FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — Looking at the Falcons’ defense from earlier in the season to now, it may seem like a tale of two pash rushes.

Atlanta totaled just 10 sacks in the 11 weeks leading up to the bye week, fewest the league. While the Falcons still have the lowest total this season, their 16 sacks since Week 13 are the second most in the NFL. Even when the sacks weren’t coming at the current rate, Atlanta’s coaching staff was adamant things were trending in the right direction.

“It’s because the work was put in. There were some games where, again, you should look at the stat sheet, and everyone saw all zero sacks, but we affected the quarterback,” Falcons defensive coordinator Jimmy Lake said after Week 15. “We made him throw an interception. We made him get off the spot and throw it out of bounds, and they’ve got to punt. So, even though we didn’t get the direct result on the stat sheet, the work that they were doing was paying off. And now, it is cool. Obviously, the last three weeks, we’ve got some production, and it’s a nice reward for those guys for all the work that they’ve put in.”

There were glimpses that a boon was possible.

Against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 9, the Falcons sacked the quarterback three times, their highest total to that point. However, that game remained an outlier. That quickly changed after their bye in Week 12. In the first game back, they recorded a season-high five sacks versus the Los Angeles Chargers. They followed that game up with two four-sack performances, and most recently sacked Giants quarterback Drew Lock three times, including a strip-sack that was recovered for a turnover.

The bye week allows for a greater degree of self-scouting, which has become a weekly necessity in the NFL, and the pass rush evaluation paid off. Lake said Falcons head coach Raheem Morris was “instrumental” in providing insights because of his experience on both sides of the ball. In addition to accruing more than a decade of experience coaching defense, Morris spent four years working with the Falcons’ offense from 2016-19.

While Morris and his staff’s specific findings were kept close to the vest, they have pointed to improved run defense as one explanation for the increased pass-rush production.

“Our rush defense has been the best its been in the last month. And that’s what creates [opportunities for] us to be able to go after the passer,” Lake said. “So first-and-10, if we’re stuffing the run in; second-and-10, here we go — we can pin our ears back and then all of a sudden we stuff them there.”

Since the bye week, Atlanta has allowed just 70.3 rushing yards per game, the second-fewest in the league. They ranked No. 17 in average rushing yards allowed (127.2) before that. Overall, the Falcons have been a stronger defensive team. Take a closer look at the numbers before and after the bye week.