Kevin Stefanski’s first season with the Atlanta Falcons has become a difficult one to explain. The offense has struggled to generate anything consistently, while uncertainty at quarterback has made the situation even harder to stabilize.
With expectations still high around Atlanta’s roster, the early results have put Stefanski under increasing scrutiny. One former Pro Bowler now believes the problems go well beyond the quarterback position.
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T.J. Houshmandzadeh Rips Kevin Stefanski Over Falcons’ Offensive Failures
Former Pro Bowl wide receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh did not hold back when discussing Stefanski’s start in Atlanta on the “Speakeasy” podcast. He questioned how an offensive-minded coach could get so little production from a roster featuring significant talent at running back, tight end, and receiver.
“I believe Stefanski, you’re an offensive guy, and your teams can’t do (expletive). You just left a team in the Cleveland Browns, and Deshaun Watson looks better without you, way better without you, way better without you,” Houshmandzadeh said.
The former wideout then connected Watson’s recent performance in Cleveland to what he sees as a larger problem with Stefanski’s offensive system.
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“You may be the reason why Deshaun Watson was looking away. He was looking at a little weak-(expletive) offense you got,” Houshmandzadeh said.
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Atlanta has managed only 16 points through its first two games and has yet to run an offensive play inside the opponent’s red zone. The Falcons also entered Week 3 with uncertainty at quarterback after Tua Tagovailoa suffered an oblique injury before Week 1 and Cooper Rush struggled enough against Carolina to be replaced by Jack Strand.
Houshmandzadeh acknowledged the quarterback situation but argued that Stefanski cannot use it to explain everything. He pointed to Atlanta’s surrounding talent while questioning why the offense has produced so little.
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“Now, what’re you gonna do? Because Michael Penix was showing some promise last year. Your quarterbacks in your offense this year have been terrible. You got one of the top-three, I would say top-five combos in the league with those three triplets in the league,” he said, referring to Kyle Pitts Sr., Bijan Robinson, and Drake London.
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Houshmandzadeh also challenged Stefanski’s reputation, bringing up his previous success in Cleveland and asking how much credit belonged to Baker Mayfield.
“If you can’t do anything offensively, they got to get rid of this dude. They got to get rid of this dude. Year one. Because he coached it a year, led him to the playoffs. Was it really him, or was it Baker?” he said.
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He added that Stefanski cannot rely indefinitely on his previous accomplishments.
“At some point, you can’t live off that one season, the Coach of the Year, because I just saw Deshaun Watson yesterday throwing dimes, and he looked pretty good,” Houshmandzadeh said.
Watson completed 24 of 30 passes for 238 yards and two touchdowns in Cleveland’s 23-19 win over Tampa Bay.
Meanwhile, Atlanta will enter its Thursday night matchup with Green Bay at 0-2, with Penix expected to take over at quarterback.
This article originally appeared on Pro Football Network.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: Sports.yahoo.com
