Mohamed Bughrara
Falcons (4-4) at Panthers (2-7), Thursday 8:15 p.m.:
In the first meeting, the Falcons’ secondary struggled against the Panthers’ wideouts and running attack. The home run strategy should perform more effectively than it did in Atlanta, stopping the rush and getting a boost from a determined P.J. Walker, who resumed the starting quarterback role. Marcus Mariota will continue to ride Atlanta’s tidal wave in order to keep the team below .500.
Patriots Bye Week
The Patriots will have a bye week in the middle of the season to recoup from the opening half of the season, but it will also be a time to conduct some soul-searching offensively.
New England enters its bye week at 25th in Football Outsiders’ offensive DVOA measure, which would be the lowest performing of the Bill Belichick era assuming things don’t change. after placing ninth in DVOA in Mac Jones’ first season.
Although it is critical to stay healed and refreshed in the bye week, the Patriots need to analyze what is wrong with their offense and find a solution.
