5 things we learned from the Dallas game

mike s

October 26th, 2009
10:42 am

1st

Saints Fan

October 26th, 2009
10:44 am

…And now you have to go down to the bayou….Jachimo-fi-nah-nay!!!!

tbone

October 26th, 2009
10:45 am

6. Keith Brooking is still as overrated as ever but now we can add that he’s a 1st class jerk as well to trash talk his old team. Classless act given the send-off the Falcons organization showed him.

mike s

October 26th, 2009
10:46 am

I think we learned road games are going to be tuff against good teams. Especially teams goming off their bye week.Birds are going to have to run the ball next week against the Saints or we’re looking at a blowout.

booquinn

October 26th, 2009
10:47 am

DeCoud man up and take the blame for being out of position all day along with the rest of the team, Romo is an average NFL QB at best.

Spudz

October 26th, 2009
10:54 am

The Falcons played horribly yesterday! I think we need a better mix at the RB position as well. Jason Snelling did a good job running the ball and need more touches. Our O-Line has got to do better as well as the secondary. We allowed Ryan to be pressured all game and that affected his ability to pass the ball. Not giving Ryan an out, but when your O-Line is not giving him time to pass the ball, chances are he will not be effective in pass. I just hope we can get these issues resolved before the New Orleans vs Atlanta game.

Humble Fan

October 26th, 2009
10:56 am

I don’t want to here any excuses.The Falcons are just an overrated team brought on by Auther Blank and Co.Atlanta fans deserve better than this.just another smoke screen the falcons are burning just to fill up the dome.What a pathectic effort of trying to look like pros.

DirtyBird

October 26th, 2009
10:58 am

The way we played against Cowboys!!!.. i doubt we have any chance to even making into playoffs!!. This was crucial game we lost and this games is gonna come back at end of the season and hunt us!! Falcons need to work on more then just fixing offensive line up before they play SAINTS @ SuperDome. Saints is much better team and superdome is more louder compare to cowboys team and their stadium..

mountain_jim

October 26th, 2009
11:01 am

Turner needs to man up and admit he is not finding or hitting his holes (such as they are) like last year. Start Snelling to try and light a fire under his butt.

falcons luva

October 26th, 2009
11:03 am

I agree whole-heartedly with tbone above. I felt the same way, he was just classless. And the camera loved his excitement. Brooking stated in an interview awhile ago on NFL Network that he loved the opportunity and the family in Atlanta Falcons organization, but feels he’s more at home here. WHAT!?

It's good to see that

October 26th, 2009
11:04 am

1. Our DB’s are so undersized. I also agree there were problems all over the field yesterday. They just don’t have the height to compete for balls with the bigger WR’s of the league. They are going to have to figure something out there if they can’t get pressure on the opposing QB.

2. Also very surprised that Snelling pretty much outran Turner yesterday. That’s a HUGE concern.

3. Not having Norwood yesterday hurt our offense. That game had “shootout” written all over it…

MAD-DONNA

October 26th, 2009
11:06 am

Mike Smith says after every loss, “we have to work on getting it right”. It’s too bad the difference between an average team and a really good team, is the really good team works on getting it right in training camp, while the average team works on getting it right through the season.

It's good to see that

October 26th, 2009
11:08 am

DirtyBird is skipping school today when maybe he should be paying attention in English class.

Where do we even go from here…
“Saints is much better team and superdome is more louder compare to cowboys team and their stadium..”

falcons luva

October 26th, 2009
11:08 am

The Cowboys didn’t do anything exceptional against the Birds. The Birds just laid down for them. Where were Ryan’s blockers? We need taller CBs to take on the WRs in the league these days. They also need to learn how to tackle. Good thing Eric Coleman has started to step up his game a little bit. Jason Snelling doing a good job filliing in for the injured, he’s definitely a keeper. But we’re going to need more RBs, and while we’re at it pick up some more mean Harvey Dahl-type Defensive players. Let’s get nasty birds. Southern Hospitality doesn’t extend to the football playing field. Let’s be the team that knocks the Saints off their pedestals and reclaim the NFC South!

Keep it Real!

October 26th, 2009
11:09 am

Um…No this game did not have shoot-out written all over it!

The Cowboys made plays and the Falcons did not! Matty R. was holding the ball too long. The o-cordinator needed to go to the no-huddle offense!

falcons luva

October 26th, 2009
11:09 am

I also hope we can pick up that big Safety at USC next Draft… and Mount Cody on Defense from Alabama!

E

October 26th, 2009
11:10 am

We need a starting corner before next week. Grimes will get torched by Brees if we don’t!!!!!!!!!!!

falcons luva

October 26th, 2009
11:11 am

Bottom Line, Falcons should NOT have lost this game. They played mediocre and the Cowboys were NOT the better team here. Mularkey needs to learn how to switch it up so opposing teams can’t get a grasp of what we’re doing. Van Gorder I’m not impressed with. The D-line shows just how NOT good he is with them.

falcons luva

October 26th, 2009
11:12 am

So true E! I liked Brent Grimes, he has heart… but too bad his size is not as big as the heart. And I can’t believe the Cowboys O-line was better than Biermann and Abraham. It’s just not possible.

mike

October 26th, 2009
11:12 am

brooking = no class crybaby.
did anyone expect anything different?

Saints Fan

October 26th, 2009
11:15 am

Falcons luva,

Thats what Joey Porter thought too…And you see what happend there…

It's good to see that

October 26th, 2009
11:15 am

Keep it Real, it surely did but obviously never made it there. Dallas’ secondary is nothing special…

Roswell Saint

October 26th, 2009
11:16 am

Shock and Awe awaits the poor little dirty birds on Oct. 2. hahahahahahahahaha

MAD-DONNA

October 26th, 2009
11:19 am

The o-line and the d-line blew that game. Not enough time for our QB, and too much time for theirs……PERIOD!!!!!

Humble Fan

October 26th, 2009
11:19 am

falcon fans get it through your heads, this team is a lower tier NFC team on line with the bottom feeders of the NFL

Lame

October 26th, 2009
11:23 am

LOL Ware looks like he is raping Ryan in the pic.

Falcfan

October 26th, 2009
11:23 am

In my opinion one of the biggest things we learned from the Dallas game is that our concerns are hugely justified when it comes to Turner. He is fat slow and very ineffective this year. Snelling outgained him in one drive behind the same offensive line. For an offense that defines itself by the run the pass will be almost nonexistant without the run. Either Mularky switches to a pass oriented scheme or he is going to have to fire Turner up. Personally I think Turner needs to sit until some responsibility shows up. Also Michael Jenkins is killing our offense. Ryan can’t even look his way because he either isn’t open or doesn’t catch it. In the rare event he does he falls right down. Personally, Weems really deserves more playing time. I know the coaches say Jenkins can block but it doesn’t really matter if we can’t run anyway. Besides I don’t think I’ve actually seen Turner get outside yet this season. That’s my two cents. Go Falcons!

E

October 26th, 2009
11:24 am

I hope we all know that its not time to panic. 2 good DB’s and a little more NO HUDDLE and we will be fine. To bad we won’t have the DB’s before MNF

It's good to see that

October 26th, 2009
11:26 am

Falcfan makes great points, unlike a few others on here…

TruFalconFan

October 26th, 2009
11:28 am

Wow! overreact much. We lost a road game to a motivated team coming off a bye. Are we going to the superbowl this year? No. Are we a good young team that is going to continue to get better over the next few years? YES. Go ahead and jump off the bandwagon. Most of you guys aren’t true fans anyway. And to all the Saints fans, enjoy your little moment in the sun because if you don’t win the superbowl it is all for nothing.

Humble Fan

October 26th, 2009
11:28 am

Falcfac–if thats your two cents worth–you need some change back.

TheTruthHurts

October 26th, 2009
11:32 am

Brooking showed how classless he really is with his actions during the game, his comments after the game and his cry baby attitude. Sure the Falcons stunk up the place and got beat, but Brooking had nothing to do with that. Dallas’ D-line manhandled the Falcon’s O-line and that’s why the Cowboy’s won the game. Besides that, Brooking has to find something to motivate him to play the game. Ray Lewis does not need extra motivation to elevate his game.

michael james

October 26th, 2009
11:35 am

we cant let this game ruin our season. only one game think we will be alright. remember the cowboys had two weeks to prepare and we are not healthy on offense too

Falcons Minority Owner

October 26th, 2009
11:38 am

“Pressure affects the passing game,” Ryan said……….Hmmmmm, is that an example of taking responsibility or blaming others?

gdg73

October 26th, 2009
11:38 am

Thank you Mr. Ledbetter for your dead on observations. We lost that game after our second offensive drive. Why come out, empty backfield on that drive when that is not what got you the first touchdown? Stick to what works until they make adjustments. Mularkey and company got too cute with the p[lay-calling and it killed us. A 14-0 lead in the 1st quarter would have demoralized the Cowboys.
Also, Matt Ryan was not good today, sorry to say. He looked like a deer in the headlights after Dallas started pressuring him. He never looked downfield for any of his receivers, even when he did have time. He has fallen in love with Tony Gonzalez too much if you ask me. Roddy White is your game-changer Mularkey. Find ways to get him involved.
As far as the defense goes, our corners are starting corners are terrible. Once they get torched by New Orleans, it will be apparrent that they need to be benched, a la Dan Reeves benching the entire secondary in 2003. I like our safeties though. Owens and Tye Hill need to run with the first team defense this week in practice, with Jackson in the slot and Houston and Grimes battling for the dime spot. Message to Van Gorder, STOP BLITZING OUR CORNERBACKS OFF THE CORNER. BRING THE PRESSURE FROM UP THE MIDDLE!!!!!!!

Chef montuer

October 26th, 2009
11:41 am

If they can’t get the running game going they are not making the playoffs let alone win the division. Oh by the way SAINTS 53 Birdies 10.
Jachimo-fi-nah-nay!

vafalconfan

October 26th, 2009
11:43 am

Things will be very interesting if we meet them in the wild card playoffs. Our guys will remember Brooking and his pathetic classless rants..

Brooking, showing GT class

October 26th, 2009
11:44 am

I will be infuriated if the Falcons ever announce intentions of raising Brooking’s name to the GA Dome rafters. I’m glad to see that overrated 2-tackles-a-game buster playing elsewhere; I just wish he had been shipped off before losing the playoff game for us last year.

S.D. Lucke

October 26th, 2009
11:45 am

We fans of the 5 time Super Bowl Champion Dallas Cowboys, want to thank Thomas Dimitroff, Mike Smith and the rest of the overrated Atlanta Falcons for cutting our newest favorite linebacker Keith Brooking. 11 years in Atlanta, and you idiots STILL did’nt know what you had. A hard nosed player, sure tackler, emotional leader and player of great character. The Falcons have been an overhyped, pumped up team, with a qb who in nearly 1.5 seasons was made out to be the next coming of Johnny Unitas. What he and the Falcons fan base found out yesterday is that he’s not special. He’s not the next Unitas. More importantly that this Falcons team IS NOT better then the Cowboys! They got their collective butts kicked in all three phases of the game. Mike Smith defensive genius? I think not. Roddy White and Michael Jenkins top ranked receiving duo in the league? Are you serious? Tony Gonzalez the best TE in football? Was he even on the field yesterday? The Cowboys Offense shredded the “Dirty Turds” yesterday with an undrafted qb (Romo) and an undrafted wr (Miles Austin). Add in a castoff linebacker (Keith Brooking), a guy who was out of football the last 3 years until this season (Junior Siavii) and the most dominating defensive player on the field (Demarcus Ware) and you have the makings of a Super Bowl Contender. Keith Brooking was tremendous yesterday. You whining wimps want to say he showed no class? Look, this is the NFL. Trash talking happens, it’s a part of the game. However, it aint trash talking if you can back it up! You clowns are mad because Broooking and ‘The Boys, backed it up.You’re mad because you were sipping the Falcon Fool-Aid, thinking your team was better than they are. You’re mad because you actually thought that the “Dirty Turds” we’re gonna go into the greatest stadium on the planet and beat the Dallas Cowboys. You’re mad because Keith Brooking showed your team and your linebackers what being an NFL linebacker and a leader is. Face it Falcon fools, you’re not good. You’re qb is not special. You’re defense has more holes in it than a spaghetti strainer, and your offense is just ordinary. Now you can get ready to get your butts whipped by the Saints. You can live with the knowledge that the Cowboys started your 2009 demise. I am loving every moment of your hurt and dismay. Ok I’m done. Let the Falcon bitchfest continue! We now return you back to the ledge, where the Falcons fans prepare to jump off!

**Frederick(Bailey)Douglass**

October 26th, 2009
11:48 am

You missed a couple Team. Here are a couple of things that I’m learning about the Birds:

(1) Smiths whole mantra about playing the best man may be bull. Really?!?!? #23 Houston is the best you got at corner? #20 is the best you got??? These two are BAD. Period. While Grimes at least got his hands on a couple of balls, Houston has not made a play on the ball in weeks. Houston looks completely confused as if he does not know the coverage, or that he is covering a deep third where there is no receiver. He should NOT get another contract from the Birds. Maybe he, and not Jamal Anderson #98, should be shown the door???

2) Our ability to adjust is non existent. Same thing happened in New England. We come out smoking..teams adjust, we have no answer. Period. Well, here is an answer Mularkey and Smith: THROW DEEP BALLS TO YOUR GUYS TO MAKE PLAYS!!! USE SNELLING MORE (HE IS ACTUALLY IN SHAPE)!!! TRY SOMEBODY ELSE AT CORNER!!! This is the league…I simply can’t believe that we can’t find someone to challenge routes. Brent Grimes at corner in the NFL? Please.

3) Like most QBs, Matty Ice does not like to be hit. He took a couple of kead knocks and he started checking down REAL fast. He needs to develop better pocket presence (ala Romo) so that he can sidestep rushers. As it stands, when the pocket is threatened, we are COOKED.

4) Snelling is a player. Period. Use him in Norwood’s role and use Norwood in the role that you had Harry Douglas slated for. Whatever the case…get #44 the ball early and often.

This was embarrassing because we it looked like we were beaten in very specific match-ups. Our blitzing safety (#22) could not beat their running back to get to the QB…or our right tackle could not block their DE…or our corners could not cover their undrafted WRs. Losing #29 was big…but even more telling is how he came to start in the first place (was in camp for 72 hours and became the best CB we have on the team).

Monday night could get ugly…on national TV. Anybody else out there that we could sign off the street and make them a starter at CB? Might be better than anything we have right now.

FBD

gdg73

October 26th, 2009
11:48 am

P.S.,
Is Antonio Cromartie going to be a free agent in 2010? What we need is at least one starting CB with man-to-man coverage abilities and ball skills. At this point, we don’t need any rookies at this position, we need a young proven veteran. We need to spend some $$$$ at the CB position in free agency. You can’t go cheap there, sorry!!! More times than not, you get what you pay for (see Mr. Burnt “Division III” Grimes and Mr. Crisp “No Ball Skills” Houston).

Bullish-on-the-Falcons

October 26th, 2009
11:51 am

Good DBs arent just sitting on the couches waiting to be called. Trade deadline has passed. Any worthwhile free agent – well – wouldn’t be a free agent anymore.

It became abundantly clear that unless we get two players on the D-line into double-digit sacks by the end of the year that we will not live up to the hype that we all believe. Pressure on the QB is the only way to compensate for weak secondary. Next year we need a quality free agent CB to play immediately and a great 1st/2nd round CB/SS/FS/DT in the draft.

Tye Hill? Nothing? Is he learning 1/4th of a play a day? At this pace maybe he has the playbook down by 2012.

The best defense we can have? A good run game. Take time off the clock. Keep the secondary off the field. Turner looks like his parking brake is still on.

That game disgusted me.

#1 Falcon Fan

October 26th, 2009
11:51 am

the run game never got going…Not sure what’s wrong with Turner, but Snelling was running much better than him and he should have touched the ball more. No pass rush on Romo even when we blitzed and still couldn’t get to him…BUT the cowboys were able to sack Ryan 4 times and put pressure on him all day without blitzing! Your pass defense is only as good as your pass rush and we had no pass rush, so you can’t blame the DB’s for being out of position, when the QB has 10 seconds in the pocket to look for his 2nd, 3rd, and 4th option. MAN it’s gonna be a long night come Monday against the Saints..hopefully Brees with throw 3 int like he did yesterday! If we get the run game going and keep the Saints offense on the sideline, we can win this game!

FSJR

October 26th, 2009
11:52 am

Can you say MARTY-BALL? Our coaching staff did not impose will into our players in the New England game nor the Dallas game by saying, “you’re going to convert this 4th down and keep us in this.” Instead, they either have a lack of confidence in the players or guts in their play-calling. That fourth and short in the fourth quarter was the perfect time to tell your team, “take this game back”!

Roswell Falcon

October 26th, 2009
11:53 am

Hey Roswell Saint. Take your bad mouthing comments back to LA where they belong. We don’t need you here. If you need any boxes I’ll be glad to help you pack up.

SOUTH GA BIRD FAN

October 26th, 2009
11:55 am

The defense is going to hurt us all year New orleans will be a slaughter , I am just hoping the birds can recover and shoot for 9-7 it would be great to break the streak, but we can very very easily be at 4-4 or 4-5 when this stretch is over , the offense was a letdown. The offense can improve but i agree with most of the sane posters that turner is done and it may be time to look for other options , so much for norwood staying healty enough to be the feature back , I wonder if we can trade grimes for adrian peterson ( a man can dream can’t he )
GO FALCONS 9-7 ALL THE WAY !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Falcfan

October 26th, 2009
12:05 pm

Humble fan… I respect your freedom to disagree with me, but if you wish to demean my opinion then please do so with some reasoning. I have looked at stats and watched all the games and have a basis for my opinions. So if you wish to degrade me the support your comments.

Thanks
FalcFan

Jeffro Bodeen

October 26th, 2009
12:06 pm

Michael Jenkins can be knocked over with a feather. Did you see the play where he and RW ran into each other? Comical to say the least. I knew we were in for a bad day when Finnegan was all of a sudden a go to guy. Still not quite there Birds. We will finish 9 – 7.

Chess

October 26th, 2009
12:07 pm

Grimes got roasted at DB.

XsandOs

October 26th, 2009
12:07 pm

Like I have stated many times before….what you saw yesterday were the same problems the Falcons had when we had Vick at the helm..All of the sacks at that time were not all Vicks fault like yesterday with the o-line getting tossed around like ragdolls getting matt ryan sacked several times…our receiving core just simply doesnt always man up and get open like when Roddy White got knocked on his @ss yesterday while dropping the ball..Defensively, our secondary is garbage plain and simple..Drew Brees is gonna have a field day against these clowns…The falcons are a pretty good team but they’re not great and it was proven yesterday when they let an average QB have a pro-bowl time performance against them…Simply..the Falcons have just got to man up or they’ll be facing many Sundays like yesterday…

Larry

October 26th, 2009
12:08 pm

Biggest regular season game in 3-4 years coming up next Monday night.

Pull out a win on Monday night and at 5-2, with the Saints having to come to Atlanta, and an easier 2nd half schedule, we’re in great shape for both the playoffs and division championship. Further, anyone, if asked entering this season, would have taken a 5-2 record in our first 7 games.

However, lose this game and go down three games to this excellent Saints’ team we can forget the division title and will have to scratch and claw to make the playoffs.

One game. One game next Monday night will be the biggest regular season game for Atlanta in years and either the comments will be like most those above mine here or we will be sitting pretty at 5-2.

One game.

IJustDon'tGetIt

October 26th, 2009
12:08 pm

See what all that “we need a new stadium” talk has led to. More putting the cart before the horse. We all know what happens when the team fails to perform or be competitive. JUST TWO SEASONS AGO I COULDN’T GIVE my Falcons tickets away!!! No new stadium talk until the team is established as the real deal, not just a one season wonder or simply over-rated.

Steve C

October 26th, 2009
12:10 pm

Good point about the bye weeks…Cowboys had an extra week to rest, prepare, and get healthy. At least the Saints aren’t coming off a bye this week.

PappyHappy

October 26th, 2009
12:16 pm

Think that Coach Smith and the team learned something in Dallas — we will see on Sunday!

S.D. Lucke

October 26th, 2009
12:18 pm

BTW: If Romo (who has won 66% of his starts lifetime) is an average qb with 311 yards passing, 2 td passes, going 21 of 29 against the dirty turds with a qb rating of 141.6, then Matt Ryan should be in the Hall of Fame by the end of the season! You Falcon fans are a joke! You ridicule the qb of the Cowboys, when your own qb demonstrated exactly what he is…average! He’s not great, hell he’s not even good, he’s average. For you bird brains who thiink you’ll see us in the wild card round, think again. THE FALCONS WONT MAKE THE PLAYOFFS!! Your whole team is marshmallow soft! From your head coach all the way to your boy balls, YOUR SOFT! You azz-hats got a beatdown yesterday. You ge punched right in the faceon Sunday, and on Monday your hiding behind everything from the sun was too bright in our eyes, to it’s all Michael Turner’s fault, to The Cowboys had an extra week to prepare and that’s the only reason they won. Face it Falcon fans, your team is average. Your stadium is average. Your ownership is average. Your coach is average. Your qb is average at best. Your wideouts are below average. Your defense is WELL BELOW avearge. Your offensive line is average. For the first time in a very longtime, you clowns have had to step up and play a real schedule. Your playing the big boy teams in the AFC & NFC East. Arguably, the NFL’S best two divisions. You got bushwhacked by the Patriots. Butt smacked and humiliated by the Cowboys! You still have New Orleans (twice), Philly, The Giants and The Jets left on your schedule. 9-7 wont get you in the playoffs kids. There is a reason the Falcons have never in the entire history have had back to back winning seasons. Because as I have stated many times prior THEY ARE JUST AVERAGE! But, on the bright side Falcon fans, you’ll have great seats to watch the payoffs from your living rooms and you wont have to pay Direct T.V. to watch them as they are on your local Fox, CBS or NBC station for free! We now return you back to the ledge, where Falcons fans are poised to jump off!

DJ Sniper

October 26th, 2009
12:19 pm

First off, I wanna say that I like the way this particular blog is run. I checked out some of the other blogs by Schultz and company, and they let far too many trolls in there. Everybody knows that there’s one person posting under several different names. Notice how that person only shows up after we lose; never when we win. Kudos to DOL for filtering out the BS.

Now, onto the game: WTF is up with Michael Turner? He’s starting to look like TJ Duckett out there. Too much tip-toeing and dancing around the LOS instead of hitting the hole and dragging 2-3 people along for the ride. Jason Snelling has been looking very good over the last couple of weeks. I do hope he gets to play more, because he has definitely shown up.

I agree about the status of our secondary, especially the corners. For the life of me, I can’t figure out why Chris Houston and Brent Grimes continue to start. Does Christopher Owens looks that bad in practice? Is Tye Hill having that much trouble learning the plays? Something’s gotta give, and it’s gotta give soon.

Lastly, it amazes me how people around here want to jump off the bandwagon after a loss. Being concerned about flaws on this team is fine, but some of you need to stop acting like we’re in the same boat as Cleveland, Oakland, or St. Louis. I do believe this team will rebound and finish strong this season.

Oh, I noticed that Matt Ryan was looking plenty pissed after he threw that second INT. Perhaps that will serve as some personal motivation for next week’s showdown.

An Observation

October 26th, 2009
12:25 pm

Many of the folks posting on this blog just don’t have a clue. Nobody in their right mind expected the Falcons to win every game this year. The team is only 4-2 along with a lot of other good NFL teams this year. People….this is the NFL and if you’ve ever heard of parity then you understand what is happening.

The lost yesterday STILL DOES NOT MEAN THAT THEY WILL HAVING AN OVERALL LOSING SEASON. STAY ON THE BANDWAGON AT LEAST UNTIL HALF OF THE SEASON IS COMPLETED. They play 16 games this year!!!!!

Falcon Fan

October 26th, 2009
12:32 pm

Keith Brooking did pretty much in this game what he did for 11 years in Atlanta – running around, flapping his arms, missing tackles, or piling on a done play and taking credit for it. Classless act.

matt

October 26th, 2009
12:35 pm

Must be something in the water in this state. The ability for Defenses to make average offenses look like all-stars is incredible. Romo can now be added to the list of average QBs looking like all-americans and HOF.

nojames

October 26th, 2009
12:37 pm

I loved reading the Miami Herald blogs last week, leading up to the game on Sunday. All the stats why the Dolphins were better, all the reasons the Saints were overrated, all the strategies that would ensure them victory… today, it’s all finger pointing and scape goating. The reality is, they lost to a better team, and I’m not going out on a limb by saying the Falcons will too. We’ve had our share (more than) of bad, miscoached teams in the past, but this team is different and I don’t see them losing, except possibly to the Pats.

Ahhhhh, finally it’s good to be us.

Cory

October 26th, 2009
12:39 pm

Well, this Cowboys game exposed a lot of problems the Falcon’s have. Poor corners, Turner a bust for the 2nd year of his contract, scared coaching (why no no-huddle? why not go for 4th & 2…the defense didn’t stop them all 2nd half). I’m starting to wonder if Mike Smith are just the 2nd coming of Jim Mora Jr. (1st year great…downhill from there.) I hope he’s not but man, it’s getting frustrating watching a team that you know can do better just get handled in all phases of the game.

Oh, and we’ll see if Dimitroff the Great can actually get some talent that can help the team next year because this year’s draft class has pretty much been a downer.

Cory

October 26th, 2009
12:43 pm

clarification: Falcon’s defense didn’t stop Cowboys all 2nd half. Didn’t matter because the Cowboys got 7 on a punt return. And we think they are going to beat an improved and undefeated Saints team??…in NO??? As Ochocinco says, “Child Please!”

Larry

October 26th, 2009
12:44 pm

Same problems as UGA, can’t establish a running game, defense looks lost and confused. Must be something in the kool-aid!!

I MUS WRITE

October 26th, 2009
12:44 pm

Control the line of scrimmage and you control the game. We just got man handled up front. Our offense is good but overrated not what many experts thought it would be. This game was really simillar to the Playoff game in Arizona. It seems like if the opposing team gets any kind of pressure on Ryan the offense unravels.

Michael Turner….He looks really slow hitting the holes and finding lanes. We have got to do a better job rushing the ball,with that said i like what i see from Snelling. He runs hard and rarely gets tackled for a loss. I dont know if there’s a Rb controversy but Snelling just looks better.
Does anybody notice that every time Grimes is matched up one on one his leggs get tangled up with the air and he stumbles or falls. Myles Austin is a player,My fears came true….10 yard out route slings Grimes off and picks up huge yardage. DAM

Im looking at the Saints recieving core and I see a possible 400 yard passing game on the horizon…. Mike Smith will hopefully have these guys geeked up for the monday night game- you cant call yourself a good team and get lambasted 2 wks in a row………..Letz Go Birds

Cory

October 26th, 2009
12:44 pm

Fair enough, JP. My points are valid, nonetheless.

cutter

October 26th, 2009
12:45 pm

Hey I thought it was time for Brooking to go and I still think so. I’m not mad at Brooking for his antics during and after the game. The Falcons should have been able to put a better product on the field to shut him up. Brooking loyaties lie with Dallas now and he showed that in the interview after the game. With this loss I see the Falcons going 9-7 missing the playoffs but getting the back to back winning seasons monkey off their back. I found it interesting that Dallas had a 3 and 15 and the TE caught a pass over Peterson to get the first down…sound familiar??

IceFan

October 26th, 2009
12:45 pm

Wow that was tough to watch. I truly think the bye week helped them, but we still played like crap and the bye is not why we lost.

Matty Ice has not learned to play under rush pressure. He hasn’t really had to, so hopefully he and the O-line will learn from this beatdown and improve.

Why can’t Turner hit the hole faster? Why does he refuse to break to the outside? Why does he look so slow?

Why didn’t we go to the no-huddle? Why did we look so great on the first drive and so lost after that?

We aren’t going to pull a stud CB out of a hat. I get that we tried a scheme to take the pressure off the secondary, but it doesn’t work against a good team. We have to really look at ways to get more pressure on the qb so the secondary doesn’t have so many chances to get burned.

I still think we can go 10-6 and make the playoffs but it’s going to take some breaks. Hopefully this is the worst performance of the year. I don’t have a lot of faith in beating the Saints Monday, but you never know in the NFL. Our A-game and their C-game and we beat them.

cutter

October 26th, 2009
12:48 pm

If you think the Cowboys embarassed the Falcons wait untill Brent grimes and Chris Houston line up against the receiving core for the Saints. Leave the women and children at home cuz it’s gonna get uuuuugly.

now tha't funny

October 26th, 2009
12:51 pm

That was a very frustrating game. We had 4-5 possesions with a touchdown lead and could not pad it. It appears as if our receivers get absolutly no separtion from the DB’s. Am I the only one that sees that? We got beat upfront on both sides of the ball. But…we absolutly had chances to make big plays and could not get it done.

Brees will throw for 400 and 4 td’s. I hate it, but that’s reality.

DePlane

October 26th, 2009
12:52 pm

Not time to panic. But the coaches should be considering some major changes. I agree, let Snelling run it…he deserves the opportunity to see what he can do with a decent number of carries. Then let Turner come in when he’s fresh. It looks to me like he’s lost his ability to keep his legs churning with any authority.

The secondary is in shambles. Chevis Jackson looked horrible, again. Chris H. is AWFUL! Grimes is like a little gnat…with his athleticism and speed he shouldn’t worry about bumping the receiver…just get in position and play the ball, and make the play! Austin tore us up…and then we had to watch that obnoxious grin of his.

This game exposed all of our weakness’, including the O-line and what happens when there is more than one pass rushing threat. Ryan made poor decisions on his two picks….throwing into double coverage when he had a man open down the sideline.

After such a great defensive gameplan against the Bears, it looked like we didn’t have one. We appeared confused a good part of the game. Our D-line got treated like a bunch of rag-dolls by the Cowboys O-line.

This game should be an eye-opener. We are not ready for prime-time yet. Still a much more fun team to watch, but with success comes expectations. Let’s re-adjust ours and continue with the “process”, and hope for a winning season.

I MUS WRITE

October 26th, 2009
12:53 pm

Come on guy’s what did yall expect Brookings to do? His contribution was minimal but his team won the game. He was thrown away by the new regime of course he’s gonna talk shyt. Im sure he was reading the blogs after last years playoff loss….. His name was Mr.3rd and 16 just say’n,

Chris Houston’s neck still doesnt turn,i think its soddered on straight. Props to JA98 and the Bierrman -even tho they didnt get any sacks I like the way they keep showing up in the backfield.

Where the hell is Abraham, His picture should be on a milk carton.

What do you expect...miracles?

October 26th, 2009
12:55 pm

The falcons team is still a team on the rise. They have been trying to build a team through the draft. Come on people, we are way ahead of where we should be!! Who would have expected all of these wins so soon with so many changes that took place last year and to our defense this year.

I think having MV7 on the books prevented us from going after any high-profile veteran help last year, but I think this off-season that will change since his cap hit should be completely gone. As far as the rookies, look what sitting DeCoud for a year did for him in the secondary. I think the same thing is being done with Owens and Tye Hill. We already know Grimes is not the answer. He is a nickel at best and against slot WRs that are his size. Let new/young guys soak everything up this year and we will see what they have at training camp next year. I think with a couple of key veteran pick ups and a young maturing team a year older, we should be better off next year. I mean come on, who REALLY expected to go to the Superbowl this year. I just wanted a winning record and a playoff birth based on the schedule that we have this year. Our time is coming!! A fast start has gotten people all amped up when we need another year or two to really know where this team stands. A few more crafty moves on draft day (a big corner and a speedy DURABLE RB are on my wish list) and/or spending a little money for a quality free-agent or two and we can continue to build a great team for years to come.

As far as O-line, I think everyone should know that Dahl and Clabo are temporary guys. They suffice as starters until they can be replaced. Do not get me wrong, I LOVE having them out there, but lets face the fact that they are not athletic enough to perform consistently well against premiere competition, such as the Cowboys front. They are brutal if they can get their hands on you, but if guys are quick like yesterday, none of that matters.

What do you expect…miracles? Am I wrong DOL?

I MUS WRITE

October 26th, 2009
12:58 pm

Come on guy’s what did yall expect Brookings to do,The man was thrown away like a used tampon. Im sure he read the blogs around here after the playoff loss Mr.3rd and 16…I woulda been talking shyt too jus say’n
Props to Bierrman and JA98 even tho they didnt get any sacks they were getting good pressure yesterday. Where the hell is Abraham, I think itz milk carton time

Bigdrew

October 26th, 2009
12:59 pm

If you told me two years ago that the Falcons would go 11-5 in ‘08 and start ‘09 4-2 losing to the Pats and the Cowboys, I would have been happy. Yes some changes need to be made and lessons learned. Felt bad yesterday but looking fwd to the building that will continue. You couldn’t push me off this bandwagon.

Mr. Phil

October 26th, 2009
1:04 pm

This team will continue to fail as long as Brent Grimes keep suiting up. There is no excuse to have that guy on the team. Nice guy…sure. Feisty, hard-worker….I’ll give you those. But the fact is he is not now and NEVER WILL BE equipped to be an NFL DB PERIOD. Get him out of here or I promise…I guarantee the Falcons WILL NOT MAKE THE PLAYOFFS!

I MUS WRITE

October 26th, 2009
1:04 pm

If I were Brooking I woulda been talking shyt too, we did throw the man away like a used tampon. Im sure he read the Blogs after that playoff loss. Mr. 3rd and 16, pile diver etc…..
Abraham is officially on the carton of milk,did he even play yesterday? JA98 and Bierrman continue to get a good pass rush props to those guys.

Chris Houstons neck is soddered on straight can sumone please remove the screws

I MUS WRITE

October 26th, 2009
1:05 pm

Sorry for the triple post yall, my post kept disappearing. Bow Tie whats up!

Dee Man

October 26th, 2009
1:07 pm

The falcons need to go out and sign a couple of Veteran Corners! Chris McCallister and Mike Mckenzie are out there, hell even Ty Law……….the corners we have 1,2,3, and whoever else will not cut it in this league. Chris Houston is always out of position, Brent Grimes has heart but is just too small, Jackson is too slow, what’s up with Ty Hill?? Why isn’t he playing?? We gotta see what he can do……… Our game plan seems to change every week, not consistent at all……..Abraham is not doing anything…..and Michael Turner, I don’t see this kid playing hard at all………he hits the hole and stops even when he has a crack…..I’m sure they see what we are seeing…….I don’t jump on and off bandwagons….I am a true Falcon Fan………but if they don’t do something fast that 4-2 record will be below .500, I promise you………

North Atlanta Viewer

October 26th, 2009
1:09 pm

This is a joke, all of you whiners, fair weather fans. Be happy the Falcons are where they are. A QB who has promise, an owner trying hard to build a winning team. Unless luck just happens to come by, it takes years to build a winning franchise. I believe the effort is being made.

IF the Falcons beat New Orleans, all of you will be talking about the playoffs. Most of you are just ignorant.

It's good to see that

October 26th, 2009
1:10 pm

Pole Smokers like SD Lucke can write in complete sentences. Did you say our ownership is a joke?? And you are a DALLAS fan??? BWAAAHAHAHAHA, ok dude, it’s lunch time so go eat your tube steak and post some more of your fruity opinions on here…

When was the last time Dallas won a playoff game? Thought so… SHUT UP

I MUS WRITE

October 26th, 2009
1:10 pm

Mr.Phil ditto on Brent Grimes

Screg

October 26th, 2009
1:11 pm

We arent scoring the points we should with all the playmakers on that offense. White, Gonzo, Jenkins, Booker, Turner, Norwood, and Finn. We should be averaging a little over 30.

jerry

October 26th, 2009
1:15 pm

Rebuilding needed everywhere. There is not a Pro Bowler on it.

shannyeight

October 26th, 2009
1:18 pm

lol@ S.D. and his comment “makings of a Super Bowl contender”…when Romo doesnt fudge it up like he has the past few playoffs, and when the Cowgirls actually beat the Giants, then you can make that claim.

Other than that, hey, that’s a football season…you give some beatings and you take some. At least the Falcons did lose to a dallas team who was playing their best football…as well as lost to a pretty crafty Patriots team…in other words, we beat who we were supposed to beat, and are not getting our spinchters ripped by loser type teams. just gotta get over this week and look to giving a beating the next week.

Mark

October 26th, 2009
1:18 pm

Brooking’s antics were not over the top and he deserved the opportunity. The fans in this city blamed him for every bad step the last several years – despite the fact he was playing inside to help the team. He is an outside linebacker and showed yesterday that he is still a good one. It’s tough when a guy that is bashed by the fans week after week for 5-6 years gets the chance to show them up – he got that chance and he did it. I don’t blame him a bit.

The Falcons could have shut him up if they had been prepared to play. Turner needs to spell Snelling, rather than the other way around. If we don’t have a better corner than Grimes, we need to be careful with that back-to-back winning season streak. And our offensive line is so worried about being nasty, that they have forgotten all about technique and finishing the block. You can’t be nasty when you man is lying on top of Ryan every play.

I think an 8-8 season is a very real possibility – this team is not very good.

Carlun

October 26th, 2009
1:19 pm

Our secondary is the worse ever….Houston and Grimes are both bums! O line did not have a good game as well…………

Mark

October 26th, 2009
1:22 pm

BTW – if you saw the Cincinnati/Chicago highlights, we saw how GREAT that win over the Bears was last Sunday night. The Falcons have not beaten a really good team yet and the schedule just gets harder. That winning season thing is not a guarantee at this point. Not even likely.

Divination

October 26th, 2009
1:22 pm

S.D. Lucke: The Dallas Cowboys and the NFC East aren’t exactly being heralded by anybody as being the best in the NFL, neither is the AFC East. Cowboys have been far from impressive, and the Giants have now been exposed as being very average when they go against teams with winning records. The Cowboys still need to visit the Saints in the Superdome, let’s see how they fair down here on Poydras Street in a month and half, when each game takes on real, tangible, playoff relevance.

nhe

October 26th, 2009
1:22 pm

Screg is right………the biggest problem I see is that we seem to be afraid to get into a shoot out………we’re a little too worried about controlling the clock and keeping our D off the field……..lets just call our defense what it is – good in the red zone, and awful everywhere else.

Lets stop worrying about time of possession. Lets move up and down the field in the no huddle on offense and keep being aggressive on D and not worry about giving up the big play.

I said before the Dallas game that “IF” we win, its going to have to be 41-38 – our offense has to make plays, go no huddle and be aggressive.

The coaches have said the word for the year is “urgency” – I think we’re starting to have it on defense (not afraid to blitz, willingness to play man-to-man)……..now we need it on offense (A LOT more no huddle, go deep to stretch the field, work more toward edges and get play makers in space)

Let the Saints have their 40 points next week and lets concentrate a lot harder on scoring 45 – that’s how we have to win………its just the way our team is built right now.

was there in 66

October 26th, 2009
1:24 pm

Wow. I’m an almost life-long Falcons fan, but I’m still surprised by some of these comments. The Falcons are still a good, young team with years of success ahead of them. To lose yesterday was not an embarassment, and shouldn’t really have been a big surprise, either. We’ll win a few that we shouldn’t before the season ends, and probably lose some we should win as well. But we’re making progress.

Calling Brooking “classless” is extreme, too. Not long ago, people here – probably some of the same ones – were talking about his class. Did he lose all that because he changed the color of his jersey?

gdg73

October 26th, 2009
1:26 pm

Why are fans labeled as “jumping off the bandwagon” just because they point out glaring deficiencies in this team? I call it being passionate and not going for the same lame excuses all the time, like “this team is young” or “you can’t fix everything in 1 now 2 drafts”. Or like this one “I don’t think anyone felt we were going to the Super Bowl this”. You blind apologists disguised as “un-wavoring fans” crack me up, really you do. The Falcons have just as good a chance to make it to the Super Bowl this year as any other team in the NFC. Why even come on here with that loser mentality. After last year, I expect for this team to compete for the SB ever year. I don’t want to hear that “we are a couple of years away” crap. Look at Arizona last year. Those guys came out of the blue and were a play or two from winning the whole thing. You got to strike while the iron is hot and seize the moment. And there is no time like the present. The Jerry and Williams injuries were devastating. But injuries are part of the game. I think the coaching staff needs to seriously think about benching Grimes and Houston. I believe this would send a message to the whole team.

gdg73

October 26th, 2009
1:27 pm

Was there in 66, please read the my post that follows yours.

falcoholic

October 26th, 2009
1:28 pm

The lack of a running game is weighing down the Falcons. It wears out and demoralizes the opposing defense, keeps the ball away from the their offense, controls the rhythm of the game, and puts points on the board. Michael Turner, one of my favorite players from last year, is missing in action this year. What happened to the quick burst into the line and squirting out the other side for big yardage? It’s the same offensive line. By the end of last year’s season, teams knew they had to stop him but mostly couldn’t. Snelling moved the ball yesterday — Turner did not. The Falcons better put out an APB on whoever stole Turner’s mojo — it’s missing and he needs it back!

Native Georgian

October 26th, 2009
1:29 pm

QUESTIONS FOR SMITTY, MULARKY, AND VAN GORDER:

1) WHAT HAPPENED TO THE HB SCREEN? Norwood’s not the only back capable of running it.

2) WHAT HAPPENED TO THE WILDCAT/WILD BIRD? Oh, must be a Norwood-only set too.

3) WHAT HAPPENED TO TURNER? I can’t entirely blame the line when Snelling & Veron come in on the same line and look effective. Turner seems to be motivated near the goal line but otherwise is tip-toeing.

4) WHAT HAPPENED TO JENKINS? No way in the world Gonzo, Roddy, & the run game can be stuffed and they have Jenkins covered too. For the 2nd straight game Jenks has disappeared. HE IS OUR X-FACTOR. When he is catching everything thrown his way and converting 3rd downs it creates more opportunities. #12 ABSOLUTELY HAS TO SHOW UP FOR OUR OFFENSE TO BE HIGH-POWERED.

5) WHY IS WEEMS IN THE GAME ON OFFENSE? With so many other weapons I feel like something is grossly out of order when we call our #6 WR’s number. Guess Finneran, Booker, Jenkins, Gonzalez, Roddy, and Snelling were all busy.

6) WHAT HAPPENED TO ABE? If Jamal Anderson is causing unexpected havoc up the middle and getting (dare I say it) double-teamed, why isn’t Abe there to cause trouble? Answer: he’s living on the ground too much (albeit when he isn’t being held). If #98 steps up, I need Abe and Beerman to cause some havoc!

7) LASTLY, WHAT HAPPENED TO EFFECTIVE BLITZING? 3 straight games where our guys blitz into a wall and the QB doesn’t even go down! Yesterday we had several times where a scared Romo threw short under pressure. Then we’d turn around and go back to 3-man rushes giving him all day to pick us apart. VAN GORDER, GET IN THE GAME.

Stay with what works and stop outcoaching ourselves! And most of all, KEEP RUNNING THE DANG BALL!!!!!

gdg73

October 26th, 2009
1:39 pm

Let me ask this question. Did the defense play the run with the same amount of fervor with Snelling in the game as Turner? Was that extra man down in the box when Snelling lined up in the back field or were they more honest and had to respect the pass a little more? I think that teams are just game planning to shut down Turner and dedicating the extra man to do so. Now when Norwood and Snelling are in the game, defenses go more conventional because 1) they are not the same running threat as Turner (last year) and 2) they are more prone to catch a swing pass out of the backfield, i.e., receiving threats. If you don’t believe me, take a look at Turner’s numbers towards the end of last year when people figured out the way to beat Atlanta was to stop Turner. They are daring Ryan to beat them.

dlmod

October 26th, 2009
1:40 pm

Next time start with the 2 TE set if we play Cowboys again. We don’t match up with thier front. We were in too many 3 and longs and 3 and outs. Falcons D… I don’t know. No disguise of our blitzes and far too few blitzes. Secondary can’t cover forever. Poor Coaching this week. I thought we could hang with them, but they have more playmakers. I was a fan of Brooking… No More. What a classless post game remark. He chose the low road. Glad the Cowboys had their superbowl now they can go back to mediocre.

falconfann

October 26th, 2009
1:42 pm

why hasn’t anyone responded to the cowgirlfan s.d. lucke. Sure they whipped us yesterday,but at least we’ve one a couple playoff games the past few years. The cowgirls haven’t won a playoff game in dang near 12yrs. So, you can’t talk to much s.d.cowgirl!!!!

dbot

October 26th, 2009
1:47 pm

I agree with most of the analysis here – especially on the DBs and Turner’s lack of productivity – but I think coach Mike Smith also needs to be called to task. His “gut” decisionmaking in some crucial situations is off the mark way too often. Last night, his refusal to go for it on 4th and short cost us the game. Matt Ryan wanted to go for it for the same reasons I did: our defense couldn’t stop them at all in the second half, and we couldn’t afford to give them the ball back when we needed two scores in nine minutes. Coach Smith punted the ball, and they returned it for a touchdown. Bad decisionmaking. You have to be willing to take chances to win the game, and you have to believe that your team can pick up three yards when it counts.

J money

October 26th, 2009
1:49 pm

I no a way we can get back at brooking let someone wear his number

Ozzy

October 26th, 2009
1:51 pm

Enter your comments here

SUPER BOWL R BUST

October 26th, 2009
1:52 pm

No Big Deal – Just part of the Process. This one reminded me of the first Tampa game last year. We lost on both sides of the ball. Once Ryan gets sacked, smacked and pushed around a few times he gets that glazed over look and its all over but the crying.
If it was Easy everybody would win. We can’t lose anymore players to injuries or it might be a losing season. For all those jumping off the wagon – just don’t let the wheels run over your A$$.

falconfan1234

October 26th, 2009
1:53 pm

we also havent won a super bowl…falcons stink

SOUTH GA BIRD FAN

October 26th, 2009
1:57 pm

GO FALCONS !!!!!!!
Anderson did look good in the middle even though dallas dominated both lines the corners are going to kill us i say again the DIMRY show is back with no deon on the other side to help out , I wonder if deon is available he could probably still run a 4.5 or so .

JimmyFalcon

October 26th, 2009
2:00 pm

This is what I learned

- Mularkey’s play calling has not impressed me at all. 1st down run, 2nd & 3rd down little dink and dunk passes. Mix it up, stretch the feild. I could understand this play calling if you had average players. Look at the Patriots, Saints, Colts, etc. they always go deep multiple times in a game. I don’t remember the last time we tried it?

- Smith’s 4th down decisions, SCARRED!! and no confidence in his offense. they don’t go for it on 4th and 2 while they still have a chance to stay in the game. Your quarterback is on the field wanting to go for it and you pull the offense off the field, Why? so your great defense can get a 3 and out? It hasn’t happened all day!!!! The punt is returned for a touchdown and the game is out of reach.

- DB’s (I won’t even go there) Our corners should have starred in the Wizard of Oz.

- Turner looks like he spends more time thinking about where he is going istead of exploding through the line and creating holes like he did last year.

- BVG if your corners are getting burned every other play when you are only rushing the front four, why not go ahead and send the house. What is the worse thing that could happen? Your corners get burned? That happend all day long.

I am a die hard Falcons fan and season ticket holder, I love my team, but it pains me to see a team with so much potential get out schemed, coached and played. Total team loss today, starting with the coaching.

Matt "Choke" Ryan

October 26th, 2009
2:01 pm

THIS CHUMP IS GETTING WORSE:

Earlier in the season, after playing mediocre teams, this LOSER had a QB RATING in the high 100s, now he barely has an overall QB RATING in the 90s.

It’s time he gets benched just like the other teams with poor performers.

http://espn.go.com/nfl/statistics/player/_/stat/passing/sort/quarterbackRating/year/2009/seasontype/2

Pamela McGregor

October 26th, 2009
2:03 pm

The Steelers have lost 2 games; the Patriots have lost 2 games; does that make them non-competitive? The Jets beat the Patriots and Bears beat the Steelers so that makes the Jets and the Bears good teams. The Falcons needed a wake up call; the analysts and the media were hand downs predicting a Falcons victory. The Falcons started to believe in their own hype and so they became a victim. Better to be underdogs as they were. They will march into NO with all odds against them and that is what they need. Better now than if they reach the playoffs. We have not played the dregs of the NFL like the Browns and the Redskins yet; every game has been competitive. If the Cowgirls had not won, Tony Romo and the whole Dallas team would be on notice via the evil owner Jerry Jones. JJ needs to fill up the gaudy spectacle of a stadium so they were all on notice. We will see how long this will last. Dallas Austin is now a marked man; so forget his escapades these 2 weeks. The NFL adapts and morphs week by week.
P. S. Tom Brady loved Wembley so much; he might become the QB for the London Franchise; well behaved crowd; he has tired of the loud raucous NE fans and the useless ESPN hype.

Lil Larry

October 26th, 2009
2:04 pm

Let’s all face a bit of reality here…
a. This team is a hodge-podge of players: undersized OL, undersized/inexperienced DL and secondary.
b. Our WRs still do not know how to work against man-to-man coverage–they aren’t getting open.
c. Turner is very slow out of the backfield. He’s best used on the edges–or up the middle if we have one of the bigger OLs in the NFL. Snelling is bigger and faster than Turner…it’s not about who we have a love affair with, but who is going to give us the best chance to win.
d. Same old secondary will mean same old results against any team with a strong passing game–New Orleans will school our little boys in the secondary all day long.
e. Most importantly, this team will not be able to compete with the top teams in the league until we buiild it the right way. Smitty bring in the big boys to win in the trenches, CBs who over 5′9″ and can turn their heads to play the ball, LBs, safeties and CBs that know how to bring the pain (see how Dallas destroyed Booker and White yesterday as examples), DTs that can consistently push the middle and DEs that consistently get after the QB.

Time to stop with guys on this team that shouldn’t even be in the NFL.

Deborah

October 26th, 2009
2:05 pm

I will start with:
gdg 73 – Grimes or as you called him Mr. Burnt is from Division II

Frederick (Bailey) Douglass: He is a corner in the NFL, what position do you play. You are making the real Frederick Douglass sound hateful.

Cutter: Grimes and Houston aren’t the only ones playing and who are they an embarrassment too. People in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones, I am going to go out on a limb and say the people that don’t like Grimes, Houston, etc. never make mistakes.

Mr. Phil: You didn’t finish your thought (What is it that you promise…?

Carlum: What is your definition of Bums?

Have a nice day.

MrHughes

October 26th, 2009
2:06 pm

Jimmyfalcon, i can remember them trying to go long one time with the little flea flicker pass that worked for the pats and that killing of the titans. But other than that, can’t remember any long balls. With the way our offensive line was looking, Matt didn’t have much time to wait for a play to develop before he was gonna be under fire.

We are ashamed

October 26th, 2009
2:09 pm

Our team is as soft as it gets. Plan ole’ soft. No big hits, no big blocks, no big plays.

No John Abraham, No Michael Turner, No offensive (even though it was offensive to watch) line, no defensive line, well really no defense.

What happened after the first drive. Did they take there brains out and play with them and forget to put them back????

To me it looks like the Dallas coaching staff out smarted ours. REALLY??? How do we not adjust like we did against Chicago????

Matt "Choke" Ryan

October 26th, 2009
2:13 pm

PASS 2 GAMES “QB RATINGS”

vs Chicago 68

vs Dallas 66

That is worst than Joey Harrington.

gdg73

October 26th, 2009
2:14 pm

Deborah, Shippensburg is D-III

Boo

October 26th, 2009
2:17 pm

I’m certainly not looking forward to the SAINTS game next week!

JimmyFalcon

October 26th, 2009
2:17 pm

Agreed Mr.hughes, I just don’t see our play calling up to the levels of the elite teams in the nfl. We have the talent but it just isn’t happening. The 4th and 2 is a prime example of Mike Smith not have confidence in our offense, Bill Bellichek would have went for that without pausing. It is laughable he has more confidence in our defense to stop them, instead of going for it and giving us a chance to stay in the game. The the pumt returner give Mike Smith a big screw you and runs it in for the score.

The Just

October 26th, 2009
2:19 pm

RE: Comment posted by booquinn:

“DeCoud man up and take the blame for being out of position all day along with the rest of the team, Romo is an average NFL QB at best.”

Might want to educate yourself booquinn! Romo has the third highest career passer rating (NFL All-Time Records) behind #1 Steve Young and #2 Peyton Manning. He also places fourth all-time in yards per attempt.

htownbravesfan

October 26th, 2009
2:23 pm

As an avid Saints fan, I must say this team is different than any other. The Falcons are in a world of trouble come Monday night in the Superdome if they don’t play three times as well as they did against the Cowboys. Good luck. You’re gonna need it!!

MrHughes

October 26th, 2009
2:24 pm

That 4th and 2 play irritated me, Matt Ryan had every reason to be mad with coach after that. He should trust him more than the defense that made romo look like he was untouchable.

S.D. Lucke

October 26th, 2009
2:28 pm

Divination: What two divisions have won more Super Bowls than any other? The NFC East and The AFC East. The Saints are real good this year; there is no question to that. But, before you get ahead of yourself, play the schedule you have. The Cowboys will be in N.O. soon enough. Then we’ll all see the sparks fly! For right now, I’m just savoring the beatdown of the “Dirty Turds”!

Matt "Choke" Ryan

October 26th, 2009
2:31 pm

He is the BUST I knew he was.

James Thomas

October 26th, 2009
2:31 pm

I have to admit I was appalled at yesterdays game.I also have to say that there is a distinct possibility that we Falcon fans have been a bit too optimistic.As has been said very ably in previous post that we need to keep in mind that two years ago we were in a worse position than the poor Rams.I’m not an expert on the history of the NFL but I can’t recall, ever, a head coach slipping off into the night.That being said I suppose the reasons for all the jumping off carts has to be because we know that the Falcons have a tremendous amount of talent.It really hurts to see the team fall apart so completely.
My opinion about what needs to be done.First Mr. Turner needs to benched.He needs to sit around and watch for a while.He has been a step behind since last years playoffs.One point that needs to be asked is his home situation whats going on?I do not know if all of you remember but the week leading up to the playoff game the police were called to his home about a domestic disturbance.Ever since that time he has been off his game.Can you blame the O line when Mr Snelling seems to be able to run?
This will be hard to take but Mr.Norwood needs to be put on IR.He is way to fragile.Plus he has had two concussions in the past few weeks and he is asking for trouble.We need that new guy we picked up last week on the real team.We all love Jerious but hey it is not college ball.Its professional.Plus we are paying these guys a lot of mula and not to sit around.
The defense needs work but we all knew that coming into this.Its the offense that gives offense.All along it was the defense but this piss poor offense has got to get some grit.I hate scared quarterbacks.Ryan was scared yesterday.A regular Joey Harrington.It was good to see him mad.The fact is that he needs to man up as the defense has been saying.Watch Payton.He hangs.He doesn’t get scared and run away or throw the ball away at the drop of a hat.Mr Ryan has all the “bones” to make a great QB.He is tall has a perfectly balanced face.But he needs to spend more time on his passes and less time watching film.In case you didn’t notice he is way off on his throws if there is a hint of pressure.
Honestly this year we will be lucky to get past eight wins.I think it would be great if we can finally pull that off the list.
Next week.Hopefully we come into the game pissed off.We got stomped this week.New O came off a win.I know luck has a lot to do with things so maybe we luck out and beat the crap out of the Saints.Maybe not.All I know is that I may have to quit watching.I was so mad yesterday I could have ripped the head off small mammals and chewed them to bits.Not a good way to be.
One last thought.The cowboy bloggers who felt it necessary to come on our blog.Go take your fat texas asses and succeed from the country.The rest of us real Americans are tired of your whinny ways.

WADLEYMAN

October 26th, 2009
2:32 pm

matt ryan’s throws are a tad off this year,plus he doesn’t throw
the ball down the field enough.

blord

October 26th, 2009
2:32 pm

I want to pee on Keith Brooking(s) tires!!

Bird Watcher

October 26th, 2009
2:37 pm

It’s obvious that Michael Turner is thinking more about protecting the ball than punishing tacklers. He has lost a step already. The problem that I have with the team is politics. Snelling has the hot hand, so give Snelling the rock. Same thing with Norwood when he’s not injured. Norwood gives you 6 yards a pop, so find creative ways to use him. The offense is getting predictable. Stop Turner and Gonzolez and the Birds start to fold.

Brenham Cowboy

October 26th, 2009
2:48 pm

Don’t mean to troll here, but I’m a cowboys fan and love seeing what other teams’ fans have to say after a game (win or lose). For those of you that are bashing Brooking and saying the falcons gave him a great send-off, I heard that when he left the falcons, he was let go because he was explicitly told that this was a “young man’s game.” That being said, I think some of his antics were too much and not reflective of the class he’s shown in his other games in Dallas thus far. Because of the exposure of the Cowboys and their fan base, he’ll go to the Pro Bowl this year if he keeps playing like he does. Sorry to say it falcons’ fans, but yall should’ve kept Brooking.

catfish31015

October 26th, 2009
2:53 pm

I can think of a few cliche’s to sum up the Falcons’ loss:

They looked out of synch
They made a lot of unforced errors
They appear to lack consistency
They have to generate some offense
They’re not playing to win…..they’re playing not to lose
They have to get back into their offensive rhythm
They are going to have to make some adjustments
They have to regroup
They have to maintain their composure
They have to get back on track
They have a tough road to hoe
Their play is very tentative
They have to get their heads back in the game
They are not out of it yet
When it rains it pours
That really took the wind out of their sails
Their defense is getting shredded
They are self-destructing
They ran into a buzz-saw
This could get ugly
…and those are just a few.

shedworld

October 26th, 2009
2:55 pm

Brooking stated that he feels more at home in Dallas. Sure, why wouldn’t he? Dallas is the home for overated underachieving selfish prima donnas who are always willing to gloat and accept the accolades when they win, but who never accept any responsibility for their losses. A perfect fit.
Miss you alot, Keith…

chuck

October 26th, 2009
2:56 pm

Falcons need very badly a really fast receiver and some defensive backs with speed that can cover.

DAL51BZ

October 26th, 2009
2:59 pm

Keith Brooking has every right to say what he wants… It was his dominant defensive unit that”BLOODIED”the turdy birds nose and stepped on their necks and then kicked them…

Keith Brooking: 1 Dirty Turds: 0

Dean

October 26th, 2009
2:59 pm

To the new Brooking fans in Dallas. Wait until the playoffs when he lets his area of responsibility result in a 1st down on 3rd and 18. I thought he had more class than he showed yesterday.

Big D

October 26th, 2009
3:00 pm

Hold up just a minute. You guys are forgetting how bad this team was just two years ago. You’ve got a good quarterback and the makings of a good team. Plus your owner isn’t the general manager.
So, sit back watch and enjoy. It might take a little longer than you guys want but, you guys are headed in the right direction.
HOW BOUT THEM COWBOYS………

chuck

October 26th, 2009
3:00 pm

Falcons need better production on first down. A run play gets a yard and then they are forced to throw on 3rd down. Hey, throw on first and second down.

D.Roberson

October 26th, 2009
3:02 pm

first of all ,atlanta needs to realize Grimes,Houston are not the players we need them to be ,grimes is to small and got burnt all day,Houston was his typical self not playing the ball.Snelling is starting to look like the RB we need to give him more touches.what is up with Turner?he cant do anything but go backwards.i sure hope Norwood can get healthy and stay there.over all a sloppy game on all aspects ,and BVG is not all hes cracked up to be!we got out coached and out played,if we cant get some bigger and better corners we have no shot at the playoffs.it would also be nice to have another consistent WR to replace M.Jenkins,hes not a THREAT to the other teams at all,no defense is worried about containing him.either way im a Falcons fan For life,please TD,SMITTY you know what needs to be fixed now lets please start work right away and get this team where they need to be!

catfish31015

October 26th, 2009
3:03 pm

Here are a few more for Smith to tell the players:

They outplayed us in every phase of the game
They wanted it more than we did
We had our chances and we let them slip away
They caught us on an off night
It just wasn’t meant to be
Turnovers killed us
They out-hustled us
They out-muscled us
They out-coached us
We got a wake-up call
We weren’t mentally prepared
We beat ourselves
They ate our lunch
This is a bitter pill to swallow
Its going to be a long plane ride home
I take full responsibility for this loss
We didn’t get the job done
Not to take anything away from Dallas, but we didn’t play like we’re capable of playing
My hats off to them
You’ve got to hand it to them
The best team won today
We can still hold our heads high
These guys have nothing to be ashamed of
They just made the big plays and we didn’t
We didn’t match their intensity
We lost our focus
I don’t want to point fingers
Their were too many defensive lapses
We shot ourselves in the foot
We just have to put this loss behind us
I’m really proud of our guys
…..get the picture.

DAL51BZ

October 26th, 2009
3:04 pm

Keith is finally playing for a WINNER! Sorry ladies but the Cowboys are just a better team in all fasets of the game.

And those of you who think Tony Romo is average, your team just gave up 311 yards and a 141.6 and three touchdowns to a so-called average quarterback. Don’t you dirty turds wish you had one??

GO COWBOYS!

Kaiser Sozay

October 26th, 2009
3:12 pm

Enter your comments here

Saints Fan

October 26th, 2009
3:14 pm

Enter your comments here

JayDubu

October 26th, 2009
3:18 pm

The defense was on the field a lot after the 1st quarter. If / when the offense plays better, and not have consecutive 3 and outs, the defense should be a little better, because they will have caught their breath.

This doesn’t excuse their performance on yesterday totally, but I’m sure it played a part.

Lovell

October 26th, 2009
3:19 pm

If you can’t run the ball, you won’t win. The run sets up the pass. Turner is the same player he was last year. But I will say he does seem a little slower. The O-line isn’t opening up holes for Turner to run through. There were a couple of times I saw Dallas stacking the line of scrimmage and we ran the ball. The QB has to recognize that and audible.
The defense is what it is. If you can’t get a pass rush no DB’s can survive against a marginal player. Abe seems to have lost a step. He is always getting up off the ground. Since moving Jamaal to DT, I think he has been doing a pretty good job. Pressure is the key for defense.

Observe & Report

October 26th, 2009
3:29 pm

They need to get Grimes off the field! I was disappointed that “shorty” made the team to begin with but is there not anybody better? He’s 5 feet tall, can’t cover and can’t tackle! He is not an NFL caliber CB for sure! What’s the deal with Hill? How long before he picks up the defense and can play? Grimes is killing them!

Barry

October 26th, 2009
3:34 pm

He Y’all:

THINGS I LEARNED FROM THE DALLAS GAME.

OFFENSIVE

Our offensive line got whopped by Dallas’ defensive line. The offensive line could ot open any hole for the running back. In addition, they could not stop Dallas’ pass rush. Turner still can not run throught the holes quick enough. It appered Snelling was doing a better job blasting through the holes and moving the pile. We need to tighten up in this area in “ONE HEARTBEAT!!” Also, the play calling stunk. We had not down field passing. I wish we had Dallas’ downfield passing attack with players criss crossing across the field and the quarterback hittingthem on the money. Other teams are doing this to us how come our offense is not utilizing the same pass plays against the opposition. We stunk in the passing game. We need to improve on that.
Like the Patriots game, they did not play to win the game. They were slow moving on offense, coming out the huddle and everything. They slowed the pace of the game down.

DEFENSE

The defensive line played great, but the secondary stunk up the house in this game. It appears the cornerbacks do not know how to cover receivers in this game. It appears they are always behind receivers running after them. I did not see them break up to many passes this game. They defenitely have to improve on their coverage skills. I know they can play better than this. They will have to show their worth when we play New Orleans Sunday. The need to “SHOCK THE WORLD” by playing an “excellent” secondary defensive game against the Saints.

SPECIAL TEAM

Played great except for the game ending punt return. Dallas got lucky on that one. We will be more than better next time.

One game at a time. One game at a time. Dallas got that one. Now we have to move on to the next in “ONE HEARTBEAT!!” We know what we messed up on. Now we have to correct it. THE “PROCESS” CONTINUES.
NOW LET”S MOVE ON AND KICK THAT SAINT BUTT IN “ONE HEARTBEAT!!” THIS AIN’T OVER!! WE ARE MAD AS HELL AND WE AIN’T GOING TO TAKE THIS STUFF!! SAINTS ARE GOING DOWN IN “ONE HEARTBEAT!!”

GO FALCONS!!!!!!!!! KICK THAT NEW ORLEANS BUTT!!!!!!

SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!
This is a SECRET from a FALCON FAN. TELL EVRYBODY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

………………………”ONE HEARTBEAT, BABY!!!………………..

Sautee

October 26th, 2009
3:41 pm

Did we play awful. Oh yes, we did. Everybody from Ryan to Turner to the D.

Awful.

That said, check this out:

Since the beginning of the 08 season, only 5 teams have a better regular season record than the Falcons.

Colts: 18-4
Steelers: 17-6
Giants: 17-6
Patriots: 16-7
Vikings: 16-7
Falcons: 15-7

We’re headed in the right direction, with a young team that will only get better.

Lil Larry

October 26th, 2009
3:42 pm

This team has a long way to go before we become a consistent contender in this league. Young QB in his second year, so-so WRs, a TE at the end of his career, a hodge-podge of OL, DL, safeties and CBs. If Smith wants to build this team to compete with the Big Boys then we have to recruit bigger OL and DL to handle the better teams. I knew this was going to be a schooling for the Falcons. We are undersized, over achievers right now. Smith and company are trying to win with a patchwork team. If you want Ryan to continue to grow, get a real OL. Get a DL that can consistently get after the QB with a four man rush. Don’t get your hopes too high with this team…you’ll only be disappointed. Mularkey has–and will always be–a very predictable, conservative play caller. Who ever our DB coach is needs to get fired–our DBs aren’t even fundamentally sound in their technique playing the position. Grimes looks like a little rag doll and Houston is so lost he still doesn’t know he has to turn around and look for the ball after his third season in the NFL. Why is it these HCs in the NFL think fans are just stupid? Don’t they know we recognize garbage and B.S. when we see it and hear it?

Cannonball Butler

October 26th, 2009
3:43 pm

On Brooking:
“He might not have been the key to the Dallas defense — he finished with two tackles”
You can keep him.

MFFL007

October 26th, 2009
3:55 pm

GO COWBOYS!!!
Ok lot of comments about Atlanta was better team than Cowboys, lol.
I do agree that Atlanta is very young team, but Cowboys haven’t been playing their best football either!! Thanks for the jump start Atlanta…
GO COWBOYS!!

Saints Fan

October 26th, 2009
3:56 pm

Barry,
That “One Hearbeat” is gonna turn into a “Flatline” after Monday night down in the bayou!
beep…beep…beep…BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE you get the picture right?

tyger

October 26th, 2009
4:15 pm

Pattern developing…

Falcoons don’t play well against upper-echelon teams…
Upper echelon teams apply pressure…
Falcoons didnt invest heavily into its offensive line…
Matt Ryan is immobile…
Matt Ryan cant handle pressure…
Falcoons run overly simplistic routes for Ryan…
Overly simple plays allow aggressive DBs to jump the route…
Smoke and mirrors wont beat Super Bowl contenders…
See Saints2x, Giants, Eagles, Redskins, Panthers…
Who have the Falcoons really beaten???

It’s not JV like last year, the varsity is in town…

Falcons Hero Zero

October 26th, 2009
4:22 pm

Cowboys = The Falcons with a Legacy.

They won’t win anything..

Falcons overachieved and overrated management of talent… Cowboys under-achieve with overrated management of talent.

If Wade doesn’t survive, another big-name coach purges the roster… The same as The Falcons.

Love Brooking. He got his revenge, but he is nearly in the same boat he was with The Falcons over the last few seasons. If he ever does TV, he will be telling the audience that “it’s a young man’s game”. lolol.
So, that should never come out of his mouth.

Cannonball Butler

October 26th, 2009
4:27 pm

Great, another bandwagon Saints fan.

jberryl

October 26th, 2009
4:48 pm

Mad Donna – Coach Payton of the Saints says the same thing after each win – they have things to improve on each week. If you want a weakness in the Saints it’s their special teams play, especially Reggie Bush fielding punts – Every Who Dat gets nervous when he’s back there. Shame they can’t get Mike Bell to do it.

Decatur Native

October 26th, 2009
4:55 pm

I’m fine with the loss, were still young on both sides and once they work out the growing pains then let’s see where they stand, we bash some players very hard, but I know one of these players are gonna break out in a big way, I like the way the DB play they jusy havent learned when and when not to gamble, and yes they play like turds more often then not but they are YOUNG give em time to work it out is all I’m saying, GO FALCON’S

jberryl

October 26th, 2009
4:56 pm

I can say one thing about some Falcon fans – no patience with your QB. It takes 11 guys to play offense, with everyone … excuse me … EVERYONE doing their jobs. It only takes one guy to make the play go bust. I’m sure there is plenty of bust in the entire group if there is bust on the QB. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t bust but not all the bust is his.

Case in point – That Chicago Goober, Kyle Orten, and bust if I ever saw one … till he goes to Denver and plays where everyone seems to be doing their job – and I’d say Ryan has more talent than Kyle does. So get some patience Falcon fans and stop being such fair weather friends.

fanatic

October 26th, 2009
4:58 pm

If we can hold the other teams running game to short yardage and have the DBs commit pass interference on every pass, that will limit the passes to 15 yards. Nothing limits their passing game now. Might work.

joe

October 26th, 2009
5:05 pm

Do you really expect Brooking- a professional athlete- who gets paid millions of dollars a year- to support the team that is not paying him- if somebody was giving you that kind of money- as opposed to the pittance that your making – to actually be loyal to his OLD EMPLOYERS- I have one word to say- LOSER!

Brooking kicked your booty

October 26th, 2009
5:43 pm

Isn’t that right?

Brooking kicked your booty

October 26th, 2009
5:47 pm

They replaced Brooking with an older player after saying it ’s a young mans game. So they are liars too. Great game for Brooking!

JustaThought

October 26th, 2009
5:50 pm

Watching the Saints game yesterday, particularly in the 1st half, I just kept thinking that the Saints where going to find there rythem. And sure enough they did. They will be ready to bury the Falcons. The Superdome will be on ready and set.

Lil Larry

October 26th, 2009
5:52 pm

Hey “Brooking kicked your booty”, Keith didn’t do anything in this game. You call two tackles kicking someone’s booty? Please. Also, even if we replace Brooking with an older LB he is twice as fast and doesn’t pile jump like your boy does. You Cowboys fans act as though you’ve won the Superbowl or something. You played a very young team that still has some holes to fill. Your team has been together how long now and still having trouble with teams with losing records. What’s your excuse?

StanTMan

October 26th, 2009
5:59 pm

Com’on man,It,s only one game ,did any of us expec them to go 15 and 1,we knew the defence was weak in the passing game,at the begining of the season, we are in a rebuilding year with the defence, and our secondary is young, so lets have some patience with the powers that be and remember, records never matter when it comes to Falcons vs Saints dont’t be suprised if the unthinkable happens this week, the Saints will not go undefeated I gaurantee you,and who knows it just might be us,Oakland beat Philly earlier this season and who would have thunk that!

Good Grief

October 26th, 2009
6:07 pm

Aside from the opening drives on offense and defense of both halves I thought that this was probably the worst play called game I’ve seen the Falcons have in 2 years. I had grown a confidence with this team that I knew after half time we would make adjustments and win.

Where were the screens? dump offs? how about a delay or draw here or there on offense? Those type of things work against over aggressive defenses. This is what we used to humiliate the Niners and the Bears, but we spent most of the game sitting Ryan in the pocket trying to go down field deep.

Defensively, I was more confused at the fact that when we created pressure with blitzes that we caused problems for Romo and when we dropped back in zones we got ate alive. Why would you go away from what was working was just dumb to me. You don’t try and fix your tv if its showing a clear picture in high definition

Shawn

October 26th, 2009
6:09 pm

ATL Fans. Look we just played 2 teams in a row that had 2 weeks to perpare for us each time. No one else in the league will face that as many times as we will (4) The playbook on offense needs to be opened back up. We have to many weapons to lead the league in 3 and outs! its just stupid. I dont care what the situiation is you let Ryan make his choice from the pass and run plays. And D and O line killed us! D You should have stopped that TD before the half. WTF! 3 of you had your hands on Romo and let him go. Same thing happen in the 3rd quarter when he got away and threw one down field. And O line .. man oh man. I saw your comments there a good D! WTF is that. You are suppose to be the nasty reject line from under the earths core! Dahl not only did you cost us yards you decided to give someone a free shot on Ryan. Its a 3 step drop Dahl! There is no reason when Ryans back foot is hitting the turf on his 3rd step anyone shoudl be close enough to swipe the ball! And LASTLY! Mularky! Stop calling darn BAM runs up the middle for turner! Give the man some counter, option, and zone runs with cutbacl lane options like last year! And stop running the same plays over and over! If I see one more 3rd down bootleg hoping Roddy White gets hit on the comebalc route Im goint to BARF! Spread the D out man we have so many weapons that run excellent routes and have great hands! Anyone AGREE?

Samuel

October 26th, 2009
6:12 pm

Lest we forget, that most teams worth their salt are going to win at home. I know everybody is not satisfied with the lost to Dallas Cowboys. But to get to the next level you have to win on the road.Now being that said, I know this team is a work in progress. We had some success last year because of a weak schedule, a rookie quarterback who happen to play well and an awesome running game. Now the schedule is tougher and teams we play are better, we are not going to sneak up on anybody. You simply have to play for sixty mintues and make plays the whole game. Peria, Williams and no Jerius Norwood has hurt this team. We as fans have tasted a little success from last year, so are patients for loses is slim or none. But keep in mind you have to build a defense that’s going to sustain itself for years at a time. Can we say the Pittsburg Steelers, Baltimore Ravens etc. Atlanta Falcons haven’t build that kind of defense yet. I think the Coaching Staff gets it , But you have to work with the cards your’e dealt. Trust me if you don’t make plays on any team in the NFL, you won’t be playing for long……..

Good Grief

October 26th, 2009
6:13 pm

I will say this, it was mentioned during the game yesterday that the Falcons have the third hardest schedule through the first 8 games. Right now we’re 4-2…If by some miracle we win next week and win again and go 6-2 i would by extremely happy, but going 5-3 through our first 8 is what i said would happen and I would satisfied.

Falcon 8211

October 26th, 2009
6:15 pm

why did tye hill not play. do not tell me he does not know our scheme by now. if he does not know it by now then he will not learn it. its been 2 months already. need more pressure from dline and why is houston still on the roster. grimes aleast plays with a big heart

Falcon 8211

October 26th, 2009
6:16 pm

chris Mcallister is still out there

Falcon 8211

October 26th, 2009
6:16 pm

oh stop arm tackling too

Jonesy

October 26th, 2009
6:22 pm

Matt Ryan is over-rated. He hasn’t looked sharp all season long. Where are the downfield passes? He has a weak arm. WEAK!!!

bigdave

October 26th, 2009
6:25 pm

who is BVG?

Old Dawg

October 26th, 2009
6:32 pm

Keith Brooking was a jerk at GT. He is over-rated as an NFL linebacker and he is still a jerk. Probably taking lessons from Jerry Jones.

losttcozz

October 26th, 2009
6:34 pm

The way Dallas played was stellar, if they play like that every game they would only lose two maybe three all year….problem is they don’t. Granted this defense atlanta is working with is very young, and pretty soft, they did made some great open field tackles. The blown assignments in the secondary HAVE to stop by next week. Brees, will pick apart these exploits….sry Brent Grimes ur gonna be targeted. im bummed that the boys finally performed against my birds, but we gotta alot of coaching issues to work out

Falcon 8211

October 26th, 2009
6:35 pm

one positive j anderson looks like a keeper at dt

Alan

October 26th, 2009
6:37 pm

Offensive Line-Grade D minus
Runnings Backs-Grade D minus
Receivers-Grade D plus
Quarterback-Grade C minus

Defensive Line-Grade D plus
Linebackers-Grade D plus
Defensive Backs-Grade F-minus

Coaching Staff-Grade F

Lot of work to do, are we gonna rebound or get run over again.

GO FALCONS-GO SOUTHERN RUSH

Stop Crying 09

October 26th, 2009
6:47 pm

Simply put, the Atlanta Falcons just got beat by a better team. Stop talkin bad about the cowboys and give credit where it is due. you all just come off as a bunch of sore losers. For all of those who say that Romo is an average qb. Let me remind you that he has never had a season with a qb rating lower than 91.4. BTW, what has Matt Ryan ever accomplished in College or Pros?

becky

October 26th, 2009
7:24 pm

talk about showing “no class” i live in atlanta, am a big falcons fan, and went to the ballgame yesterday. There was a group of falcons fans sitting behind me and they were an embarassement. They were drunk, yelling the “f” word and and i not sure what was more disappointin–the play of the falcons or the drunks who showed up from atlanta

Terrell

October 26th, 2009
7:34 pm

I think people keep forgetting that the Cowboys had 2 weeks to prepare for us. 2 WEEKS!!! and if it wasn’t for that Punt Return for a TD it was only an 8 point game. That one mistake cost us. Grant it there were other things we could’ve done a lot better, but for us to play like we did and the Cowboys hitting on all cylinders and that’s all the outcome was? I forget though it was the Cowboys so any win against a team better than them is worth while right?

Terrell

October 26th, 2009
7:37 pm

Stop Crying 09,
Your Brooking had 2 tackles and he’s talking like he did something. Once again 2 weeks to prepare. With all that time you should’ve put up 50 points with this great Cowboy squad. The Cowboys were the better team that day but that’s about it.

SirReal

October 26th, 2009
7:43 pm

Is it just me or is Turner fat and slow this year?LOL

xmustang

October 26th, 2009
7:52 pm

The only thing ugier than Ledbetter’s bowtie was the Falcon defense….nuff said!

Big Mac

October 26th, 2009
8:00 pm

Folks, Take A Deep Breath, Get A “Cool” Drink And Remember This: DEFENSE Wins Ball Games 99% Of The Time!!..Always Has,Always Will!! The Falcons Are An AVERAGE Team At
The TOP Of Their Game!!! A POOR To Mediocre Team Team At The Bottom Of Their Game..
AKA Like The Meltdown Against Dallas..Dallas Is NOT A GREAT Team!! Dallas Played The Best Defense & Made The Fewest Mistakes Yesterday!! Dallas Will Be Lucky To Win 8-9 Games And The Same Holds True For The Falcons..BOTH Are AVERAGE Teams!!
Falcons Will Lose To N.O. Monday Night By 32-45 Points!! Why?? NO Pass Rush=NO Pass
Defense..D.Brees Will Set NEW Milestones In Passes/Completions And Touchdowns!!
The N.O. Saints Are One Of The Premier Or Elite Teams Of The NFL This Year..Falcons Do NOT Have A Clue !! I Would Venture To Say There Will Be A BIG Shake-Up At Flowery Branch In The Off Season..Don’t Be “Taken-Aback” By The Blockbuster Trade That WILL Take Place! I Still Think J.Snelling Is A Better All-Round Back Than M.Turner..Wonder Why He Never Got A Shot??
Like A Lot Of You I Wonder About The “No-Huddle”????? The Vertical Passing Game??
Eric Weems As A Full Time Speedy Receiver????
M.Smith Has To Be Wondering About The Offensive & Defensive Coaches!!??
What Happened To J.Abrams-Beirman?? A.W.O.L.??

Cannonball Butler

October 26th, 2009
8:25 pm

Falcons win Monday night. Those Saints gave up quite a few points at Miami and our defense will come around.

bro

October 26th, 2009
8:28 pm

COACH SMITH—LACK OF PRESSURE ON THE QB IS NOT A NEW PROBLEM. HAVE YOU NOT BEEN AT THE PREVIOUS GAMES. PRESSURE ON THE QB HAS NOT BEEN HAPPENING FOR THE FALCOMS. THE FRONT FOUR EVEN WITH JERRY IS WEAK. THE OFFENSIVE LINE HAS BEEN WEEK ON RUN BLOCKING. THE OFFENSIVE PLAYING CALLING COULD BE HANDLED BETTER BY ANY HIGH SCHOOL SENIOR QB.

Jebidillah

October 26th, 2009
9:02 pm

We played an awful game yesterday, but all the peeps jumping off the bandwagon are seriously bothering me. I mean, we’re 4-2 and we’ve had an incredibly hard schedule to start off the season. Have a little patience with a good and growing team.

trickyjack

October 26th, 2009
9:07 pm

I think the league should explain why the next four teams including Dallas have a bye week befotre they play the Falcons !!!

htwo0rider

October 26th, 2009
9:16 pm

S.D. Lucke

When was the last time the plowboys won a playoff game? ? ? ? Oh, I’d say 13 years or so. Feel free to squawk the next time America’s plowboys win a playoff game…we’ll be waiting.

FORMER FALCONS FAN!!!

October 26th, 2009
9:17 pm

***MATTY ICE!!! SH** MORE LIKE MATTY ICE CREAM!!! HE MELTED UNDER REAL PRESSURE—STOP MAKING EXCUSES***

7th ward2 atl

October 26th, 2009
9:29 pm

go saints

jlpSr

October 26th, 2009
9:36 pm

The Falcons are a good team that will rebound this week against the Saints. However, a good team will never win a super bowl.If the truth be known, we are 4 short on defense and 3 short on the O line. I like that Mike Smith is passionate and I think he is a good coach but I hope he realizes Michael Turner has lost a step.

Ron Roberts

October 26th, 2009
10:00 pm

1. Our secondary isn’t strong enough to be effective with ZERO pass rush. We aren’t GOOD there, but aren’t BAD, either; but left alone to fend off an effective pass attack, we’ll get burned. The D-LINE has to step up and our LBs need to be sent in to blitz (and be effective when doing so) more often to pressure the opposing QB.

2. Michael Turner’s not being honest with himself if he thinks the problem isn’t him. When Jason (who?) Snelling can outrush you in fewer attempts, and is the ONLY guy reeling off 10+ yard dashes while Jerious is out, it’s time to look within. You had a monstrous 2008, but it’s 2009, now, and you’re needed in the present, not the past.

3. With so much pressure being put on Ryan, I actually thought we didn’t use Gonzalez at TE nearly ENOUGH; dude’s big enough, strong enough, and capable enough, to be sitting there 3-5 yards from the line awaiting the quick dump-pass. I’ve yet to see us call that in the last 3 weeks. We’re in love with the long-ball, but sometimes that west coast TE toss is called for when the running game ISN’T getting you 3-4 yards per carry. We need to use the TE in PLACE of the run game when Turner’s not being effective.

Solloe

October 26th, 2009
10:02 pm

I’m a hardcore Falcon Fan living in a town infested with cowboys fans and we needed that game!!!!!! The falcons should have kept going with the no-huddle, if they did, it had to be a different result. And where was Michael Turner in all this??? Snelling looked like a one man wrecking crew running the ball, but Turner looked sluggish. The blockers might need to create a hole so that way he’ll have enough room to run and get a good gain.

A155MM

October 26th, 2009
10:38 pm

1. I don’t know who was more surprised yesterday; the Dallas RB who got jerked out of his shoes by J. Anderson or J. Anderson. Wish he could have done that on more than one play.
2.Say this to yourself twenty time a day; Coach Smith; give Snelling the ball till the other team stops him consistently.
3. One game is not a season; but it can start the end of one if the team keeps listening to the commentators instead of executing their assignments.
4. Mr.Blank; the taxpayers in Georgia will be happy to attend games in whatever stadium you care to pay for.

Mark

October 26th, 2009
10:45 pm

Michael Turner is tiptoeing!

stew

October 26th, 2009
11:22 pm

looking waaaaaaaaaaaaaay too much like the past.

stew

October 26th, 2009
11:25 pm

been watching this team since 1966. always hope for the best. but expect the worst. too many new faces. too much of the same ole same ole.

Chris

October 27th, 2009
12:02 am

I thought on the first drive that the Cowboys were in for a long day, but it was not to be. The Cowboys not only outplayed the Falcons but they dominated them. The Falcons should thank the Cowboys for handing them this thorough beat down a week before the Saints. It gives them an opportunity to humble themselves and really go back to the drawing board. I wish them the best next week but I saw someone comment about the Cowboys and Falcons could meet in the wildcard………You don’t want that. The Cowboys will dismantle and embarass the Falcons.

Born ATL

October 27th, 2009
12:37 am

OK!! we are a little Broke, to say the least!!!!
Mattie Ice,,,had a little meltdown,,,but remained game thru it all. But just do not possess the pocket presence to be an effective passer under pressure.
WHAT happened to the downfield pass not only this game but this year. WHERE are the screen passes, to slow down the pressure rush on MI? I have not seen a screen all year (or maybe I missed it)…
HOW is it that the line does no block for the QB, but Mike Turner is washed up? He was the one of the most productive rb’sin the league last year, everybody else IN THE LEAGUE IS AWARE of this. opposing teams prepare/gameplan to stop him not the offense. Adrian Peterson lead the NFL in rushing yards last year, the difference in him and Michael Turner is his O-Line is opening holes for him to get to the next level and Brett Farve WILL throw the ball down the field (all 30 yards) to keep defenses on their heels.
DEFENSE, our corners are weak and really do not challenge recievers for the ball. For some reason it seems we are always playing catch up to some reciever or our DB’s seem to think that thier primary function is to tackel after they allow the reciever to catch the ball. (and we dont do that well either) Somebody tell us all why did the staff allow Foxworth to flow through the organization to Baltimore, KNOWING we had nothing at those positions.
Yes we are probably going to get drugged on national TV next week. But there is hope if you believe………..

Eric C.

October 27th, 2009
12:51 am

Snelling will start soon. A better running game will help the defense, the passing game, and Mike Smith.

Eric C.

October 27th, 2009
12:55 am

I will say this about Mike Turner…he was the beneficiary of a weak schedule to start the season last year (Det, KC). The guy looked awesome in some spotty preseason action…against inferior defenses. If he’d had Det and KC again this year, he’d probably have 600 yds by now.

Supes

October 27th, 2009
1:34 am

I see the TROLLS are out in full force.

Unfortunately, their failed hero convict LOOKED like a shadow of his former self in the limited snaps he had against Washington. Infact, it was the only time their D looked dominant, when number 7 was inserted into the game. I guess you TROLLS wet your panties when he completed a 4 yard pass over the middle. Oh well, you are so predictable. Falcons lost and Ryan had a bad game, so you are all here under silly “nicknames” talking Sh8T, your jealousy of the Falcons success WITHOUT your failed HERO is amusing to watch and follow all over the AJC football related blogs. Keep hating on Ryan but he’ll still be the Falcons QB and your FAILED hero will be nothing more than a 3rd string bench warmer (ticket gimmick for people with LOW intelligence, LIKE YOU!)

trever R

October 27th, 2009
1:54 am

Smitty coached scared twice in the 2 games lost–he should have went for it in 4th qter when matty ice wanted to go for it—Also Turner needs to loose weight and increase his speed to hit the holes quiker he is wined up to tight

trever R

October 27th, 2009
2:00 am

Turner needs to stop looking for contact and increase speed –he has looked awful not even medioker lately–you cannot say its line because its the same line for snelling with very different results

trever R

October 27th, 2009
2:13 am

JimmyFalcon summed up a few things pretty good, I agree with alot of it ,knows the game of football

CaliDirtyBird

October 27th, 2009
3:20 am

These are just some of my arm chair coaching thoughts and comments. Is it just me or does anyone else see the same things???

1.) Matt Ryan seems to be looking too much to Tony Gonzalez at the expense of getting the ball down field. I also think that we’ve run less designed bootlegs and rollouts than we did last year and this has effected our ability to get the ball down field. I think we do miss Harry Douglas a little more than expected but it should be no excuse… Where is the vertical passing game????

2.) Tony Gonzalez put up good numbers and has been a huge bonus in the redzone but conversely hurt some of the chemistry that White had with Ryan as well as hurt us in the run game with average blocking especially early in the season, it has gotten a bit better and we have seemed to try to run behind him less but it is still a concern for me.

3.) Sam Baker has also been a bit off in his blocking in the few games that I spent time reviewing.

4.) If Snelling is out-rushing Mike Turner change the depth chart for a game and see if that gets Turner’s attention.

5.) Despite a lot of criticism Brent Grimes has played quite well especially against Chicago whose only receivers are over 6 feet are 3rd stringers. But for God’s sake why is he covering Austin Miles (6ft.3in.) when Tye Hill and Chevis Jackson would be better match-ups? Brent Grimes should start against any receiver 6ft or under and sit the bench against anyone taller.

6.) Chris Houston is a fairly decent CB but “HOUSTON WE HAVE A PROBLEM” in at least 3 games now you gotten caught not getting your head around and giving up big pass interference calls.

7.) Thank God they finally decided to move Jamal Anderson inside but for the third game in a row now the pass rushers in the middle have gotten out of position and let HUGE running lanes open up for the opposing QBs. I think that almost 40% of the opponent rushing yards in the last three games have been by the QBs… Thankfully the total opponent rushing yards are down but still this is a BIG problem if you ask me.

Jeff

October 27th, 2009
6:47 am

5 Things I learned from Sunday’s game.

1- Grimes is not an NFL CB. He wouldn’t even be playing on another NFL team. Cut him or place him on the PS
2- We wasted a draft pick on Tye Hill. If you are going to trade for someone play them. He could cover better with Grimes with his eyes closed. They keep saying he hasn’t learned the Defense. It appears we have a couple of other corners that haven’t learned it either.
3- We will get torched in the passing game the rest of the year. Teams will watch the tapes. We can’t cover anyone. It isn’t the D-Line covering these receivers.
4- Turner was a beast in 08. This year he is hesitant to hit the hole. We witnessed Turner punishing defensive players last year. He seems to be avoiding contact. He’s not running with a purpose. Put his butt on the sideline and let him watch Snelling run the ball with Heart until he returns to form.
5- While I realize the season is still young, we don’t have the team we thought we had. We will now lose our first two games in a row under the Ryan, Smith, Dimitroff era. Monday’s game will be ugly.

BRAD

October 27th, 2009
7:43 am

my God, reading this blog you would think the Falcons were winless?!? All th Falcons have to do is take care of home field, win 6-8 home games. Then win 3-4 away game and you’re in the playoffs. They should have wins against the Redskins, Bills, Panthers, and Bucs (2). That puts them at 9 wins, not hard to believe they win 1-2 more and get to 10-11 wins. Did you think they would go undefeated? The Cowboys almost lost to the Chiefs! Its the NFL, everyone loses games, and the Saints will lose games too. Should have lost to the Dolphins.

Stop Crying 09

October 27th, 2009
8:16 am

More excuses, you got beat by a better team. You got destroyed Sunday and that last td on the blown coverage is the only reason why the score even looked respectable. I saw some posters use the bye week as an excuse for getting beat; that would only be a legitimate argument if the game were closer. As a Cowboys fan, i overestimated the Falcons before the game, I actually was worried a lil bit. The Falcons are clearly overhyped and not for real. I would also like to thank ATL for giving us Brooking, y’all might hate him but we sure love him over here in TEXAS.

Stop Crying 09

October 27th, 2009
8:22 am

Its not my style to bash other teams on their sites but i couldnt ignore the lack of respect being shown by all of the posters. Well, yall dont have to respect us, but you sure do respect that L we gave you. Looks like all u pretty boys got punched in the mouth. Thought because ESPN was riding yall so hard and hating us so heavy that Atlanta was going to win, NOPE. I fully expect to take over the Giants in the East but if we dont, i would love to be tied with Atlanta for the final playoff spot so we could jump right over you.

boo in savannah

October 27th, 2009
9:06 am

Mike Smith don’t let Van Gorder get you fire. He has the same problems when dc at uga,gsc, he don’t know what he doing.

PJ.

October 27th, 2009
9:30 am

It is amazing to read all the gloom and doom in these pages because we lost a game. It is one game, and did anyone in the Falcons Organization say they would win them all? This is a young team that is making strides every week and every season. I will admit that I did not like Smitty’s approach in New England and that they never played well this past Sunday. I too am disappointed because I thought they could hang with the Cowboys had they played up to their abilities. However it is all part of the game, sometimes you are not as effective. Both lines will need to play better, and Turner will need to hit the holes much quicker and stop going so wide before making his cut to go up field. Ryan needs to take much better care of the Ball than he has done in the last two games.

Ricky

October 27th, 2009
9:31 am

No Huddle?? What about NO DEFENSE…!!!

Brooking, in all his years as a Falcon, never, EVER, played with that much passion. NEVER exhibited that type of leadership. Great game Kieth, you A hole.

Michael Turner: Explosive? Patient? Dude, you just ain’t playing football…….!! There is a problem somewhere we don’t know about……Pot? Unwanted pregnancy? I promise you, we don’t know the full story.

T.C

October 27th, 2009
9:52 am

Come on lets get off brooking and accept the beat down the falcons got.It aint nothing wrong with cheering your team on.When he did it playing for the sorry falcons it was o.k,but he cheer his team mates on in dallas its a problem.This aint about brooking,this is about year in and year out the falcons get the falcon fans hopes up and then become who we thought they where.The falcons just got beat by a better team the cowboys.Can you say over rated to the sorry dingy bird organization.

JeanE

October 27th, 2009
9:57 am

I still believe in this team but next week is going to be really rough against those high flying Saints. That Dallas team is nowhere near as good as we made them look! We knew the CB’s were our weakness and with no pash rush, it was exposed big time. How much worse could Tye Hill and Chris Owens be than what we’re trotting out there now? It’s scary that our best CB was a guy brought in off the street, why are the CB’s we’re drafting so bad? What’s happened to Abe? I know he’s getting double teamed but he’s also getting knocked on his butt & just plain steamrolled. What happened with that Romo TD was just a complete humiliation for our D. Turner is running like he’s got lead strapped to his feet, tip toeing through the tulips. Sit his ass & start Snelling. I’d rather go down with motivated players. Why the heck are we calling plays for Marty Booker & Weems? It is criminal that we are not utilizing Finneran! The guy is a master possession receiver, let’s run some plays for him, not just use him as a decoy, although he is an excellent blocker! I still believe in Matt Ryan, he got smacked around and made some poor decisions but he will progress, we just have to keep him upright! So, for next week…we have to keep up with them offensively to have a chance. Utilize the no huddle!! Use Snelling, run some screens. Move the damn chains! Start with the pass & then use the run. Our receivers are the strength of our offensive unit! Blitz Brees up the middle, we have no hope if he has all day to throw. Bench Grimes! Drag a guy off the street but get some size in there or we are burnt toast. Fight Falcons, go Birds!! oh and PS-Mike Smith, go for it on 4th & 2, our defense making a stand is NEVER the best option.

T.C

October 27th, 2009
10:34 am

JeanE,compare the dallas starters on offence and defence to the falcons offence and defence and tell me who have a better team? Im not even a dallas fan and can see the cowboys got better players by a long shot.

Matt "Choke" Ryan

October 27th, 2009
11:07 am

DOWNWARD TREND – LAST 4 GAMES PASSING RATINGS:

vs New England 82

vs San Francisco 110 (SF has lost 3 straight)

vs Chicago 68 (Chicago lost yesterday 45-10)

vs Dallas 66 (Dallas 1st win vs winning record opponent)

His decline is very embarrassing. Earlier in the season when they were playing teams without any wins (Miami, Carolina,etc) he was 3rd in the league in passing. After the Dallas game, he is now………

14th in the NFL with a 90 QB RATING.

All of you who are blaming everybody’s mother instead of Matt “Choke” Ryan, know the reason why.

An Observation

October 27th, 2009
11:08 am

I’m with all the folks on this blog that are wondering why the Falcons keep trying to run Turner off tackle and up the middle if it isn’t working for the entire game. Where were the adjustments during the game? Run pass play after pass play all day long moving the ball downfield until they stop you.

Grimes HAS GOT TO GO OR BE BENCHED!!! There is no way he should be a starter on any NFL team. The other CBs on the team can’t be any worst and put them in and see what they can do. They might even surprise us with their playing abilities.

An Observation

October 27th, 2009
11:25 am

NEWSFLASH to Matt “Choke” Ryan: At #14 in the NFL QB rankings, Matt Ryan is still above 21 other NFL starting QBs, so what’s your point.

By the way…..I did not see “YOUR BOY” Vick on the list (jock sniffer)…so what’s up with that?????? Did you see him last night…just PITYFUL….simply PITYFUL!!!! 1 pass for 5 yds – 3 rushes for 9 yrs….WOW…what an exciting night!!!!

Dario from Italy

October 27th, 2009
11:56 am

Well, no excuses for this loss. I don’t want to blame someone in particular, but i’m guessing who is that man wearing #33 that’s playing tailback every Sunday. Pretty sure he isn’t Mike Turner. He’s only the bad shadow of the 2008 player. I don’t know what’s the problem with him, but certainly something is affecting his playing. Hope to have back Norwood soon, and hope Snelling will be more involved in the offense. What a player he is! He can play fullback, halfback and is also a special team ace. Wow!
Also: what’s the hell is Smitty wainting to throw away Brent grimes from the starting lineup??? He is’n a player. ditto. He’s a bust. Let’s show me some Hill or Owens, i don’t think they can play worse than Grimes…
Monday i’ll lose my rest to watch the game (in Italy it will be 2.30 a.m. in the morning)…. I hope to see some turnaround, especially on offense…

m4x

October 27th, 2009
11:57 am

The Brooking handling here gave him bitterness. He was a loyal Falcons player and was set aside to make room for younger players. He has 3 or 4 more productive years and we should have handled him better. Now he is with Dallas and playing great.

Matt "Choke" Ryan

October 27th, 2009
12:01 pm

An Observation

You assume I’m a Vick fan Don’t shoot the messenger – facts are facts:

LAST 2 GAMES:

vs Chicago 2 tds 2 picks QB RATING 68

vs Dallas 2 tds 2 picks QB RATING 66

He ranks 14th in the NFL out of 32 teams – that’s right at the middle of the pack.

MEDIOCRE at best

B—U—S—T

DJ

October 27th, 2009
12:03 pm

The game turned on one play – plain and simple. Babs nails Romo at the end of the first half and the Cowboy’s are going into the locker room questioning themselves under an umbrella of boo’s cascading on them from the crowd. Lucky Romo got away.

The Cowboys got lucky and the Falcons are still learning how to win on the road. Next week they will have all their Dallas mistakes fresh on their minds. The Saints would be wise to try and keep them making mistakes but I don’t see that happening.

Time to step up..I’ll still be on the bandwagon even with a Monday night loss. What about you?

SToryoft

October 27th, 2009
12:06 pm

6-10. I’ve had it penciled in since the start of the year. Already two wins that I expected to be losses and yet I have even lower expectations than I did before. Ryan is not all he’s been promised to be. White wasn’t worth the contract. Mike Smith should know how to build a better defense than this.
Still no back to back winning seasons.

Matt "Choke" Ryan

October 27th, 2009
12:07 pm

You people are hilarious, there is nothing wrong with Turner. Turner had so much success last season because of a WEAK schedule and there was no film on Matt “Choke” Ryan because it was his 1st season.

Now after teams have had a chance to review the film, they are not concerned about being beat deep, because his arm is made of NOODLE, so they concentrate on Turner – if you blame the offensive line for the CHOKE’S poor performance, how can you expect Turner to get holes if this same line is not blocking?

You people are jokes If you bench Turner, the CHOKE will really get exposed and defenses will TEE off of him like they are hitting a golf ball.

THE CHUMP IS A BUST – Plain and simple

Matt "Choke" Ryan

October 27th, 2009
12:14 pm

TOP 15

1 Peyton Manning
2 Aaron Rodgers
3 Drew Brees
4 Matt Schaub
5 Ben Roethlisberger
6 Brett Favre
7 Kyle Orton
8 Tom Brady
9 Philip Rivers
10 Tony Romo
11 Joe Flacco
12 Donovan McNabb
13 Eli Manning
14 Matt Ryan1
15 Carson Palmer

Who Dat!!!

October 27th, 2009
12:31 pm

Can’t wait to welcome the Falcons to the Superdome on Monday!

Who Dat!!!

October 27th, 2009
12:31 pm

Enter your comments here

Rdhdkid

October 27th, 2009
12:36 pm

Grimes and Houston need to go.

Bull Malarkey

October 27th, 2009
12:53 pm

actually, dol, they did go to the no huddle sunday. On the 2nd possession, when we had just stopped them 3 & out and had a chance to go up 14-0 and make them probably quit…but I did not like going to the no huddle here. Everything WORKED on that 1st drive…you go to the no huddle as a change-up or situationally to attack. should have stuck to the script from the 1st drive. We scored, then they went 3 & out…you can’t tell me they made adjustments that stopped our offense cold that fast!!! We just tried to do something different on the 2nd possession and it didn’t work, and we let them back in it. this game could have been different, coaches.

labatal

October 27th, 2009
1:26 pm

To the ‘TruFalconFan’, from a True SAINTS Fan, you should know. Because it’s exactly what the Falcons did. Responding to the comment below.

And to all the Saints fans, enjoy your little moment in the sun because if you don’t win the superbowl it is all for nothing.

labatal

October 27th, 2009
1:26 pm

Enter your comments here

Big Bird Fan

October 27th, 2009
2:45 pm

Cheer up Falcon fans, this is the NFL and on any given sunday, monday, thursday or saturdey any team can win or any team can lose. What we need to do is find out what works for us to win and stick to it. The no huddle works but we refuse to go to it and furthermore we need to develope an attitude to score as many points a game as possible. Mix it up every game, if the running game isn’t working then go to the passing game. Good teams find a way to win and we are good team and capable of beating the Saints with a good game plan but we have to play good football all four quarters until the end of the game…………………Go Falcons !

Big Bird Fan

October 27th, 2009
2:51 pm

The Doffins almost beat the Saints with a huge lead but let up and that High Powered Offense the Saints have came back and won the game………….We have got to play four quarters of good football Falcons and put pressure on their QB and we can upset the Saints………..GO FALCONS !

jack

October 27th, 2009
3:13 pm

Here’s what’s wrong with the Falcons. Coach Smith – and we are LUCKY to have him, just can’t stop making the same mistake over and over and over.

Question: What do the Falcons do 90 per cent of the time on first and 10?

They run Turner in between the tackles. Now. Since I know this is the play, do you think the defenses know this is the play? And if they know this is the play they are going to stop it, which they did in Dallas. Then Ryan is throwing 3rd and long and the defense KNOWS he’s going to throw.

Coach Smith, PLEASE write a new script where you throw on first down at least half the time…

Grip

October 27th, 2009
3:20 pm

I a huge Falcon fan and it was hard to watch the game Sunday (Hates Dallas). First off I’m glad to see Jamal Anderson is at DT. He can be like a John Henderson type if he puts on weight, I think that’s a better position for him. I also have to say, Chris Houston is a descent cover guy with no ball skills. He is always in decent position but he can never find the ball. Maybe he needs to get his eyes checked. We should not have gotten rid of Thomas Brown he is a hard runner. I don’t know it maybe just me but Micheal Turner is “tipping” maybe he feels he don’t have anything to prove this year of what. We need Norwood healthy he is that change of pace we need. Snelling is doing a good job and he is running hard and catching the ball (Turner last year). The defense will be okay in the future. Draft more corners and we have gotten better at stopping the run. Where is Tye Hill?

43 Years of Failure

October 27th, 2009
3:28 pm

You can’t escape fate………

Next season my name will be “44 Years of Failure”

Row3

October 27th, 2009
3:31 pm

TOP 14

1 Peyton Manning 12th Season 1 Superbowl
2 Aaron Rodgers 5th Season
3 Drew Brees 9th Season
4 Matt Schaub 6th Season
5 Ben Roethlisberger 6th Season 2 Superbowls
6 Brett Favre 19th Season 2 Superbowls
7 Kyle Orton 5th Season
8 Tom Brady 10th Season 3 Superbowls
9 Philip Rivers 6th Season
10 Tony Romo 7th Season
11 Joe Flacco 2nd Season
12 Donovan McNabb 11th Season 1 Superbowl
13 Eli Manning 6th Season 1 Superbowl
14 Matt Ryan 6 Games into 2nd Season

The stats don’t look bad when you take a true look at whats ahead of you. Ryan/Flacco are in good company at this stage in their career.

That’s 10 Superbowls!

chuck

October 27th, 2009
4:09 pm

The Falcons offense reminds me of Georgias offense. Slow plodding and boring. No diversity.

PaulWinchester

October 27th, 2009
4:12 pm

I know coach Smith took the blame for the loss to Dallas. That shows what a class guy coach Smith is. I believe the Falcons secondary was exposed by Dallas this week. The same exact thing happened when New England beat us weeks ago. I had said at the beginning of the season that although the Falcons upgraded their team by bringing in Tony Gonzales while adding a couple more key parts; the losses of Lawyer Malloy and James Foxworth would be greatly felt. I WAS RIGHT. The Falcons secondary last year was better than it is this year. Whenever a GREAT wide receiver comes in, Randy Moss, Austin Mills; Marcus Colston; you will have to cover those guys closely or you will get torched. I dont know what the Falcons will do on Monday night because they are going to face a team that is averaging 40 points a game. The Falcons will have to score at least 10 points a quarter just to possibly force the game into overtime. Last year the Falcons had one of the best cover guys Ive ever seen come into the league in James Foxworth. Unfortunately, the Falcons didnt think he was all that great and decided to cut him. I believe if the Falcons still had Lawyer Malloy AND James Foxworth this year, the Falcons would have been on their way to a superbowl victory this season. Unfortunately I dont think they will get it. See if you have weaknesses in your secondary you cant win BIG in the national football league. Period. Ive never seen it happen. I think that two of the biggest reasons why the Falcons were 11-5 last year were Lawyer Malloy and James Foxworth. Both integral pieces are gone. Oh well good luck to the Falcons against the Saints on Monday Night Football. Prediction. Saints 67. Falcons 10.

43 Years of Failure

October 27th, 2009
4:22 pm

It’s funny how when the team wins, it’s all because of the quarterback…..but

When the team loses it’s because of the Running Back, Receivers, Tight End, Offensive Line & Defense………

That’s hilarious

Row3

October 27th, 2009
4:26 pm

With the signing of RB Aaron Stecker, it makes me think Norwood will be back later rather than sooner.

Moore to the IR, looks like we spent our 09 draft, on 2010 picks!

Uh Oh............

October 27th, 2009
4:28 pm

Moore……………..Done

Looks like the brilliant Dimitroff can really draft them……….

Jerry……………..Damaged goods

Moore…………….Damaged goods

The Saints might score 100 points

Uh Oh............

October 27th, 2009
4:29 pm

Don’t forget the 2010 2nd rounder going to the Chiefs.

Damn Dimitroff is a genius I tell you

Quote Of The Day

October 27th, 2009
4:40 pm

FROM DALLAS REPORTER:

Getting to Matt Ryan was one of the Cowboys’ keys going into the game and by the fourth quarter the second-year quarterback was seeing ghosts.

What a loser

Quote Of The Day

October 27th, 2009
4:42 pm

Ryan commits three turnovers against Dallas
Matt Ryan wasn’t his sharpest against Dallas on Sunday, going 19-of-35 for 198 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Ryan also fumbled twice, losing one of them.

Glenn

October 27th, 2009
4:44 pm

So now it looks like the Falcons top 2 draft choices are BOTH on the DL for the rest of the season. We knew they both were injury prone coming into the draft, yet the Draft gurus took a chance on both of them and lost big time, now our defense is suffering, big time.

Maybe they got lucky their first draft on board? They made a good free agent signing (Turner) and a good trade (Gonzales) outside of the first year’s draft, then they flunked year two. Year three looks to be critical now.

Quote Of The Day

October 27th, 2009
4:46 pm

For the Cowboys, this was a statement; for the Falcons, this was an ugly, potentially discouraging day. In their postgame comments, the Falcons engaged in little sugar-coating, not that there was much point. What had happened was simply too obvious: outside of an opening drive that went methodically 80 yards down the field and resulted in a Roddy White touchdown, they had been man-handled.

5 things we learned from the Dallas game | Atlanta Falcons with D … | NFL Tickets News

October 27th, 2009
4:50 pm

[...] Link: 5 things we learned from the Dallas game | Atlanta Falcons with D … [...]

Quote Of The Day

October 27th, 2009
4:53 pm

Cowboys-Falcons: Dallas Dominates Matt Ryan and Co. in Statement Win

The Dallas Cowboys came into Sunday knowing their game against the Falcons was a statement game, and the Cowboys made one on both sides of the ball as they claimed a convincing, 37-21 victory

Quote Of The Day

October 27th, 2009
4:58 pm

The Falcons aren’t getting the offense or defense that they had last season. They were the second best team at rushing last year and this season they sit ranked 19th. Their overall offense sits ranked 19th with a 17th ranked passing game. As for defense they struggle mightily. They are ranked 25th overall with a 26th ranked pass defense and 23rd ranked rush defense. Going up against the Saints deadly high powered offense is going to prove tough.

Quote Of The Day

October 27th, 2009
5:01 pm

The New Orleans Saints are on pace to shatter the NFL record for points in a season and nobody has been able to keep the pace this year. That point was proven no better than last week when the Miami Dolphins went ahead of the Saints, 24-3, in the first half, only to collapse in a 48-36 loss at home. It was the fourth time the Saints have scored at least 40 points this season, and the sixth time in six games they won by at least 10 points. As indicated, they will give 10 points to Atlanta this weekend when the NFC South rivals meet on Monday Night Football. Early lines set a -110 payout both ways and the over/under is 54.

Cannonball Butler

October 27th, 2009
5:50 pm

Time for dinner, kid.

hyperion

October 27th, 2009
8:01 pm

Hey James Thomas: The word is “secede” not “succeed”, moron. But when it comes to Texans, “succeed” is a fairly accurate adjective…we tend to do that alot. As for fat asses, I’m sure “southern cookin” Georgia has its fair share.

rockie

October 27th, 2009
8:03 pm

Honesty is a great virtue: The Falcons disappointed me Sunday. However, my head is no longer in the clouds. where do i start? First, the Falcons were overrated (obviously). The O line is what everyone bagged on them about 2 years ago, last year was an anomially. Michael Turner is a “backup” after all. Michael Jenkins is a non catching, heartless beeyatch. the D-Line is too small and can’t tackle a lick (w/the exception of Bierman and Abe some times). the DB’s have been horrific since Ray Buchanon left. they draft corners and safeties and none of them pans out. which leads me to my next critique: specifically, Grimes shouldn’t be in the NFL. Houston is a backup at best. Jackson was just a poor draft choice. Moore was a non factor draft. DeCoud is no better than the aged Malloy we got rid of. Who the hell is VanGorder??? Emmit Thomas, appreciate your contribution to he NFL, but please resign or retire. Mularky, no wonder you were fired in Buffalo. Smitty you should take the blame for the staff you hired not the play of your pathetic players though. Get Romeo Crennel to run your defense, Herm Edwards to head up the DB coaching and find a 21rst century thinking offensive coordinator to really make “the process” worthwhile.

Quote Of The Day

October 27th, 2009
9:19 pm

rockie

So basically what you are saying is when the team wins it’s because of Ryan but if they lose it’s because of everybody else.

You are retarded

Quote Of The Day

October 27th, 2009
9:31 pm

D-LED:

Do me a huge favor. This is in response to your fellow moderator and since I was banned from his site, please let him know if he wants to have a larger blog pool, like yours, Mark’s and Jeff’s, he needs to stop being so biased and borderline racist.

Anytime someone voices their opinion about Ryan – they get banned.

Anytime someone disagrees with his “favorite blogger list” – he bans them.

Basically, he only encourages “pro-D3″ opinions and that’s why he only gets the same 7 bloggers on each thread.

Thanks D-LED and keep up the good work.

Dawson Devitt (D3)

October 27th, 2009
8:32 pm
Just a question for my Cage brethren………………….

Any wonder why some people post on the Falcons, but don’t post in here? Just wanted to get you alls thoughts, because there’s always bunches of Falcon fans that are on other AJC Blogs (Schultz, DLed, Sports Talk) that never come in here.

Any theories

Link Report this comment

Falcon 8211

October 27th, 2009
10:12 pm

i hope we sign a cb like mcallister or mckenzie both could cover better than what we got now. tye hill must be terrible because he should already have been houston and grimes out already. yes matt had a bad day sunday. he is not going to be perfect every game

Falcon 8211

October 27th, 2009
10:15 pm

i just hope the aints do not break 50 on us on national tv . i still believe in the falcons just do not play that bad again this year

Deborah

October 28th, 2009
8:44 am

To gdg73: Always check your facts before writing on paper, when I was paying tuition it was and still is Division II unless it was changed last night. I will be calling Coach Mac to see if they changed since Saturday. Have a very nice Day

Jmallorca

October 29th, 2009
6:22 pm

The Falcon Defensive line was inept at creating constant pressure, and our secondary is our biggest weakness due to injuries and lack of a dominant presence up front. We drafted Peria Jerry to fill this need, we lack depth on both our lines that will come in time. Last year was great but we pplayed a much easier schedule, our run game suffers from our inconsistent offensive line play and lack of desire and timidity that is Michael Turner. His big games have all come from playing weaker teams, he goes down behind the line of scrimmage too easily and too often. Any chance the Falcons have of making the playoffs this year will be determined Monday night, can the second year quarterback Matt Ryan hold pace with Drew Brees and company? Yes the Falcons have a shot at bringing the Saints back down to earth, look at the schedules who beat who. The Saints who dey?

Sautee

October 29th, 2009
8:14 pm

“Anytime someone voices their opinion about Ryan – they get banned.”

Awww, poor baby. Sounds like whining to me. As does all the Ryan B.S.

Whining because Vick let you down. He let ME down too but I don’t have to whine about it or attack anybody else because of it. Of course, I’m an adult.

hey sd unlucky

October 31st, 2009
9:20 am

you sure are talking big for a cowpatty team that has blew it,s chances because of romeo and the cowpattyets playoff chances and now you got the falcons dead weight in keith cry babybrooking (c on man)

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5 things we learned from the Dallas game

259 comments Add your comment

We’ve Moved!

About Atlanta Falcons

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