Falcons leading the league in touchdowns off screen passes

The Atlanta Falcons are one of the best teams in the NFL for a reason -- they have a great quarterback in Matt Ryan, a solid running game with Michael Turner and a pair of top-notch wide receivers in Julio Jones and Roddy White. One underlooked element to their offensive game is how well the Falcons utilize their screen game.

So far this season, Ryan is a perfect 14-for-14 on screen attempts and has three touchdowns, leading the league in scores off of screen passes. On Sunday, Turner scored the first ever receiving touchdown in his nine-year NFL career on a 60-yard screen pass.

SB Nation's Falcons blog, The Falcoholic, discuss the play:

When we see some of these screens materialize, every player plays a vital role. On Turner's touchdown, [Jason] Snelling pulls one defender away from the play running a short out route, Justin Blalock pancakes his man and Tony G blocks Captain Munnerlyn nearly 15 yards down field. Roddy [White] eventually tracks down the trailing Munnerlyn to chip him just a bit, and Turner puts six points on the board.

An effective screen game is just another weapon that will make the Falcons a tough team to beat this season. It's not just executing the play -- calling a screen play at the right time can be just as important in making the play a success.