If you can’t run the ball or stop the run, you will never get control of a game. It’s a common truism used when describing winning identities in football. Some teams can pound teams into submission and produce long, time-draining scoring drives. Some teams can suffocate opposing running games and force their opponents to become one-dimensional. The rare team that could do both puts themselves in a stellar position where they obtain control of the game and dictate the tempo.
The Falcons certainly didn’t come close to stopping the run against Philadelphia. The secondary was forced to make numerous tackles based on the defensive front’s inability to create penetration, maintain gap integrity, and remain solid at the point of attack.