Atlanta Falcons coach Mike Smith has not lost his confidence in coordinator Mike Nolan despite the team’s defensive struggles.

The Falcons are ranked last in passing yards allowed per play (8.37), second to last in total yards allowed per game (429.9), second to last in sacks per pass attempt (2.27 percent) and 29th out of the 32 teams in points allowed per game (28.3).

The defense surrendered a season-high 558 yards in a 41-28 loss to the Minnesota Vikings last Sunday on the road.

Smith said he believes in Nolan’s scheme as the Falcons (2-2) get ready for Sunday’s game against the New York Giants — again on the road.

“Mike Nolan is a guy who has all types of experience in many different situations — being a position coach, being a special teams coach, being a head coach,” Smith said Wednesday. “And when he was the head coach, he basically was the general manager as well. So he brings a wealth of knowledge. And I think on your staff, you have to have as many people that have knowledge to help you in all your decision-making. And I think Mike has a brilliant mind on defense.

“Right now, we’re not playing consistently. You could say in the first quarter of the season we played one game very efficiently, one game we made enough plays to win it, and two games, we have not played nearly as well as we needed to.”

Nolan was able to be creative with his scheme in a 56-14 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 3 on a Thursday night.

Smith was the Jacksonville Jaguars’ defensive coordinator from 2003 to 2007 before taking over as the Falcons’ coach. But he doesn’t plan to assume more control of the defensive play-calling.

“Ultimately, I have control because I’m held responsible for it,” Smith said. “(But) I have all the confidence in the world in Coach Nolan, the defensive staff, our offensive staff, and our special teams staff as well.”

The Falcons are a different team on the road. In two games away the Georgia Dome, Atlanta is 0-2, allowing 65 points. It is a concerning trend for the Falcons, who began a stretch last Sunday where five of their next seven games will be on the road.

“We’re going to be getting into a stretch here where we’re playing a lot of games on the road,” Smith said after Sunday’s loss to the Vikings. “Our concern right now is, we play like two different football teams depending on where the location of the game is.”