Arthur Blank Owner And Chairman, Blank Family Of Businesses | Atlanta Falcons Website
Arthur Blank Owner And Chairman, Blank Family Of Businesses | Atlanta Falcons Website
The Atlanta Falcons' special teams experienced a season filled with both challenges and achievements in 2024. Despite some notable successes, the team's overall performance was marred by inconsistencies, particularly in field goal accuracy.
Falcons kickers Younghoe Koo and Riley Patterson achieved a combined success rate of 70.7% on field goals, marking the lowest for Atlanta since 2009. The team's head coach, Raheem Morris, acknowledged the issue stating, "Obviously, we missed entirely too many kicks this year... That certainly plays into the part of not winning the amount of games you want to win."
Two matches against the New Orleans Saints highlighted these challenges. In Week 4, Koo secured a victory with a career-long 58-yard field goal but struggled in Week 10, contributing to a narrow loss.
Koo's season was further complicated by a hip injury that led to his placement on injured reserve in Week 16. Patterson then stepped in as kicker.
Despite these difficulties, there were several highlights within the special teams unit. KhaDarel Hodge earned Pro Bowl recognition after recovering a muffed punt for a touchdown. Kevin King thwarted a fake punt attempt against the Los Angeles Chargers, and Bradley Pinion delivered impressive punting performances throughout the season.
General Manager Terry Fontenot expressed confidence in Koo's ability to recover from his injury and return to form: "With Koo... he's going to work hard to get himself back to the standard that he's been at for the majority of his career."
Looking ahead to 2025, questions remain about how Koo will rebound from his injury and whether he can regain his previous level of performance.
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