Here's The Biggest Question For The Atlanta Falcons Entering Training Camp

The Atlanta Falcons open training camp Tuesday with a whole lot of questions but with very few answers.

Terence Moore | Jul 27, 2020

The rookies reported to training camp last week for the Atlanta Falcons. Then came the quarterbacks and the injured players.

Now everybody will come to Flowery Branch, Georgia Tuesday, along with a bunch of uncertainty surrounding a franchise that has finished each of the past two NFL seasons with a 7-9 record.

Not good.

Worse, there is this: How good are the Falcons now?

Who knows?

That said, the Falcons made a bunch of moves during the offseason, highlighted by the signing of defensive end Dante Fowler who dominated opponents for the Los Angeles Rams last season with 11.5 sacks and 58 combined tackles.

The Falcons also believe they've helped a previously creaky defense by taking Clemson cornerback A.J. Terrell with the No. 16 pick in this year's NFL Draft.

Terrell is expected to replace Desmond Trufant, the Falcons' previous starter at left corner who was released after last season.

Will Terrell do better than the fading Trufant of recent years?

Uh, hmmmm.

But let's go to offense, where the unknowns start with an offensive line that kept quarterback Matt Ryan running for his life last season, and speaking of running, the Falcons haven't done so efficiently in a while.

During the 2019 season, only the New York Jets and the Miami Dolphins rushed for fewer yards per game on an average than the Falcons' 85.1.

So to solve their running issues, the Falcons gave a one-year contract to former Georgia star Todd Gurley who evolved into such a former NFL star that the Rams released their injury prone running back after last season.

Maybe Gurley will show the Falcons that his nearly 26-year-old legs still can do the things that led him to three Pro Bowls during his opening four seasons with the Rams.

At least that's the Falcons' hope.

What does all of this mean for the Falcons entering training camp?

Well, take a look at today's Saving The Falcons video.

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Published Jul 27, 2020

TERENCE MOORE

I started as a professional sports journalist in 1978 at the Cincinnati Enquirer after I graduated from Miami (Ohio) University, and I’ve been doing the same thing ever since. I also appear on national television, and I’m part of a weekly TV show in Atlanta. I’ve done everything from ESPN to MSNBC to The Oprah Winfrey Show. As for writing, I’ve gone from working for major newspapers in San Francisco and Atlanta to operating as a national columnist at AOL Sports, MLB.com, Sports On Earth.com and CNN.Com. I’ve covered a slew of sporting events. I’ve done 30 Super Bowls, numerous World Series and NBA Finals games, Final Fours, several Indianapolis 500, Daytona 500 and other auto races, major prize fights and golf tournaments, college football bowl games and more. I’ve also won national, state and local awards along the way.