Patterson Placed on Injured Reserve Monday
Falcons RB Cordarrelle Patterson was placed on injured reserve Monday with a knee injury following the Falcons 26-22 win over the Cleveland Browns. He came into last Sunday’s game as the third leading rusher in the NFL with 312 total yards behind Cleveland Browns Nick Chubb and New York Giants Saquon Barkley.
Patterson had one touchdown and 39 yards rushing in limited play in the win against the Cleveland Browns last Sunday. That means he is going to be out at least the next four games and could return November 6 when the Los Angeles Chargers come to town. Patterson is a key player for the Falcons that can line up in the backfield, spread out as a wide receiver, and return kickoffs. Other running backs on the team are going to have to step up to fill his shoes while he is out.
Check the Atlanta Falcons website or the team’s twitter @AtlantaFalcons for current updates on Patterson’s injury.
Next Man Up
After Head Coach Arthur Smith took Patterson out of the game last Sunday versus the Browns, someone was going to have to step up to fill his shoes at the running back position. Rookie fifth round draft pick out of BYU Tyler Allgeier and hometown kid from Ball State elevated from the practice squad for this game, Caleb Huntley did just that for this game.
Atlanta Quarterback Marcus Mariota was not having a productive passing game, only completing 7 of 19 passes for 139 yards. Coach Smith then turned to his running game in hopes to turn things around and move the ball, even with Patterson out of game. And move the ball they did.
At one point in the game the Falcons ran 14 straight plays topping it off with Huntley scoring his first touchdown of his career. Huntley ended up rushing 10 times for 56 yards while Allgeier rushed 10 times for 84 yards.
This upcoming week versus the Buccaneers, the Falcons hope to get that same production from these two running backs that are going to have to carry this team in the running game until Patterson returns to the field.
Game Notes versus Browns
The Browns came into Atlanta last Sunday in hopes to take away the pass so they could stop the Falcons running game, which was just Patterson. They accomplished two of the three. Took the pass away in which Mariota only had a passer rating of 37%. The Browns also took Patterson out of the game as he aggravated his already sore knee.
But the Browns didn’t account for the other two running backs Allgeier and Huntley winning the game for the Falcons. Both combined for 140 rush yards and one touchdown. Patterson did come back in the game late for one play to pick up the first down, which he did. This also helped give a breather to the other two running backs that hadn’t seen much playing time.
The defense stepped up late for the second straight game with defensive inner lineman Grady Jarrett coming up big with a sack and defensive back Dee Alford intercepting the pass to seal the win for the Falcons. The interception was the first of Alford’s career.
Next Game: The Falcons (2-2) travel down to Tampa to play the Buccaneers (2-2). The winner of this game will take sole possession of first place in the NFC South. Kickoff at Raymond James Stadium set for 1:00PM EST on FOX. Read my writeup next week on this game and more Falcons coverage on GridironHeriocs.
