have been focusing on the details all week. “We just have to keep improving on the details. It’s just a matter of the details and finishing every drive,” said tight end Jacob Tamme. The Falcons struggled holding onto the ball last week and it adds onto unimpressive stretch they have built. The past four games they have turned the ball over 12 times, eight of which have come from QB Matt Ryan. Julio Jones has spoken out on their recent struggles and while he still thinks that they are a good football team, he adds that “We’ve definitely got the energy and the effort there, but turnovers can cause you to win or lose a game”. After facing one breakout RB in Todd Gurley last week, the 49ers now must look into the eyes of second year RB Devonta Freeman. Freeman currently leads the league in rushing and the 49ers currently struggle statistically defending it. However, Freeman understands how tough that defense can be. “I see a lot of great things, They're physical. They're smart. They've got a lot of vets. They're going to be where they need to be. Just a physical defense and a run-hit defense. They're mentality is to stop us. We've got to come out with the energy and come prepared and ready to play,” said Freeman. In case you have been living under a rock, the 49ers have benched QB Colin Kaepernick and will insert former 10th overall pick Blaine Gabbert into the starting line-up. “Obviously, he hasn’t been on the field that much. He’s a real experienced guy, so they’re probably going to run the same offense they would run with Colin Kaepernick. So we’re just going to go out there and do what we do,” is what safety Kemal Ishmael said. Meanwhile, CB Jalen Collins is going to prepare like Gabbert is a great QB (seriously…), “This is the NFL, so everybody is the best of the best”. You also can’t go a week without a player or coach mentioning the mobility of a San Francisco QB. This week, however, it is Blaine Gabbert who will be receiving the praise. Falcons defensive end Adrian Clayborn says that “(Gabbert’s) pretty mobile. I played him in college, and I played him in my rookie season. He’s pretty mobile. He’s not as mobile as Colin Kaepernick, but we have to be ready for anything”. It was also reported by Kyle McLorg that the 49ers decided to play Gabbert this week instead of the previous week because of how weak Atlanta’s defense is. Falcons CB Desmond Trufant thought that it was pretty funny and that “They can think what they want to think. That's fine. We'll see on Sunday. We'll see then what's up”.