Gameday Preview: Bucs Looking to Get Back on Track vs. the Falcons

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers look to get back into the win column today vs. NFC Divisional rivals the Atlanta Falcons.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers currently sit at 2-2 (1-0 NFC South) four games into the season. It has not been pretty. Early in the season, the Bucs' offense had plenty of issues getting anything going on the offensive side of the ball. Last weeks' loss to the Kansas City Chiefs was the opposite as the offense seemed to get into a rhythm, besides the run game, but the defense was on the field for way too long as they struggled to contain Patrick Mahomes and company.

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This week the Bucs are back for their third straight home game as they host NFC South divisional rivals the Atlanta Falcons. The Falcons enter this one with the exact same record as the Bucs at 2-2, however, they dropped their only divisional game week 1 against the New Orleans Saints.

The Atlanta Falcons are a much different team than the Bucs' have faced in the past. With the departure of longtime quarterback Matt Ryan, Atlanta went out and grabbed Marcus Mariota - who has seemingly brought a spark back into their offense. With Mariota, the Falcons have become a heavier run team and currently claim the 4th best spot in the NFL with an average of 168 yards on the ground per game.

On the defensive side of the ball, Atlanta has seemingly done a much better job than in previous seasons. They restructured a ton in their secondary and still have one of the best interior defensive linemen in Grady Jarrett. Atlanta's defense has been able to keep them in games, especially in late-closing situations. The Buccaneers' offense will have to look to get a quick start and put points on the board early to help eliminate that. One thing Atlanta's defense has not done well this season is stop the run. They sit near the bottom half of the league in rush yards allowed per game (126.3) in 21st. The Buccaneers should look to establish the run game early and often with both Leonard Fournette and Rachaad White.

Another positive for the Buccaneers in this one is that Atlanta will be missing two key pieces of their offense in running back Cordarrelle Patterson and tight end Kyle Pitts. Atlanta may find it hard to establish their offense as they will be relying heavily on the likes of Drake London, Tyler Allgeier and Caleb Huntley.

For the Buccaneers, the team will be without tight end Cameron Brate due to a concussion he suffered last week as well as wide receiver Julio Jones. Wide receiver Chris Godwin seems to finally be fully healthy as he did not receive an injury designation during practice this week. Russell Gage is going to give it a go today after being limited during the week as he was dealing with a back injury. Wide receiver, Breshad Perriman, is listed as questionable for the contest.

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Buccaneers' faithful will be tuned into this divisional matchup looking for the team to finally put together a consistent, balanced attack on both sides of the ball. They will need to stop Atlanta's rushing attack and force Marcus Mariota to throw the ball, attack early on both sides of the ball and get their key players involved early and often to put this game away and come out of week 5 above .500 and a 2-0 record in the NFC South.

Stick with BucsGameday for more coverage on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers throughout the season.

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