Falcons presser: Blank was ‘angry’ with season

Someone slammed M Bosher earlier. Check the #s. 73% of his punts resulted in a fair catch or were down inside the 20. Only two punters were better and he led the league in yards per return. Yes, that is in large part due to the ST but Bosher is not the problem.

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Bank needs to sign “Pee Wee Herman” to take over at QB. Howdy Doody had his shot and he went 0 for 3. Probably would not see a significant difference. BTW, Turner is a work horse. The O.C. did not know how to use him right. Trade Turner if you are not going to use him and get a great player or draft.

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Great Article

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/09000d5d825e74da/article/falcons-fall-into-dome-trap-need-to-be-honest-in-evaluation?module=HP11_content_stream

The Falcons have fallen into the dome trap: evaluating the teams’ overall talent at home, instead of on the road, where the purest evaluation must take place.

They clearly misjudged the overall talent level on defense, as their most effective player is still aging defensive end John Abraham. Not Ray Edwards, who they signed to a big contract last offseason. Not Dunta Robinson, who inked another big deal two years ago. Not Peria Jerry, whom they drafted in the first round back in 2009. Not Sean Weatherspoon, another first-round pick in ‘10. Outside of Abraham and corner Brent Grimes, this defense desperately needs a fresh influx of talent, particularly at safety and defensive tackle.

On offense, Atlanta never solved glaring problems on the line. Right guard was a weak spot all season, as the Falcons couldn’t figure out the right combination of Joe Hawley, Mike Johnson and Garrett Reynolds on the interior. Nor could they find a solution at left tackle; former first-round pick Sam Baker was ineffective and had to be replaced by free agent Will Svitek.

With all of these issues, does Atlanta sound like a team that’s a player or two away? No way. And that’s why the humiliating loss to the Giants must be used as a measuring stick for every component of the team. The Falcons cannot hide behind a shiny home record and believe they’re on the cusp of taking the next step. They are a good team, not a great team. Atlanta must identify core of players who are good enough to win on the road, and let the others move on.

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Well, I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes. Check out this article on Yahoo sports. Look at about the 6th paragraph. It’s a quote from MM about his new position with Jacksonville. http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/AP-source-Jaguars-request-to-interview-Mularkey-88206712

Unfreakenbelievable!!!!!!!!

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From where will these suddenly coveted big, nasty OL guys come? They obviously won’t be found in the lower rounds of the draft as that approach hasn’t yielded much! Maybe St. Louis will let us have Harvey back.

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Matt Ryan needs to play like he did his first year, when he didn’t know anything. Now that he has become so cerebral he has developed the Yipes. He does have the problem with the long ball, and is not very mobile, so he needs some beef in the OL to give him a good 4 seconds in the pocket, and this will give the receivers another second or two to get open. I think it might work out.

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We have TONS of issues in Atlanta when it comes to our NFL team! Their ability and plan for success is certainly #1. But fan support – amongst the transplants (like me) is clearly #2. But #3 in my book is the high-school journalism of the AJC and reporters like “D-Led” I long for the day when AJC hires sports reporters that have roots here and have a desire to see Atlanta succeed. I’m tired of the hip-hop wanna be D-Led or whatever we’re supposed to call him these days – wax philosophical about a team and city for which he clearly has no interest or passion. This isn’t the United Nations or famine relief, “D-Led”… this is Football… ATLANTA! If you have no passion, desire, hope, aspiration for success in Atlanta, please take your mediocre talent to New Orleans! Please do Atlanta and yourself that favor. You have the unmitigated gall to actually question the Falcons’ hiring practices – have you looked in the AJC mirror lately? OMG! Pot calling kettle! Do us a favor and LEAVE ATLANTA! Please! Please! Please! Life is too short to make the rest of us miserable with your mediocre drivel… PLEASE LEAVE! Let’s get some REAL reporters with real writing ability… who have a passion for Atlanta! Let’s get rid of the enemies within!

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QB number 2? none other than SCAM Newton
Qb number 3 good ol number 7… sheesh what a pitiful bunch to claim Ryan is no good!

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Atlanta must continue to help Ryan, and the biggest need is a quick inside receiver who can win against tight, man-to-man coverage when teams pack the middle of the field. Building a great receiving corps is like building a basketball team — everyone has to fulfill different duties. Look at the Saints: They have two point guards in Lance Moore and Darren Sproles, an off guard in Devery Henderson, a small forward in Robert Meachem, a power forward in Marques Colston and a center in Jimmy Graham. All of them provide different skill sets, making coverage nearly impossible. Each week the Saints find their advantage and run the offense through it. Smart football. But the Falcons don’t have a versatile group, which significantly limits their offense.

The Falcons have plenty of work to do, and it’ll be even tougher without all those draft picks. But the first step is taking an honest look in the mirror and acknowledging the true state of the franchise.

Follow Michael Lombardi on Twitter @michaelombardi

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Mister Earl, who was calling those inept plays??? Ryan or the dipsquat that just took a hike to Jax? MM that was who called the idiot plays! do you people know anything about the game?? gimme a break!

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Read again JoeBrave – “The book on Ryan away from the Georgia Dome is simple: Pack the middle of the field and force him to throw the ball outside the numbers (deep outs, comebacks, nine routes). Ryan isn’t likely to beat you if you take away inside throws. Although Ryan may not be a top-10 quarterback at this point, the Falcons must continue to build around him because there is no viable alternative.”

Rebuttal?

That is NOT totally on the coordinator. That cites a lack of arm strength.

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and regular season rank…..8th!

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JoeBrave – what would you rather have?

A bunch of cute numbers on a stat sheet…. or one playoff victory?

C’mon Man!

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Put a decent line around the Qb, and get a damn reciever that can actually catch the damn ball and the team will win a POSTSEASON GAME, oh lets not forget that defensive sieve called a secondary, how bout an actual Cornerback that can see over the damn steering wheel!

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JoeBrave – you mortgaged the future in the Julio Jones deal.

Which hole to fill first?

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Ice Ice baby….

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once again….the morons that post on here prove just how fickle and stupid most sports fans are. You just don’t get it. It isn’t easy to go from the absolute bottome to a winning team every year overnight…wait a minute – the Falcons did that! If you don’t like the product please stop watching – we have enough uneducated fans. If you don’t have the capacity to comprehend the complexity of putting together a winning team then don’t post on here! Everyone loves Peyton Manning but how many superbowls does he have? ONE in what….13 seasons. It isn’t like other teams just roll over for you…every franchise is trrying to put a winner on the field. I am a big Arthur Blank fan but I think he has his sights set a little too high himself. Winning a superbowl requires EVERYTHING coming together at the right time. Remember that 16-0 season the Patriots had? It even ended with NO SUPERBOWL RING!

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I’m proud of Arthur Blank being “upset”. He should be. The team made a laughing stock out of Atlanta. The goal is to get to the playoffs and then play our best games and win a Superbowl, not fall on our sword and sit on the toilet in front of the nation. As one person said here, if he’s upset, he should spend time with the fans. But don’t put the fox’s in charge of the hen house. While the coach and GM are scrutinizing the players for those that “play with heart” when it counts, Blank has to be looking at his executive management team AND KNOW that they did not spiritually coach the team and get them properly invigorated to play post-season. If Smith stays–and I don’t care how intelligently objective he is–he has to know that what we saw against the Giants should never, never, ever, ever happen again under his watch and that if it does, he should be a Man and hang it up here and go into early retirement. Good coaches don’t let that happen. They know how to create intensity. As an experience so-called coach, he didn’t do that. True the key assistant coaches left something to be desired, but he was the captain of the ship. Truly he owes a verbal apology on behalf of the team and his coaching to fans that pay his and their big ole fat salaries. People get paid all you for what these guys get paid to show up at a practice. The kind of show they put on in New York is an insult to all the fannies in the seats. Finally, Matt Ryan and a few other captains need to toughen up themselves. Matt was no inspiration to anyone in that playoff game. He was no Field Marshall. He looked pitiful and played without passion. Yeah, he had no OL backing him up, but guess what fella–when life gives you lemons you make lemonade, when the going gets tough, the tough get going. They don’t slide 5 yards from the first down marker; they show the team what it takes to win, even if they have to take a hit to show the others what’s necessary and to get them fired up likewise. The whole team really stunk. Just for the final game performance alone I wouldn’t have given Matt the MVP. He didn’t deserve it. So I agree don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater…but there’s lots of bathwater to throw out both on the field and on the sideline. Smitty, I respect you as a man, but you basically proved in the Giants game that you are no Superbowl quality coach. You’ve got a lot of working on yourself to do. If the health issue is going to keep you from showing intensity and fire on the sideline (when its called for; like it was in that playoff game), then with due respect, you should take yourself out of it, enjoy the hard worked dough you’ve earned and play golf. These fans, they want a championship and a coach that shows in all his actions that he want’s one to. There are no days off..especially when we all expect ourselves to put it all on the line.

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For every armchair quarterback that likes to insult the Falcons secondary. 1. Brent Grimes (pro bowler) was inactive against the Giants….makes a big difference. 2. In this day and age of basically not being able to hit the quarterback and receivers having no fear of running routes across the middle of the field because it is basically illegal to lay a decent lick on them. Throwing for 5K yds. this season wasn’t really a big deal…4k yds. is an average quarterback now. All teams secondaries look like crap now due to the new rules.

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Let’s start recruiting players who are incarcerated and have been practicing and honing their skills and have been on good behavior and willing to sign an NFL Contract for $25,000 a year with good behavior and the willingness to work for a paycheck. I’m sure that there are inmates that would kill to play in the NFL.

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Why are people bashing mike turner and matt ryan. They are not the problem. Matt ryan has dis nothing but win since he got here. Mike turner has put up big numbers since he got here. Its coaching. Matty ice will bring a superbowl to atlanta. I love my team win or lose. Falcons for life!!!

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Mr. Blank it is really simple what this team problem is. It is Matty Melt Ryan, all you have to do is look at his performances against teams with winning records. He struggles when he plays against GB, NO, NE, NYG, PITT to name a few. Then everyone praises him when he completes 25-30 for 300 plus yds and 3 td against TB, SEA, STL, IND. He has everyone thinking that he is this elite QB for one game and then he performs like crap the next game when the team needs him to be at his best. Ask yourself when was the last time he played well and helped the team win a big game. The reason he has a 0-3 record in the playoffs because you do not play against sub par teams in the playoffs. It is not hard to figure out, he just cracks under pressure and all the blame get pointed at the O-line not blocking or WR dropping passes. The Falcons O-line is better at protecting the QB than Packers are but you don’t here them crying about Rodgers getting hit or sacked. The reason is because you can’t expect the O-line to keep the QB jersey spotless every game. The QB has to have good footwork and pocket prescence to step up and make plays when things breakdown. Rodgers, Brees, Brady and even Eli all have that and Matty Melt does not. So don’t try and put his failures all on the O-line, he need to watch film of the elite QBs to see how they step up and make plays for the team even when things break down. By the way I am a Falcons fan and I am just tired of us being embarrassed on national TV because our QB always Melt under the bright lights

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half the ryan haters would back him if his skin was a different hue

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Its not Turners touches that need to be reduced. Its his tuchus that needs to be reduced. Ask Blank if you dont know what that means. Turner would be more effective if he werent carrying such a big mass. Hes lost his speed.

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Mr. Blank,

With all do respect, did you watch the same Falcon’s games as I? I am sorry to inform you, but Matt Ryan is not an elite QB, and most definitely not your MVP on offense. However, I cannot bring myself to label one offensive player as MVP. Roddy had too many drops; Turner is too easy to bring down for a big back, and Julio was a rookie and was injured a lot. Mr Blank, admit it, you gave up way too much to get Julio last year. I knew you were making a huge mistake, so now what are you going to do? We are screwed for the next two years. I have been watching Falcon’s football all my life. I suffered through all of those long years, and I will say that Smith at least, has brought some stability to the program. I really like him, however; I question all your entire organization’s credibility, because of last year’s draft. In case you do not know, defense wins championships, and we will get the bottom of the barrel for the next two drafts, because you guys chose to enhance the offense by drafting an unproven receiver, and to prove my point, we did not score a single offensive point in the playoffs against the 27th ranked defense. The problem was not Vangorder the problem was Malarky. Thank God he is gone. As for Matty Ice, wait and see, he is not physically capable of leading a team to the promise land. Matt is a nice clean cut guy, who is a nice face for your organization, but he cannot hold Bree’s or Roger’s jock strap. I don’t know, maybe you can rectify last year’s draft via free agency. However, I see this team as becoming just like the Cowboys for the next five years, and as you know, that ain’t sayin much.

Respectfully,
Scott H.

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