Have not posted because it was a frustrating game to watch and on top of it I was not able to watch it very intently as other things were going on at my house. A few things stuck out to me.
1) As I was watching the game, it was obvious that Atlanta was better on both sides of the ball. That became more striking when Jordy left the game. MilwJS confirmed my thoughts at the time with a story this morning - basically the Falcons are better at the skill positions other than QB, and even that spot is close. Jones and Sanu are better than anything the Packers have other than Nelson. Adams and Cobb are quite a step down from the two of them. Adams seems at best to be a nice 3rd option. Time for TT to address the position in the next draft.
Same with RB. Montgomery is a nice option as a change of pace or 3rd down guy, but they need to draft a real running back earlier in the draft, but since they just took 3 guys, I'm not holding my breath for much improvement there next spring.
2) We "upgraded" the secondary to the point where the #1 guy from the playoff debacle isn't even on the team and they still look the same. Two things need to happen - new coaching and a new starter in King. The coaching change can't happen now, but it should. As others have noted, time for King to start.
3) They drafted Jones specifically for the nitro package, but instead of playing him there, they play Burnett in that spot. Why? Yes, he's a rookie, and might make some mistakes, but he's bigger and faster than anyone else you've got, why is he not starting and learning. Burnett is a more savvy player than Brice and should be back at safety.
Ultimately, I don't know if the nitro package can work or not. Other teams use something similar and make it work. To me it comes back to coaching. Part of me hopes another humiliating season of defense will get Capers fired, but MM's stubbornness and stupidity regarding Capers tells me it won't happen. The entire defensive staff needs to be let go. I'd even be OK with an in-season firing of Capers and I usually consider that a waste of time when other teams do it. Chances are the only way we see better defense is if we start with the head. I may be over-reacting after 1 game, but I just feel like I've now seen this story before and it always ends the same. Time for TT, MM and the whole coaching crew to move along.
In fairness to TT, I'm not sure anymore that he's responsible for the defensive problems. He's certainly made his share of drafting mistakes, but to me the coaching staff has backed him into a corner and he keeps drafting defense, in quantity, and has little to show for it. The defense is dominated by early round draft picks who I would say were drafted pretty much in the spots that most draft professionals thought they should be drafted. I submit that most GMs would have taken them about where they were taken, and most coaches would have made a better unit from these guys.
The need to keep adding defensive talent has not yet taken it's toll on the offense but hints are there. Nelson and Cobb keep getting older and have still not been replaced. Adams is not as good as either were in their prime and the guys after Adams are just guys. The WR group is no longer among the top units in the NFL. They don't have a real running back, though Monty is a nice find and nice piece. They haven't drafted a good TE in a over a decade. They are OK on OL but again this past year, failed to draft a quality option for depth. (I think Amichia is a huge mistake but maybe I'll be proved wrong.)
