The biggest moves that the Atlanta Falcons made this offseason were mostly on the sidelines. In addition to hiring a new GM, new head coach and new President of Football, Atlanta also added a bunch of highly-qualified assistants, including the best offensive line coach in the game, Bill Callahan.
Callahan comes with 30 years of experience coaching offensive lines at this level, and he’s famous for implementing a strong run game wherever he’s put in time – including seven other NFL teams before landing with the Falcons this year.
The challenge for Callahan in Atlanta will be producing an elite run game when opponents know that the most-talented player on the Falcons is waiting for the rock in the backfield.
So far, so good – at least according to the guy who will be leading the charge. Here’s what star running back Bijan Robinson had to say about the Falcons’ new run scheme, per Josh Kendall at The Athletic.
“Bijan Robinson, who had a career-high 1,478 rushing yards last year, said the run game being installed by Callahan (who will serve as the Falcons’ run game coordinator) is similar to the system he ran at Texas. “Obviously, (Callahan) has had these legendary run schemes, and it’s pretty cool talking to him and seeing how it’s all going to develop,” Robinson said. “I love the plan that he has.”
The Falcons fielded a quality rushing attack in 2025, finishing with 2,138 yards on the ground at an average of 125.8 yards per game – the eighth most in the NFL. They also finished in the top 10 in the 2024 and 2023 seasons.
While that’s a good starting point, it’s not unrealistic to expect Atlanta to have a top-five run game, or even the best rushing attack in the league given the talent that they have both up front and in the backfield.
Callahan’s scheme and Robinson’s prodigious gifts can only take the Falcons’ run game so far, though. The most important element will be establishing a lead more often than Atlanta has over the last three seasons. Playing from behind will force a pass-heavy attack, and neither Tua Tagovailoa nor Michael Penix have proven that they’re the kind of QB who can lead a comeback. If they’re going to win, the offense needs to run through Robinson.
If head coach Kevin Stefanski can establish more leads they’ll have all the elements they need to field the best run game in football – and set Robinson up for a potential Offensive Player of the Year award.
This article originally appeared on Falcons Wire: Bijan Robinson says he loves Bill Callahan’s run game