2020 NFL Power Rankings: Cowboys defense has hopes high

Atlanta Falcons move up from 19 to 18

If this were a couple of seasons ago, the Atlanta Falcons would have won the offseason since they added running back Todd Gurley. A former star with the Los Angeles Rams, Gurley was impossible to stop both as a runner and a receiver which led to Los Angeles giving him a massive extension. He didn’t get to see the whole thing, however, as he was released following a very disappointing 2019 season and a 2018 postseason that saw him watching most of the games from the sideline.

Still, some Falcons fans are stoked about the hiring as they think Gurley could be the missing piece to this offense. And the offense has been missing something in recent seasons with Devonta Freeman falling off a cliff following an extension of his own.

Atlanta didn’t seem to learn from their own issues here as they’re going down a familiar road with Gurley. But since he was a star at nearby Georgia University, some fans are convincing themselves this could be the start of something special.

While it likely won’t be, the Falcons do still have a talented offense thanks to Matt Ryan and Julio Jones. They did lose Austin Hooper and Hayden Hurst isn’t going to offer what he did, but overall the offense will be fine. The defense, on the other hand, is still a major question mark. Unless they take a major step forward in 2020, the dirty birds could struggle.