Photo by Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images Falcons fans were largely impressed by the team’s dominant victory over the Colts in Week 16, but are still lacking confidence in head coach Arthur Smith and the overall direction of the team. It’s been a tough season for fans of the Atlanta Falcons. In an eminently winnable NFC South, the team has fumbled away their best opportunity to make the playoffs and are now hoping for a miracle: winning out over the final two games, combined with a whole lot of other stuff happening to either win the division or earn a Wild Card slot. One bright spot was definitely last week’s dominant victory over the Indianapolis Colts. In fact, a whopping 77% of Falcons fans thought it was the most impressive victory of the 2023 season according to this week’s SB Nation Reacts survey. 
I’d be inclined to agree. The Colts game was by far the cleanest game of the season, with the offense mostly limiting mistakes, the run game humming, and the defense dominating. It was legitimately fun to watch! I sincerely hope we have more of that in store. Speaking of the future, we also asked fans about whether they thought Week 16’s win helped to save Arthur Smith’s job. 
Given the (justified) overwhelming pessimism in the fanbase, only about a quarter of fans were moved enough by the impressive win to think that it secured Smith’s job for 2024. Again, I’m inclined to agree. The win was nice, and definitely a step in the right direction, but I need to see more over the final two games before I endorse a return for Smith next season. We also continued our weekly check-in on fan confidence in the direction of the team. 
The good news is that confidence has rebounded after nearly hitting a season-low in Week 15, but the Colts game didn’t really move the needle significantly. If other fans are like me in this regard, I’m simply not overly moved by a single game. We need to see this team show a little consistency, particularly on offense, before my confidence is restored. What are your thoughts on these results? Do you agree or disagree? Will the Falcons keep their slim playoff hopes alive with a win over the Bears this week? Check out DraftKings Sportsbook, the official sportsbook partner of SB Nation. Source: https://www.thefalcoholic.com/2023/12/3 ... ion-reacts
