A Punt Sundae

All or Nothing

Pass or Fail

Right or Wrong

Good or Bad

Pass or Punt

Get it?

Good.

The two-man show that we're going to have for years to come. Thielen may not be a spring chicken but his game has never been founded on pure speed so if anything, he could continue to improve because of the tactical nature of his route running. And I don't think I even need to use that many words to describe his cohort after today's showcase.

While pretty much everything else was garbage, Ifeadi Odenigbo was a bright spot for the defense with this 1.5 sacks. A rotation of him, Ngakoue & Hunter next year would give offenses a lot to worry about - contingent on MN working more cap magic & retaining those first two!

And let's not forget, we got a potential tiebreaker for draft position, if it comes to that in a few months.

Also, to reiterate a point made during the game, at least you aren't wasting money on the tickets this.

That was the sugar,

Here comes the sting.

Cousins has had some atrocious performances over the last 2+ years but his first-half today stacks up with any of the previous ones. I guess you could say he did us all a favor by setting the tone as early as possible with the first play interception but that's like putting lipstick on a pig.

And on the heels of that, I'll concede that this will likely be another lowly-graded performance by most of the O-Line. Not that the analytics people know what's schemed or called but they also need to be better. Because there's no excuse for the difference between last Sunday & today in their run-blocking. Even with the added motivation by Atlanta due to the firing, they should have been able to do their part in getting 50 yards on the ground. That would still be meager but 34 yards running is pitiful.

And then there was the defense.

Atlanta's top four receivers today combined for 320 yards & four touchdowns.

In addition to that, Todd Gurley & Brian Hill combined for 75 on the ground. That's a modest number, but it's not like the dirty birds had to play it conservatively & eat clock, so the defense doesn't get any leeway because of it.

And just for reference sake, the defense has now tripled the number of 40 point games given up since Zimmer arrived & it's the second one of the season already.

There's a long way to go this season, but embracing what is so blatantly obvious is a better way to live. Because there is still plenty of talent here and with the inevitable draft picks that'll come from the losing that will only increase!