Which Atlanta athletes are under the most pressure this fall?

From the Atlanta Falcons and Braves to the Georgia Bulldogs and Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, there are several individuals facing the lights this fall.

As the saying goes, "pressure makes diamonds" -- but it also crushes cars. Which Atlanta-area athletes are under the most heading into the second half of 2024? The Steakhouse gave us five:

1. Kirk Cousins , Atlanta Falcons Quarterback

"Kirk Cousins [is] absolutely the savior -- the money spent on him, the expectation level with what's around him," Steak said about the Falcons' quarterback. "So we know the pressure that he has."

The former Viking was brought to Atlanta for one reason: to fix the quarterback position. The Falcons have continued investing in the skill positions with three straight first-round picks, but the play under center continued to fall short. Despite coming off an Achilles injury in 2023, Cousins will be expected to be full-go come training camp. If he's not, a fourth first-round pick is waiting in the wings to steal the show.

The Falcons expect to win the NFC South this season. If they don't, that could have a lot to do with its quarterback not living up to his offseason billing.

2. Carson Beck , Georgia Bulldogs Quarterback

"Carson Beck is the favorite for the Heisman, the favorite to be the number one pick. That's a lot of pressure," Steak said. "He came back -- sometimes that works in sports, and sometimes it doesn't. A lot of pressure on Carson Beck, I can put him at the top."

The Bulldog faithful will be satisfied with nothing less than a trip to the national championship game, but there will be a few new stumbling blocks along the way with games against Clemson, Texas, Alabama, and Ole Miss on the schedule. Beck will need to be on his game from the jump, and the pressure will be on.

He came back to win a championship as the Georgia starting quarterback. Beck will need to continue elevating his play if the Dawgs want to be barking in Atlanta this January.

3. Haynes King , Georgia Tech Quarterback

"Obviously, it's go time for Georgia Tech football," Steak said. "You need to show that this program has separated itself from the dog-days of three years ago and two years ago. They had their moments last year, but then they had [the moments] where you didn't know what happened. There's no consistency. Haynes King, best decision made over there was bringing him over from Texas A&M and watching him do his thing."

The Yellow Jackets took a giant step forward in 2023 in Brent Key's first season as head coach, winning their first bowl game in seven years. In 2024, they will need to battle the expectations that follow a season like that. Georgia Tech fans have been hungry for a consistent program and the prospects for this year will come down to the play of Haynes King under center.

The Aggie transfer was one of the big surprises in the ACC last season, but he did struggle with interceptions (16). If Georgia Tech finds success again in 2024, the quarterback continuing to put the team on his back will have a lot to do with it.

4. The entire Falcons' pass rush

"And then there is the pass rush for the Atlanta Falcons," Steak said about people under pressure. "There's nothing that we did that says we're going to rush the quarterback. We didn't take a guy at eight that's going to rush the quarterback. Arnold Ebiketie is year number three, right? He has to have an impact."

Okay, maybe this is cheating, but if it's not Kirk Cousins for the Atlanta Falcons, it has to be the pass rushers on the defense -- namely, Arnold Ebiketie.

General Manager Terry Fontenot was aggressive in getting him back in 2022, but he has yet to live up to those expectations. The former second-round pick only has 8.5 sacks under his belt. Now entering his third year, that won't cut it anymore.

The franchise has fallen short of expectations consistently in this area, but the front office continues to run it back with the same general composition of players.

5. Brian Snitker, Atlanta Braves manager

"I do think that for the first time, [Brian Snitker] senses a fan base that is getting a little restless with him," Rusty Mansell said about the Braves manager. "I think he's got to show a little more 'pissed off' at times."

The Atlanta Braves won a World Series back in 2021 and has six-straight division titles to boot, but they have fallen in the Divisional Series to the Philadelphia Phillies in consecutive seasons. Snit is still in the good graces of Braves Country, but a third early exit from the postseason could cause some grumblings about performance despite an elite roster.

The expectations are beyond making it to the postseason. The pressure is definitely on to win a World Series title this October or, at the very least, get a heck of a lot closer.