The Falcons entered Week 10 at 4-4 with a chance to get over .500 against the Cowboys.
They’ve been blown out in their last two games while looking listless on offense, losing to Dallas and New England by a combined score of 68-3.
That’s added up to a rough stretch for Atlanta head coach Arthur Smith, who’s now coming off the mini-bye from playing last Thursday with a potential get-right game against the Jaguars.
In his Monday press conference, Smith said the Falcons have “to play a lot smarter” than they have in their last two games.
“We became obvious,” Smith said, via Tori McElhaney of the team’s website.
Smith noted that the Falcons have had too many situational breakdowns and that the offense needs to stay more balanced and ahead of the chains to help out the line. Quarterback Matt Ryan was sacked four times in last Thursday’s loss and seemed to be pressured on every dropback.
Despite the 4-6 record, Atlanta is still in the hunt for a playoff spot. But without a win against Jacksonville this week, things will start to slip further away.