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FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. -- Another week of Cooper Rush starting at quarterback may mean another high-workload weekend for Atlanta Falcons running back Bijan Robinson.
But what does it mean for wide receiver Drake London and tight end Kyle Pitts? The pass-catching duo Atlanta (0-1) signed this offseason to long-term contracts worth a combined $195 million recorded three touches combined in the Falcons' Week 1 loss to Pittsburgh.
"You can get frustrated all you want, but I'm more frustrated by the loss than anything else," said London, who finished with two catches for 29 yards and one carry for 6 yards. "I could (not) care less about the targets. We should have won that game if we capitalize on a lot of stuff."
While Pitts tallied just one target and no catches, Robinson touched the ball on 65.9 percent of his 46 snaps, the highest percentage of his career, according to NextGenStats. Robinson finished with 21 carries for 83 rushing yards and eight catches for 90 yards.
"It goes back to what's necessary for a given game," Falcons head coach Kevin Stefanski said. "Do I think he's gonna touch it 29 times each game? I don't know. I think he wants to. He's told me, but as an offense, you want to make yourself difficult to defend. Bijan by himself is difficult to defend, but when you … can move the ball around and spread the ball around the offense, that can only make him great."
The Falcons weren't difficult to defend in the opener, though. They finished Week 1 last in offensive expected points added (minus-24.21) and 27th in yards per play (4.2). Only five teams scored fewer than the Falcons' 14 points, and they were the only team in the league not to run a play in the red zone in the first week.
Meanwhile, Robinson's 29 touches were the third-most of his four-year career. He has recorded 28-plus touches four times in his career, and the Falcons are 0-4 in those games.
Atlanta offensive coordinator Tommy Rees said this week that he will emphasize providing more opportunities for London and Pitts. However, Rush's presence at quarterback will make that harder. Only five of the veteran quarterback's 22 pass attempts last week traveled more than 5 yards down the field.
"My job is to get Drake going and KP going," Rees said. "We would certainly like to be a little bit more balanced throughout, but obviously everyone knows Bijan's skill set is pretty good, so he's gonna be a focal point."
While the sample size is small, if the Falcons keep giving the ball to Robinson at this rate, he'll rack up 493 touches this year, well above his career high of 366, set last season.
"It's not really a challenge. For me, it's whatever I can do to help the team win the game," Robinson said. "I know (London and Pitts) want to have the ball in their hands as much as possible, and I know we're going to do everything we can to put the ball in their hands so we can benefit off each other."
Here are five more lingering questions heading into Atlanta's Week 2 game against the Carolina Panthers (0-1):
Does Young own the Falcons?
Panthers' 25-year-old quarterback Bryce Young has a passer rating of 95.3 and an EPA per dropback of 0.11 in his career against the Falcons. Against everyone else, those numbers are 79.9 and -0.11, according to TruMedia.
Young has won his last four starts against Atlanta. In their last matchup, Young recorded a career-high 448 yards and three touchdowns. He is 4-1 all-time against the Falcons and 10-30 against all other opponents, according to TruMedia.
"We played him his rookie season when I was in New York, and I didn't know what to think," Falcons defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich said. "He's just shown constant improvement every single year, to the point where he was becoming scary in a lot of different ways."
Atlanta has emphasized keeping the 5-foot-10 Young in the pocket on Sunday.
"He's one of those rare guys where he's better off the spot than on the spot, so we gotta keep him where he's not very comfortable," Ulbrich said. "He's a guy who's got some point guard to him where he can open it up, very Aaron Rodgers-like; he's efficient, he sees the field really well. He's accurate, and his timing is impeccable."
Will Atlanta run more play action this week?
The Falcons averaged 21.3 yards on play-action passes last week against the Steelers, but they called for play action three times. Why?
"Picking and choosing our spots," Rees said.
Pittsburgh's defensive front makes play action a challenge, Rees said, and quarterback Cooper Rush also was dealing with back spasms the day before the game. However, Rees insisted this week that play action "is part of our DNA and who we are on offense."
Can Atlanta break their Panthers losing streak?
Carolina has beaten Atlanta three times in a row and has averaged 34.7 points per game in those wins. In the team's last meeting, the Falcons led 21-7 at halftime but lost 30-27 after Penix suffered a season-ending knee injury in the second half.
Will Atlanta have to blitz more this week?
Against the Steelers, the Falcons recorded the 10th-best pressure percentage of Week 1 (40.9 percent), despite only blitzing on 14.3 percent of their defensive snaps, which was the seventh-lowest rate in the league, according to TruMedia.
"When we're rushing well, and the guys are winning, I allow them to do that," Ulbrich said. "I think that's always the best way to play defense: When you can play coverage, and you can rush your four. I felt our guys winning on Sunday, so I'm gonna try to stay out there as best as possible when that is happening."
Atlanta was second in the league in blitz rate last year (33.9 percent), en route to setting a franchise record with 57 sacks.
Will Coker go off again?
Fourth-year Panthers wide receiver Jalen Coker recorded a career-high 138 yards and two touchdowns last week against the Chicago Bears, but the Falcons are still going to be more focused on Tetairoa McMillan this Sunday. Carolina's No. 1 pass catcher, McMillan had his career game against Atlanta in the teams' second meeting this year -- eight catches for 130 yards and two touchdowns.
"You see that a lot of people obviously put a lot of attention on (McMillan)," Ulbrich said. "When that happens, there's always somebody that's the beneficiary of that, and Coker has kind of been that. We want to make sure we ultimately take away what they do best. Then, when things like (Coker) show themselves, always have a contingency plan. Like, if this guy gets going, we'll take care of it."
What else should I watch for on Sunday?
• Zachariah Branch's returns. The rookie had 63 return yards, but special teams coordinator Craig Aukerman wants Branch to stop attempting so many cutbacks and stick to his original return line. "Maybe in college he felt like he could get away with making a bunch of different moves, but we've got to hit one cut and go to go upfield," Aukerman said.
• Rees doesn't believe his players will overlook a Panthers defense that gave up 59 points to the Bears in Week 1. "I don't think players get too bogged down in that," the offensive coordinator said. "I think when you turn on the film, you see they have good players at all three levels."
• Punter Jake Bailey has been attempting to replicate the knuckle kickoff that Carolina's Ryan Fitzgerald utilized during Falcons practices this week. Atlanta struggled receiving that kicking style against Carolina last year.