4 NFL Teams That Should Run the Ball More in 2015

Atlanta Falcons

The Falcons' poor defense has put them in tough positions from an offensive standpoint. Over the last two years, they've ranked first and fourth in pass-to-run rate, respectively, while the defense, per our metrics, has finished 32nd and 29th.

There's no telling if the defense will show massive improvement, but with Kyle Shanahan now leading the charge as offensive coordinator, we could see a more balanced attack. That's been echoed by wide receiver Roddy White as well.

Not to mention, Atlanta went out and drafted Tevin Coleman in the third round of May's draft to replace Steven Jackson's void, giving them a 1-2 punch between him and last year's king of inefficiency, Devonta Freeman. It's tough to be any worse than the backs in Atlanta were last season -- despite having such an effective passing offense, which helps running games, the Falcons ranked in the bottom half within our Adjusted Rushing Net Expected Points per play metric.

Though you could argue Shanahan has never had as good of a passing game as he does now, he's only once coordinated an offense to the same pass-to-run ratio that the Falcons saw a year ago in his seven years as offensive coordinator. It would make a lot of sense to see Atlanta fall back in terms of pass attempts this season.