Falcons Secondary Implodes in Loss to Bengals; What Happened?

The Atlanta Falcons were without three of their top cornerbacks for much of the game against the Cincinnati Bengals.

The Atlanta Falcons’ secondary couldn’t cover the Cincinnati Bengals with a blanket if they had one.

Joe Burrow set Atlanta’s defense ablaze, completing 34 of his 42 passes for 481 yards and three touchdowns in a 35-17 loss at Paycor Stadium.

Along with Burrow throwing for nearly 500 yards, the Bengals had two receivers with over 100 receiving yards.

Ja’Marr Chase has eight catches for 130 yards and two touchdowns. Tyler Boyd also had a big day with eight catches for 155 yards and a 60-yard touchdown that began the scoring for Cincinnati.

One could argue the Falcons’ struggles began when they were undermanned heading into the game.

Dee Alford and Casey Heyward were both out with injuries and the secondary didn’t get any healthier as the game went along.

A.J. Terrell, the team’s top cornerback, reinjured his hamstring in the first quarter while covering Chase and was out for the rest of the game.

That left Atlanta with the cast of Darren Hall, Cornell Armstrong, Mike Ford and Isaiah Oliver to cover one of the best receiving corps in the NFL.

With the loss, Atlanta fell back below .500, although they were far from the only team in their division to struggle.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New Orleans Saints each lost one-sided games and are also below .500. The only team to win in the NFC South was the Carolina Panthers, who beat the Bucs 21-3.

Despite the ugly loss, Atlanta still finds itself in the thick of the worst division in football. If they hope to hang around in their division, the Falcons’ secondary will have to get healthy and improve as the season goes along.

Atlanta will have a chance to get back in the win column when they host Carolina.

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