Falcon Report

NFL Power Rankings: Falcons Falling After Loss vs. Panthers?

The Atlanta Falcons have lost two straight. But where does that place them in this week's power rankings?

Jeremy Brener

The Atlanta Falcons (4-6) faced arguably their worst loss of the season this past week against the Carolina Panthers (3-7).

The offensive line fell apart and the run game never truly was established in the 25-15 loss against their NFC South rival.

To pile on another bad reason behind the loss, the Falcons slipped back to second place in the NFC South after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (5-5) beat the Seattle Seahawks (6-4) in Munich. Just two weeks ago, the Falcons were in first place, one game ahead of the Bucs. Now, the two teams have flipped and the Falcons are one game behind Tom Brady's Buccaneers.

However, even though the Falcons fell in the standings, they did not fall in Sports Illustrated's power rankings. In fact, Atlanta moved up from No. 20 to 19 this week.

"It looks like we will not see Desmond Ridder anytime soon," SI writes. "Good for Arthur Smith, who is remaining in playoff contention by making some unpopular decisions, and sticking up for his guys. He deserves to see the Falcons to a point where they get a stable solution at quarterback."

Smith committing to Mariota and trying to compete for a playoff spot rather than go the developmental route to play rookie Desmond Ridder earns praise from SI, and it could be the decision that makes or breaks the Falcons in 2022.

Mariota and the Falcons face the Bears on Sunday at 1 p.m. in Atlanta.

You can follow Jeremy Brener on Twitter @JeremyBrener.

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Jeremy Brener
JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.

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