Falcons Defense Gutted for Week 7 Clash with 49ers
Marc Raimondi reported the official inactive list on Twitter.
The just dropped their Week 7 inactive list ahead of their Sunday showdown with the , and the sheer volume of missing talent is enough to make a defensive coordinator physically ill.
According to ESPN's Marc Raimondi, the official scratch list includes inside linebacker Divine Deablo, cornerback Avieon Terrell, running back , defensive back Billy Bowman Jr., wide receiver , and quarterbacks Andy Dalton and Jack Strand.
The most glaring absence is Deablo, who suffered a Grade 2 bicep strain during last week's 31-23 loss to the Chicago Bears. Losing your starting inside linebacker right before facing the rushing attack is the football equivalent of walking into a heavyweight fight without a mouthpiece.
Missing Terrell and Bowman in the secondary only twists the knife further. Terrell has been getting real defensive snaps as a rookie corner, and without that depth, the Falcons are dangerously thin against a team that thrives on exploiting mismatches in space.
Then there is the quarterback room, which has officially reached the break-glass-in-case-of-emergency stage. With Dalton inactive, rookie Jack Strand is wearing the emergency third-quarterback hat. Strand threw for over 13,000 yards at Division II Minnesota State-Moorhead, which is an objectively hilarious resume to bring to an NFL sideline where your main job is praying the two guys in front of you do not get folded in half.
Offensively, sitting removes the bruising hammer from the backfield rotation, putting even more pressure on to carry the load. being out also trims the receiver depth, leaving the offense with zero margin for error.
Anyone looking at the betting lines for this matchup has to factor in the massive hole in the middle of the defense. You simply cannot spot a team like the 49ers free yards over the middle of the field and expect to keep the game competitive for four quarters.
The just have to survive this weekend and hope the medical staff can work miracles before Week 8. If Deablo and the rest of this inactive crew are sidelined much longer, is going to be bleeding points all the way to Thanksgiving.