The Atlanta Falcons are 3-0 including two road wins which is a far cry from what the team did last season. All of the focus has been on the offense as Kyle Shanahan is finally getting to be the offensive coordinator he has always wanted to be. The offensive is meshing so far while Julio Jones continues to have a monster season with record-breaking numbers in mind. However, one forgotten piece of the puzzle appears to be Roddy White, who had one catch in Week 3 that was called back because of a penalty.
White has now had two straight games of not getting his name in the boxscore. He was only targeted the one time and while the catch was impressive, the penalty erased it. Instead, players like Leonard Hankerson had three catches for 45 yards while Nick Williams, the undrafted free agent, had one catch for six yards in a critical third-down play. White was left forgotten again. According to AtlantaAllDay.com, White is potentially being phased out of the offense as Hankerson continues to excel under Shanahan.
White has started every game this season and is drawing a lot of respect from the opposing defense. While he has not been recording catches, his presence on the field is opening the door for Hankerson to become the second favorite target. Ryan has also been utilizing his supporting cast more with Jacob Tamme and Levine Toilolo looking good this season. That has taken a lot of looks away from White who is shaking off the notion of any drama and focusing on getting wins.
''I was open," White said, via AL.com. "Just didn't get the ball. We're 2-0. ... Nothing really to say. I just didn't catch a pass. I have moved past it.''
Part of White's disappearance could be the zone blocking scheme from Shanahan that has forced the offense to be more balanced. That was clear on Sunday as Devonta Freeman was the star of the show putting up his first 100-yard rushing game with three touchdowns. He replaced the injured Tevin Coleman and proved he is every bit the leading rusher Atlanta was hoping he would develop into. The Falcons clearly favored running the ball while Jones came up with big scores in the end. Ryan stressed that all of this is simply a reaction to the defense and not a knock on White.
"He's going to make a lot of plays for us," Ryan said. "... You hate seeing something like that not continue, primarily because I love Roddy. It stinks, but the game kind of shakes out. Coverage kind of dictates where it goes. He'll be a huge part of what we do all year."
Will this trend continue for White? The chances are slim, but no one should expect the veteran receiver to break any records this year. He has four catches for 64 yards, but as long as opponents continue to respect him on the field, the Falcons will continue to keep White as the starter.
