NFL Football is finally back and being played in Atlanta. Well, sort of. After the hype of training camp, we finally got to see the Falcons face off against another team when the Detroit Lions came to town for an exhibition.

We did not see the majority of starters suit up, and while preseason takes need to always be taken with a bit of a grain of salt, there were a number of players who took the field for the Falcons who are expected to be real contributors this season (at least on the defensive side of the ball).

This time of year may represent the final appetizers provided for NFL fans as we patiently wait for the main course to hit the table in September, but it is the main event for some on the roster bubble who are jousting for their spot on the 53 man, or who are trying to showcase themselves for a chance elsewhere.

Let’s take a look at some winners and losers from Atlanta’s first preseason game against the Lions.

While presumed veteran starters David Onyemata and Leonard Floyd did not suit up, it felt like the majority of players expected to be real rotational players along this unit were sent out for live game reps, including first round picks James Pearce Jr. and Jalon Walker, as well as former second rounders Ruke Orhorhoro and Arnold Ebikete.

Facing the Lions’ backups, the hope was to see dominance from the line and that was delivered. Ebikete, Brandon Dorlus and Khalid Kareem (all of whom have gotten some rotation in with the first team defense during training camp just about every day) secured sacks, while inside linebacker Josh Woods and defense tackle Ta’Quon Graham had additional tackles for loss.

Dorlus, Ebikete and Woods each forced a fumble while Dorlus was right in the middle of a separate play which resulted in an early takeaway as well. James Pearce faced double teams and extra chips all game, resulting in a quieter night but a lack of attention for his teammates while Ruke got real push up the middle plenty of times.

Easton Stick and his top targets

With Michael Penix Jr. and Kirk Cousins on ice, former Los Angeles Chargers backup Easton Stick saw the majority of action and he looked surgical at times.

Stick went an overall 15/18 for 149 passing yards, one touchdown, no interceptions and a 119.7 passer rating as he made the most of an opportunity surrounded by others on the offense who are looking to showcase themselves for a possible roster spot.

One such player was his favorite target, Dylan Drummond, who had not made much noise in camp up to this point, but was loud as hell on this night. Drummond caught eight of Stick’s 15 completions for a team-high 53 yards and was targeted relentlessly, hauling in a catch every time Stick looked his way.

Chris Blair, meanwhile, made a heck of an impression on Atlanta’s only touchdown drive of the game, right before the half. Blair secured all three of his receptions on that possession alone, accounting for 54 out of Atlanta’s 70 yards. This included a one-on-one catch over Lions CB Dicaprio Bootle down the sideline for 29 yards, and the team’s lone touchdown while being interfered with by safety Erick Hallert.

Both Blair and Drummond are major players for that final wide receiver roster spot, and both have now made their mark. Stick, meanwhile, is the leader for the third QB spot behind Penix and Cousins. Last year, the Falcons went into the season with just two QBs, if they make that same decision again Stick feels destined for a Practice Squad invite.

Mercedes Benz Stadium Emergency Medical Services

The main headlines from this game have nothing to do with the football that was played on the field, but rather the incredibly scary situation which resulted in a premature stoppage of play.

On the first play of the fourth quarter, Lions safety Morice Norris’ head collided with running back Nathan Carter’s knee on a tackle attempt which resulted in a very severe looking injury. Norris was stretchered into a deployed ambulance and taken to Grady Hospital, while players on both sides of the field came together and decided to run the clock out.

We received a relieving update later into the night that Morris was in stable condition with movement present in all of his extremities as the EMS team and doctors at Grady did their jobs in helping overcome what could have been a true catastrophe.

At the end of the day, this is a sobering reminder that these players really do risk everything every time they take the field, and thankfully Norris came out of this “all good” according to his Instagram update the next morning.

The secondary against Kyle Allen

Lions backup quarterback Hendon Hooker was under constant duress and couldn’t get much going outside of his final drive, which still resulted in a fumble after getting into the red zone. While the secondary allowed a 70% completion rate, the passes didn’t go too far downfield with a meager 3.8 yards per attempt mark.

When Kyle Allen came into the game in relief, the secondary started getting toasted. Allen’s first official pass (not counting the one that was wiped out for holding) was a 68-yard bomb to rookie Jackson Meeks, who absolutely torched cornerback Lamar Jackson down the middle of the field.

Three plays later, Allen found rookie Isaac TeSlaa in the end zone for a touchdown over the one-on-one coverage of Dee Alford. Jackson is a presumed favorite to make the roster as the primary backup at outside corner behind starters AJ Terrell and Mike Hughes, while Alford is currently in line to be the team’s Day 1 starter at nickel corner. Seeing them get beaten back by a combination of a QB3 and rookies on this drive was rather discouraging.

Overall, Allen went 7/8 for 120 passing yards, two touchdowns and a perfect passer rating of 158.3. Given that everyone from the Falcons secondary was out there for it except for Terrell, Hughes, Jessie Bates and DeMarcco Hellams (whom I think was pulled after a stellar showing early in the game), this is a reminder that the secondary depth is a point of real concern.

The backup offensive line

None of Atlanta’s starters along the offensive line were were in uniform and neither was primary swing tackle Storm Norton, allowing the coaching staff to get a real look at the unit’s depth.

The majority of them did not give a good impression. While the pass blocking was fine and the quarterbacks were able to get loose a little bit (two sacks and two QB hits were what was allowed) the run blocking was catastrophic. Jashaun Corbin and especially Nathan Carter found no room to work with, as the Falcons had 11 carries for just 22 rushing yards as a team. Most of this was not the fault of any of the running backs.

Guard Kyle Hinton had a good game according to PFF with a grade over 80, but that’s about where the bright spots end. Rookie Jack Nelson especially had a very tough time of it in his first professional game, giving up one of those sacks and getting pushed back multiple times in the run game.

This may not matter too much as long as Hinton can be serviceable as a swing guard, with Norton a proven commodity at swing tackle, but backup center could be a huge concern if Ryan Neuzil were to miss time, and things could get bad if multiple starters along the unit were to go down at the same time (which is what we saw last year when Drew Dalman and Kaleb McGary went on IR during a similar point early in the season).