NFL analyst says it's 'difficult to explain' who the Falcons are

It's been an up and down kind of season for the Atlanta Falcons so far. After two humiliating losses they reeled off two dominant wins, followed by two more frustrating losses.

Which version of these Falcons is the real one? That's anybody's guess going into Week 7, where they'll face the best team in the NFL, the 6-0 San Francisco 49ers.

For what it's worth Nick Shook at NFL.com has Atlanta at No. 19 in his latest power rankings, down four spots from last week. He doesn't seem to know what to make of these Falcons, and it's tough to blame him.

"...With Atlanta sitting at 2-4, it’s difficult to explain who these Falcons are. They’ve turned in two wildly impressive showings, let a win slip through their fingers in Week 5 and were largely dominated by a hungry Bears team at home. More tests await, too: San Francisco, Tampa Bay, Cincinnati and Kansas City are the next four opponents. We’ll learn plenty about this squad in the coming month."

While it's tough to know what to expect going into any given matchup, the winning formula is pretty obvious. The Falcons have to establish an early lead, enabling them to ride Bijan Robinson and an aggressive defense to victory. If they fall behind early, then they have to rely on Michael Penix Jr., who's just not ready to carry a team from behind yet.

Shook is right that we will learn a lot about this team over the next four weeks. If they can manage to split these games and go 2-2 it will be a good sign for the rest of their season.