It’s hard to call the second game of the season a must-win, but the Falcons really needed to avoid the 0-2 start that sinks most postseason dreams. They did just that by putting up 31 points against a good Panthers defense that completely shutdown Ezekiel Elliott just the week prior.
Here are my key takeaways from the game.
Best game Sarkisian has called
After a week where people were calling for his head, offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian called his best game yet for the Falcons. Using a mixture of play action, balance between the run and pass and a variety of route patterns and movement, he had the Carolina defense off-balance for most of the game.