7 things wrong with the Falcons
Sporting Atlanta's version of the cheese heads, the ice heads Chris Elliott, Brian Sutton and Danny Boswell (left to right) cheer for Falcons quarterback Matt "Matty Ice" Ryan as he takes the field to play the Green Bay Packers at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta on Sunday, Oct. 9, 2011. Curtis Compton / ccompton@ajc.com
FLOWERY BRANCH – The Falcons (2-3) will try to circle the wagons against Cam Newton and the Carolina Panthers (1-4) at 1 p.m. Sunday at the Georgia Dome.
The one thing that sticks out from our chats with Falcons coach Mike Smith this week is notion that the coaches and players have to work together to right their ship.
“It starts with the coaching staff and the players,” Smith said. “We’re only going to fix this together. We’re not going to fix this individually. It’s not one person, it’s not one thing.”
Man, it sure isn’t one thing. Here’s my little list of 7 things that need some fixing.
- Penalties. They have 32 penalties through five games after being the least penalized team in the league last season with 58 penalties. Tyson Clabo’s holding made sense under the “you can’t let the quarterback get killed” doctrine. Roddy White’s penalty made sense, too. He was complaining about the late hit – that wasn’t called – when Ryan took a pop while sliding. The illegal substitution and illegal formation penalties are pee wee football penalties. Those are the ones that must be eliminated.
Matt Ryan calls an audible at the line of scrimmage during 1st half action against the Packers. Curtis Compton / ccompton@ajc.com
- Where’s the Ice Man? Quarterback Matt Ryan is not playing well (seven touchdowns, six interceptions). He had his fourth-lowest passer rating (53.6) in four seasons against the Packers. He had a 49.3 on Dec. 28, 2008 in a season-finale 31-27 win over St. Louis, a 46.6 against New Orleans in a 35-27 loss on Nov. 2, 2009, and 29.3 in the second game of his career, a 24-9 loss to Tampa Bay. The Falcons are 16-0 when he has a passer rating of 100 or more. They need the razor-sharp 100-point man going forward.
- Pass defense. The secondary is still hemorrhaging yards. They are giving up 294.2 yards per game which ranks 28th in the league. Chicago’s Jay Cutler (312), Seattle’s Tarvaris Jackson (319) and Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers (396) have all passed for more than 300 yards against the Falcons. (If Jermichael Finley doesn’t have two drops, Rodgers would have passed for more than 400 yards.)
- Pass rush. Defensive end Ray Edwards, signed to help the pass rush, only has one sack and John Abraham is battling another groin injury. Edwards acknowledged that he has been slowed by knee surgery that he had during the lockout. “It’s getting better and better each week, and it’s starting to show in my play,” Edwards said. Also, Edwards, who was signed to a six-year, $30 million contract, eased into a new role. With Minnesota he rushed solely from left end. The Falcons flip-flop their ends depending on the matchups, so he’s played some left and right end. “I’ve adjusted,” Edwards said. “Actually, my first sack came from the right side. I definitely have adjusted to it.” Perhaps the Falcons need to drop the whole notion of harassing the quarterback and actually getting them on the ground.
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Packers kicker Matt Crosby nails a long field goal over the reach of Falcons defensive end Ray Edwards. Curtis Compton / ccompton@ajc.com
Protect the Ice Man. The offensive line, with one new starter, has given up 14 sacks and 35 quarterback hits. However, they have given up only one sack in the last two games.
- Run game: Michael Turner rushed for 100 yards against Chicago and 114 against Philadelphia. The “Ground and Pound” attack has sprung Turner for 20 yards against Tampa Bay, 70 against Tampa Bay and 56 against Green Bay.
- Third down woes. The Falcons are allowing the opposition to convert on 46.3 percent of their third downs, which is 30th in the league. Curtis Lofton has a plan. “Put pressure on the quarterback,” Lofton said. “Get sacks. Sacks equal great coverage and great coverage equals sacks. We have to just keep working together and playing together as a team.” Ask if he could pinpoint the issue, Lofton said, “It’s a combination of different things.”
–D. Orlando Ledbetter, The Atlanta Falcons beat blog
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347 comments Add your comment
CAN I BLOG?
October 13th, 2011
12:43 pm
MATT RYAN IS NOT LIKE OTHER PENNSYVANIA Q.B’S LIKE MARINO AND MONTANA!
HE DOES NOT HAVE THE ARM STRENGTH!
MATT NEEDS TO EAT SOME BISCUITS AND CORNBREAD!
Chandler going Deep..
October 13th, 2011
12:46 pm
If the front 7 play like they did in that 1st half against GB. The birds will pull it out @ home…
But because of Ryan and MM it will be a struggle to the end…
Does not help to have Jim Mora the 3rd as acting HC either….
monty
October 13th, 2011
12:47 pm
Carolina with their 1st year QB will beat us, and he’ll throw for another 300+ yards. We will struggle to score 16 points, they score 24. Our program will be exposed. We had what 6-7 pro-bowlers last year and got waxed by Green Bay. That was an abberation they said, Uh, No it wasn’t. Slow offense with slow developing plays, defense can’t sack anyone. Opposing QB’s have 4-5 seconds to survey the field most passing plays, even Cam Newton will take advantage of our lack of pressure. Watch and see.
ctfalconsfan
October 13th, 2011
12:48 pm
No excuses Chris we will certainly beat Carolina but we won’t beat them 55-0 like we should!
Puma
October 13th, 2011
12:49 pm
This is definitely not the start we wanted, but things will come around. The offensive line already looks much better than in Week 1 & 2. Two things have stuck out for me – bad punter and Matty not playing too well, missing some opportunities or not putting the ball where he needs to.
Just FYI – Packers were 3-3 after week 6 last year, right where we should be after playing Carolina.
I would rather us get hot at the end of the year vs last year where we were so good in the beginning to middle of the season.
ctfalconsfan
October 13th, 2011
12:50 pm
Cam Newton will be KO’d!
loyal falcon
October 13th, 2011
12:50 pm
The most glaring problem is our ability to adjust after halftime and in the 3rd quarter. When we came back from halftime in that Green Bay game and threw 3 straight passes in our first series I knew we were in trouble. Why the heck would you go away from what we did in the first half. RUN THE BALL TO SET UP THE PASS!!!! Dang!
DC Dirty Bird
October 13th, 2011
12:50 pm
Thanks DLed for providing stats that folks that don’t like Ryan ignore. When he’s upright and not being hurried, the guy can carve up any defense. A better offensive coordinator would make Ryan look a lot better. Remember this, San Diego drafted Phillip Rivers to replace Drew Brees. I’ll even go this far, remember when THEY said that Cam Newton wasn’t ready to function as an NFL QB. That he was a multi-year project. How many “project” QB’s throw for 400 plus twice in a season?
Offensive coordinators can make QB’s look really good. Take note Mike Smith!!!
monty
October 13th, 2011
12:50 pm
Matty Ice with that deer-in-the-headlights look, Aaron Rodgers was all smiles and looked like he was as comfortable as playing in a back yard pickup game.
Chandler going Deep..
October 13th, 2011
12:51 pm
No doubt now after 5 games Najeh prediction was on target, Ryan is the least talented QB in the Southeast for sure…..
Don Nelson
October 13th, 2011
12:52 pm
At this level of play, the major difference is coaching & leadership. The Falcons are missing both.
Big Ron
October 13th, 2011
12:56 pm
The falcons all the sudden are having coaching issues first of all I wish people would stop saying Matt Ryan’s arm strength is not there I have seen him throw some lasers so get off the QB the reason he’s looking a lil off this year is because the play calling has been predictable and his run game is weak and he is getting more pressure then usual so u add all that up ur gonna have a rough season. The birds need a franchise LT a anchor to solidify the line and they need a DT that rush the passer from up the middle basically the falcons front lines are kinda weak and most good teams have excellent front lines if the falcons fix their trenches Matt Ryan can prove he can lead us to a title.
loyal falcon
October 13th, 2011
12:56 pm
We seriously have to get things together. We aren’t looking good at all man. Something is terribly wrong and they need to figure it out….and Fast!
goodgod
October 13th, 2011
12:56 pm
As long as matty ice keeps on melting, the falcon will melt with him. Imagine if cam newton had his weapons. matt is the king of short passes and 3 and out. time to punt. we punt so often the defense is tired out by halftime i’m sure they feel like they have played a whole game already. no defense can hold up under that assault. the offesive play calling is too predictable. at the start of the 2nd half just rush our qb b/c we would stopped running the ball. no wonder we been outscored in the 3rd quarter this year. at the rate we’re going two wins after five games, we will go 6-10 for the season. i’m done watching these bird fry, i’ll just catch the highlights or more accurately the low lights the next day. our schedule only gets harder, we face the saint twice. our division will come down to new orleans and carolina. there is always next year!
loyal falcon
October 13th, 2011
12:58 pm
@ Big Ron…i’m with you on that one brother.
IceMattyIce
October 13th, 2011
12:58 pm
Matty Ice was the reason JJ strained his hammy with the out of bounds overthrow.
Really?
October 13th, 2011
1:00 pm
The only thing wrong with this team is you people who are ready to burn the stadium down because they lost 3 games. So what big deal we went from Bobby (ballless) Petrino and dog fighting to winning football in one season. There are problems with this team every team has them even the Packers and the Patriots but coaches fix problems not players, players play. The coaches need to let these guys play and stop playing so conservatively, reminds me of Mike Bobo messing up my dawg’s games.
done
October 13th, 2011
1:00 pm
7 things wrong
1. mularkey
2. vangorder
3. baker
4. bosher
5. robinson
6. owens
7. smitty – you cant keep doing the same thing and expect a different result
done
October 13th, 2011
1:02 pm
add Dimitroff to the list
Chandler going Deep..
October 13th, 2011
1:05 pm
I am not convinced that even with 5 All Pro O-lineman in front of Ryan that he can get it done because of his lack of accuracy/velocity and inconsistent throws with the short ball and long ball…
Mularkey is covering for this guy..Even the NFL experts said this guy has major accuracy problems from his college days(22 TO’s, senior year) and it has not improved! Its being exposed by these playoff teams they have been playing in the 1st 3rd of the schedule…
IceMattyIce
October 13th, 2011
1:08 pm
Flipflop any QB in our division with MR and honestly espouse that our record wouldn’t be better…even with all our other deficiencies. You cannot.
HasBeen
October 13th, 2011
1:10 pm
I really only have 1/2 of a game to go by…not a big TV guy. Saw the 1st 1/2 of the GB game and that was some of the best play calling and execution I have ever seen. Obviously going by the other posts, that is not the norm….too bad. fell asleep thinking the Falcons were taking GB to the woodshed.
Chandler going Deep..
October 13th, 2011
1:13 pm
The NFL is a passing league now! If your star QB is averaging less than 6.5 yards per pass play your not playoff bound! Forget about an NFC Championship appearance.
V*ick was only in his 3rd year when he took the Falcons to an NFC Championship at 23 years of age!
JSS
October 13th, 2011
1:13 pm
@ Big Ron, you must be mistaking Lasik eye surgery for laser throws? 6.64 Ryan is a helleva thrower within 7 yards!
P Rose
October 13th, 2011
1:14 pm
Let’s see, according to this article, they can’t run the ball, the quarterback is playing poorly, the offensive line can’t protect him, the defensive line can’t rush the passer, the defensive backs can’t cover, they have too many penalties, and they can’t convert on third down. Is that all? Other than that, the team looks solid.
SirReal
October 13th, 2011
1:16 pm
@ John S. Bradford, IMO, is stronger and smarter than Ryan. He shows a toughness Ryan doesnt have. Its genetic. You either have it or you dont and Ryan doesnt have that warrior mentality to me. With Fitzpatrick, yeah I knew I’d get some backlash.lol What we have with him is a guy who has decent skills but a better COACHING staff that brings out his abilities. I know its hard to look at an Ivy Leaguer like that. I understand but give him the season. You’ll see.
@Ron Roberts Its not about records. Its about TALENT and the predecessor had more. Period. Get over it. You kinda sound like the media always praising a guy who has done nothing but choke in big games.lol By the way, I like the “get real” thing. Nice job. Pretty funny.
@DC Dirty Bird Thats right. Im not but I still have the smarts to know its not about “race”. We’re all extensions of the human familybut i guess the antebellum south mentality still hovers. If you look at my post in reference to Mr. Rodgers I said last but certainly not least.lol It’s called saving the best for last good sir.
Guys the team isnt going anywhere this year so lets just enjoy it bc there will be a new regime that can hopefully adjust to the short comings of a guy we shouldnt have built the team around.
IceMattyIce
October 13th, 2011
1:17 pm
MR cannot win a shootout…as evidenced by that whooping GB put on us in the playoffs. Underthrew Jenkins in the endzone for an interception. TD all the way. Then stared down Roddy for a pick six. This is his 4th year and I can’t believe it’s being said the he needs more time. Now if he had the Patriots offensive line, he’d be more successful. But even then he’d never win a shootout.
Jim (not Mora)
October 13th, 2011
1:17 pm
Uhhh…was that 7 thing wrong or 70?
Willyum Androoz
October 13th, 2011
1:19 pm
a time honored tradition; Atlanta pro teams playing down to the competition. Some things never change.
madashell
October 13th, 2011
1:20 pm
ctfalconsfan. I have been one for seems like forever, so how easy we forget though. Your rightbut, before then loosing seemed to be the norm, but now I guess I expect a little more than the past so it is easier to be more disappointed in all of our short comings as a whole. It frustrates me that it seems so obvious what the problems are, but the coaches are blind. I just dont get it.
SirReal
October 13th, 2011
1:21 pm
@DC Dirty Bird Also that was well said about OC making QBs look good. I totally agree and that why i mentioned Fitzpatrick. The guy has the Bills beleiving again and they really do look at him as their leader. Why? Because Chan Gailey and Co. have done a good job so far of coaching.
mike
October 13th, 2011
1:24 pm
Figure out a way to throw a screen pass to Turner..As it is now if Turner’s in the game then Turner runs on 1st down for 3 yards and on second down Turner gets tackled behind the line of scrimmage for a loss of 2 yards…..
Chandler going Deep..
October 13th, 2011
1:28 pm
Golden Arm Mathew Stafford former UGA Great in his 3rd season has passed Matt Ryan by…………
Chandler going Deep..
October 13th, 2011
1:29 pm
bench Turner asap!
ctfalconsfan
October 13th, 2011
1:32 pm
@ madashell I hear you .. agree I guess we expect more nowadays than the old days under the Smith Family.
I have to believe that Coach Smith and his staff are working hard to right the ship but it is frustrating that our high powered and talented offense continues to sputter..
Let’s hope a good 55-0 victory over Carolina will start us rolling for the rest of the season!!!
For Real
October 13th, 2011
1:32 pm
2011 first 5 games:
Week 1: 31-47 for 319 yrds 7yrds/ATT 0 TD 1 INT 5 SACKS vs CHI
Week 2: 17-28 for 195 yrds 7yrds/ATT 4 TD 2 INT 4 SACKS vs PHI
Week 3: 26-47 for 330 yrds 7yrds/ATT 1 TD 1 INT 4 SACKS vs TAM
Week 4: 28-42 for 291 yrds 7yrds/ATT 1 TD 0 INT 0 SACK vs SEA
Week 5: 18-32 for 167 yrds 5yrds/ATT 1 TD 2 INT 1 SACK vs GB
2010 first 5 games:
Week 1: 27-44 for 252 yrds 5.7yrds/ATT 0 TD 1 INT 2 SACKS vs PIT
Week 2: 21-32 for 225 yrds 7yrds/ATT 3TD 0 INT 1 SACK vs ARI
Week 3: 19-30 for 228 yrds 7.6yrds/ATT 2 TD 0 INT 2 SACKS vs NO
Week 4: 26-43 for 273 yrds 6.3yrds/ATT 1 TD 2 INT 3 SACKS vs SF
Week 5: 16-28 for 187 yrds 6.7yrds/ATT 1 TD 2 INT 2 SACKS vs CLE
2011 sacks: 14
2010 sacks: 10
2011 TD: 7
2010 TD: 7
2011 INT: 6
2010 INT: 5
2011 ATT: 196
2010 ATT: 177
Chandler going Deep..
October 13th, 2011
1:35 pm
Z-e-r-o playoff wins…………….
How many has Flaco won?………….Crickets…………………….
Chandler going Deep..
October 13th, 2011
1:37 pm
one made FG from being 1-4……
aytunstopable
October 13th, 2011
1:37 pm
Honestly i feel atl wins sunday if abraham isn’t hurt. They would ahve hit Rogers more. I mean Edwards needs to step it up. and we need a more blitz. Because its no longer just Drew Brees that can hit us. we need to blitz. and the secondary needs to do a btter job because i’m tired of seeing 15 yard plus completions. I feel the DL is fine our LBs are some of the best in the league but aren’t used right.
Matt Ryan has arm strength. I’m guessing the ones that say he doesn’t are band wagoners. And if you want to know why we have no lng yardage playes. He gets hit. or the defense is making sure they can’t do it. Againt Chicago week one he had a good game but youa ctually think the bears were going to let them show case a long throw? Also we need to be more agressive on offense. And last i checked we may have only 1 new starter on OL but don’t forget OL field marshal has only played in two games.. two and centers mean alot if you’ve saw the jets. But yal chill the hell out its just week 6 come back in 2 weeks and if we are 4-4 or worse then start worrying but until then expect them to be 5-3 come week 9 or 10 whenever the bye week is because i can’t remember.
MikeJ
October 13th, 2011
1:40 pm
What good does it do to draft an exceptional pass receiver and a deep threat if our passer can’t get him the ball? Enjoyed watching Matthew Stafford throw the long ball successfully against Chicago, even though I consider myself a Tech fan.
I agree that a three man pass rush is absurd against any pro quarterback and just plain stupid against the most likely to be 2010 NFL MVP. The thing that gets me is we just do not learn from our mistakes and get better. We’re getting worse.
nostrada... oh whatever
October 13th, 2011
1:41 pm
Yeah, the “Matty Ice” name is baseless, pointless, and meaningless. The infamous slide short of a first down against Green Bay really tells what he is made of. Falcons did wrong by going 13-3 (should have been closer to 11-5) which made them think they were an elite team. Heck no they are not!
No true leader. Just mouths talking.
You folks better write down your harsh comments for the pregame show now, so you won’t forget anything.
nostrada... oh whatever
October 13th, 2011
1:42 pm
I meant “postgame” show.
Chandler going Deep..
October 13th, 2011
1:42 pm
When your Qb is misfiring all over the place in quarters 2,3, and 4 it just take the momentum out your teams mojo…
And it wears down your defense….
This team needs to win 8 of 11 to get in.. That is going to be a huge mountain to climb for this QB?
They may only win 4 or 5 more> Game over…
JSS
October 13th, 2011
1:43 pm
“Againt Chicago week one he had a good game but youa ctually think the bears were going to let them show case a long throw?”
Good thing you don’t coordinate the Lions!
tjhook
October 13th, 2011
1:52 pm
SirReal, I endorse your last posts. And I believe Matt Ryan needs a visit from Jon Gruden to see just how well he has progressed as a quarterback BECAUSE I am NOT being entertained when he plays.
mark
October 13th, 2011
1:53 pm
dimitroff its bad its sad to accept it but its the true all the picks have been bad. ryan,baker,jerry,owens i only think lofton and whiterspoon are good picks
alpha9
October 13th, 2011
2:00 pm
Last time we drafted a dumb guy that was talented he went to prison and nearly destroyed a franchise..The Smart Guy came in and gave the fans something to be excited about…I agree coaching seems to be very predictable….But lets see the whole thing through first
For Real
October 13th, 2011
2:00 pm
Matt’s last 10 games (2010/2011)
20-34 for 227yrds 6.7yrds/ATT 1 TD 1 INT 1 SACK vs CAR QBR(old): 76.5
20-35 for 174yrds 5yrds/ATT 3 TD 1 INT 1 SACK vs SEA QBR: 87.1
15-29 for 147yrds 5.1yrds/ATT 1 TD 0 INT 1 SACK vs NO QBR: 77.9
22-32 for 226yrds 7.4yrds/ATT 2 TD 0 INT 1 SACK vs CAR QBR: 110.9
20-29 for 186yrds 6.4yrds/ATT 1 TD 2 INT 5 SACK vs GB QBR: 69
31-47 for 319yrds 7yrds/ATT 0 TD 1 INT 5 SACKS vs CHI QBR: 76.5
17-28 for 195yrds 7yrds/ATT 4 TD 2 INT 4 SACKS vs PHI QBR: 91.5
26-47 for 330yrds 7yrds/ATT 1 TD 1 INT 4 SACKS vs TAM QBR: 75.7
28-42 for 291yrds 7yrds/ATT 1 TD 0 INT 0 SACK vs SEA QBR: 94.4
18-32 for 167yrds 5yrds/ATT 1 TD 2 INT 1 SACK vs GB QBR: 55.1
alpha9
October 13th, 2011
2:02 pm
how do you win 13 games and it’s supposed to be 11..that is the dumbest thing i’ve ever heard..you won 13 because the other team lost 13 times…
JSS
October 13th, 2011
2:03 pm
Spin, spin, spin…