Atlanta Falcons: Resurgent Bucs will test chronic run defense problems
VIDEO: The San Francisco 49ers routed the Chicago Bears, 32-7. Colin Kaepernick threw for 243 yards and 2 touchdowns in his first career start. Aldon Smith recorded 5.5 sacks, a new Monday night record. Now, the 9-1 Falcons have a 1 1/2 game lead over the 7-2-1 Forty Niners for the top seed in the NFC with six games to play.
FLOWERY BRANCH — The Falcons’ run defense has been plagued by the lack of the two ‘M’s’ of defensive football: Missed fits and missed tackles.
A missed fit occurs when a player fails to control the proper gap in the alignment and gives the opposing runner a lane to scurry through.
The Falcons have been trying to fix their run defense for weeks now.
In nearly every game, they have been gashed for big runs, which could be problematic this Sunday. They are set to face a resurgent Tampa Bay team and rookie rushing sensation Doug Martin, who already has run for 1,000 yards in 10 games.
“This running team that we’re getting ready to face is doing a great job,” Falcons coach Mike Smith said. “The rookie running back has had some really explosive games. It will be a challenge for us.”
In last weekend’s narrow 23-19 win over Arizona, the run defense had two major breakdowns.
Cardinals running back LaRod Stephens-Howling had runs of 40 and 52 yards, finishing with 127 yards on 22 carries. Take away the two long runs and Stephens-Howling had 35 yards on 20 carries.
It was the same story two weeks ago with the Saints. Except for a 56-yard touchdown run by Chris Ivory, the Falcons held the Saints run game under control.
Stephens-Howling was the third back to rush for more than 100 yards against the Falcons this season, joining Denver’s Willis McGahee (113 yards) and Washington’s Alfred Morris (115 yards).
Fortifying the run defense remains an ongoing construction project for the coaching staff. In eight of the Falcons’ 10 games, the defense has given up at least one run of 29 yards or more.
Kansas City’s Jamaal Charles had a 46-yard gain. McGahee had a 31-yarder. San Diego’s Jackie Battle broke loose for a 52-yard gain. Carolina quarterback Cam Newton had a 31-yard run. Morris had a 29-yard run. Oakland’s Mike Goodson had 40-yard gain.
“It’s not where we want it to be,” Smith said. “It’s got to be improved. But we are making progress. Some guys made some nice plays. The two explosive runs were definitely something that we don’t want to be dealing with.”
One of the big runs by the Cardinals came on a mis-alignment by the defense.
“When you don’t align properly, you don’t have a good opportunity to probably be successful,” Smith said. “It was something that was really simple and should not have been an issue. It’s something that we’ve got to be much better at.
“You can’t have 90-something yards of the 127 on two runs. We had opportunities to make them 10-yard runs or 7-yard runs and we missed tackles.”
Smith is hopeful that linebacker Sean Weatherspoon can return this week, which would help patch up the run defense. He has missed the last three games with a right ankle injury.
“Spoon is a run-and-hit linebacker,” Smith said. “Sean is one of our best football players, not only on the defensive side, but on our football team. We’ve missed him and we are looking forward to getting him back.”
Weatherspoon started working out with the training staff last week and could return to practice on Wednesday.
The Falcons run defense will tested by Martin, a first-round pick from Boise State who has 1,000 yards on 197 carries with seven touchdowns.
He has seven straight games with 100 yards from scrimmage, which tied a Tampa Bay team record. He has 1,320 yards combined rushing and receiving yards and is closing in on Warrick Dunn’s record mark of 1,440, which was set in 1997.
With Weatherspoon out, linebacker Akeem Dent has played most of his snaps while Mike Peterson has played in the base defense. He has not been the source of the run defense problems.
“Akeem has done a very nice job for us,” Smith said. “I think he’s gotten better and better each week. The snaps that he’s had to take because of Spoon being out are going to be invaluable for us down the road.”
When Weatherspoon returns, Dent will return to his old role of middle linebacker in the base defense.
“His role is going to change a little bit in terms of his snaps when Spoon comes back,” Smith said. “There is going to be an opportunity, I’m sure down the road, where he’s going to have to step in and play again. It may not be in this exact role, but something very similar to it.”
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124 comments Add your comment
4BsihTneeS
November 20th, 2012
1:12 pm
Hey Nique: That rules applies to one and only one player per team, and that person has to be on the IR list for at least 6 weeks, so theoretically, it must be a major injury to be returning from.
4BsihTneeS
November 20th, 2012
1:15 pm
@falcantsrus: I think the season is going well, a little bumpy at first, but seems to have smoothed out. Any other questions?
GO Falcons..!!!
November 20th, 2012
1:15 pm
The Falcons will win it in the final moments….It will be a nail biter. falcons 24. TB 21
you watch.
Falcons need Weatherspoon back to tighten run D
November 20th, 2012
1:17 pm
[...] While they’ve generally been able to pass their way out of trouble (though Matt Ryan passed them into trouble last week), their run defense needs to get fixed quickly. [...]
1stn10
November 20th, 2012
1:20 pm
Man I go away for 1 hour and come back and the village idiots took over.
GO Falcons..!!!
November 20th, 2012
1:23 pm
@NARDO
dude…thats racist.
4thn6inches
November 20th, 2012
1:24 pm
idiots are all they have in atlanta.
True Falcon Fan
November 20th, 2012
1:25 pm
Falcon BLOW-OUT — Hope it’s not us that get BLOWN-OUT…..
In heart Falcons win “Don’t bet the over” —- this game will be low score, something in the neighborhood like Falcons 17 — Bucs 10
Go Falcons —- Bucs next
11/29 BIG GAME —- Ain’ts comin to town — Somebody is gonna get Ash – Whippin big time —- Like for sure the lunatic “ZERO” —- Where art thou 14D botox rims sir “ZERO” the lunatic?????
Nique
November 20th, 2012
1:27 pm
4BsihTneeS
thx, so that means Grimes applies, do we know health wise if he’d be ready to go for the playoffs? Especially if we secure a 1st round bye?
4BsihTneeS
November 20th, 2012
1:28 pm
@TrueFal can’tFan: Don’t get caught looking down the road too soon.
abby normal
November 20th, 2012
1:28 pm
Mike Smith has said from day 1 “we want to run the ball and stop the run”. I don’t recall much of either one happening this season so far.
samoore57
November 20th, 2012
1:34 pm
What is the status of Asante Samual? He didn’t look to good at the end of the game! We need to be able to cover their receiver’s well because of the Play-Action-Pass and really need Asante to eliminate one side of the field.
Flacons loose the next 7 games
November 20th, 2012
1:38 pm
Yes Witherspoon is a waisted pix cuz he is alwyas injrued. he cant contrbute if he is not on the feild. They need 2 draft sum 1 that dont get hrut.
Camaro Bob
November 20th, 2012
1:40 pm
Juliet Jones is anoter 1 that is always injrued 2.
Mike Franklin
November 20th, 2012
1:40 pm
Ditto on what samoore57 asked: What is the status of Asante Samual?
Flacons R idiots
November 20th, 2012
1:44 pm
And the Flacons trayed a way the future 2 get Juliet and he only paly a few games a year so far. Could of had used that pix 2 repalce Perrier Jerry.
BK
November 20th, 2012
2:00 pm
ATL-30 BUCS-24..
Old Man Peabody
November 20th, 2012
2:20 pm
Strength of schedule for playoff teams:
GB – .530
SF – .494
MIN – .465
CHI – .461
NYG – .455
ATL – .380
1998 Was Our Year
November 20th, 2012
2:22 pm
@BK, I wouldn’t make predictions like that so soon, TB’s running back is killing right now, and The Falcons Run Defense is dismal.
Esquire
November 20th, 2012
2:37 pm
Hey, Tampa plays us tough. We are going to know we were in a battle at Raymond James. If we have more than 2 turnovers this team will eat our lunch.
Esquire
November 20th, 2012
2:39 pm
Ya know, lookin at that Caints game Oakland out gained them in Rushing and Passing………Caints got one TD on a pick 6 and Carson Palmer had another interception in the end zone …..Caints next three games come against teams currently in first place, starting with a home game next week against the Bay Area’s other team, the San Francisco 49ers, followed by games against Atlanta and the New York Giants. Former Raiders coach Jon Gruden lit the torch honoring late Oakland owner Al Davis, hmmm wonder if Brees tried to get Coach Payton invited to attend that. Roman Harper had 9 tackles, 2 assists, that tells me Oakland was getting into their secondary……quite frequently it would seem. Wow, Curtis Lofton had ONE tackle. Oakland beat them in First Downs, Total Yards, wow, the Caints had 11 penalties for over 100 yards. Oakland won the Time of Possession battle as well……………they beat them just didn’t score more points.
Esquire
November 20th, 2012
2:43 pm
Falcons
Offense
PTS 27.4 (7th) YDS 385.2 (6th) PASS YDS 292.6 (4th) RUSH YDS 92.7 (26th)
Defense
PTS 19.3 (6th) YDS 365.6 (21st) PASS YDS 235.8 (20th) RUSH YDS 129.8 (25th)
Tampa
Offense
PTS 28.9 (3rd)YDS 365.6 (13th) PASS YDS 240.9 (15th) RUSH YDS 124.7 (11th)
Defense
PTS 23.2 (18th) YDS 401.4 (31st) PASS YDS 321.3 (32nd) RUSH YDS 80.1 (1st)
Good for us, you can pass on ‘em all day but Turner may have trouble again.
Esquire
November 20th, 2012
2:43 pm
Am I nuts or did Colin Kaepernick remind anyone else of Joe Montana……?
Whadda Ya Know?
November 20th, 2012
2:44 pm
Smitty acts like this some nuclear physic problem to be solved. This is football man, plain and simple. Throw big boy Robertson in the middle, Babs and Peters as the ends and Abe, Kroy, Spoon & Nicholas as your LBs in a 3-4. Stop playing around and utilize different defenses on these teams based on their strengths. Also, EVERYONE on defense needs to go back to learning how to wrap-up and tackle. Stop with the should hits and air tackles. This is the very reason no one takes the Falcons serious. They don’t do anything well.
Whadda Ya Know?
November 20th, 2012
2:45 pm
“shoulder hits”
Samuel
November 20th, 2012
2:49 pm
The weakness the Bucs have is their pass defense, the Falcons have the weapons to exploit it. But at some point the running game has to show up..Tony Gonzales will be huge in this game. Obviously some of the Falcons are banged up, but they have to find a way to stay on the field .Hopefully,Matt Ryan fairs better than last week and the Birds can come out with a victory.
Esquire
November 20th, 2012
2:50 pm
When you see the “1″ in the Kansas City Chiefs’ 1-9 record, that win is over the Caints.
MG3
November 20th, 2012
2:51 pm
Reading this blog you’d think the Falcons are in last place. I’ll just say we have the best record in the NFL, a QB with the most passing yards in the NFL, and going down to play a team who just barely escaped with a win in Carolina. Another team we beat BTW. My guess is Tampa is scared of the Falcons right now and rightfully so. WE are the better team and they have a lot more to lose than we do.
MG3
November 20th, 2012
2:54 pm
And I love Julio but he is on the sideline a lot and that was a knock on him during the draft regarding being injury prone. Can you imagine if we’d taken Aldon Smith instead? With him and Abraham on each end our defense would be incredible.
True Falcon Fan
November 20th, 2012
2:59 pm
@1:28 When there is a series win loss record between the ain’ts and the Falcons of 46 – 40 out 86 meetings between these two teams, check yourself again. There is no reason to question, don’t look too far down the road in either teams club house. That being said, i feel the Falcons will struggle by the Bucs and hopefully we have no real injuries to deal with come 11/29th. Also that said, i would love to see the ain’ts and Falcons completely in full health, so there will be no mistake, your sorry ashes will be dragging your dead ashes home around 1:00 am come 11/30th with your tails between your legs & heads completely stuck up your ashes……
Go Falcons —- Bucs next
Looking forward to the ain’ts in the Ga Dome —- we gonna open a serious CAN of WHOPPIN ASHES on your ain’ts!!!!
hiramsaint
November 20th, 2012
3:03 pm
esqueer- when you see 9-1 that 1 is courtesy of a butt whoopin by a less than .500 {at the time } team !
Whadda Ya Know?
November 20th, 2012
3:17 pm
hiramtaint, i would exactly call it a butt whoopin. You all were scared as h3ll with us having the ball last. And don’t lie. If it wasn’t for that little gnat Greer holding and pulling on Roddy down the field that would have been a TD. We’ll getcha in the dome.
Whadda Ya Know?
November 20th, 2012
3:18 pm
“wouldn’t” exactly call it a butt whoopin.
hiramsaint
November 20th, 2012
3:18 pm
ledbetters tag line should read exploits instead of test
FOOTBALL RUNNERS » Resurgent Bucs will test chronic run defense problems
November 20th, 2012
3:19 pm
[...] Denver’s Willis McGahee (113 yards) and Washington’s Alfred Morris (115 yards).” Click here for full article Share on Facebook [...]
hiramsaint
November 20th, 2012
3:20 pm
whatever helps you digest the fact that the worst D in the league shutdown the vaunted failclown O
SawThat1nce
November 20th, 2012
3:29 pm
I think that the Falcons will win against the Bucs.
The Taints will not win against the 49ers.
If San Fransico can play up to half the level that they played against Da Bears, they will smear New Orleans into the turf.
I believe that is what’s going to happen.
SawThat1nce
November 20th, 2012
3:29 pm
I think that the Falcons will win against the Bucs.
The Taints will not win against the 49ers.
If San Fransico can play up to half the level that they played against Da Bears, they will smear New Orleans into the turf.
I believe that is what’s going to happen.
Whadda Ya Know?
November 20th, 2012
3:40 pm
hiramtaint, where were you all those games when the Taints couldn’t buy a win? Hiding as usual. It’s funny how you guys hide and come out the minute your team wins a game. I believe the name is “band wagon” for fans like yourself.
Captain Crazy
November 20th, 2012
3:51 pm
Hey sportswriters, come up with a new phrase besides “gashed!” Everyone at SI, Yahoo, MSN and the AJC uses that term, now. Try something original, please!
Go Dawgs! Go U So.Cal, Go Falcons!
TNScott
November 20th, 2012
3:52 pm
The problem is that the Falcons do not have Super Bowl caliber offensive or defensive lines. We wasted multiple draft picks, that could have been used to address these issues, on an average at best wide receiver named Julio Jones, whose history is not showing up against the best competition if you can get him on the field to begin with. I told everyone around me that this was waste of a choice based on his history of injury and drop passes at Alabama. With a few exceptions he is still the same wide receiver that I expected him to be when the Falcons made that mistake. If you were going that high in that draft, then go higher and get the best receiver in that draft named A. J. Green.
d
November 20th, 2012
3:57 pm
paper sack came off the hiramsaint head but he did get one thing right aints are the “worst d in the league”
i say let’s keep the bucs offense off the field
hiramsaint
November 20th, 2012
4:00 pm
I was hiding in a fort constructed and decorated by 4BsihTneeS’s living on Purina and pickle juice….. NEVER THE LESS you guys a couple of wins later and what do know AINT’S fans coming out of the wood work, shadows, trees, bushes, park benches, forest, swamps, garbage cans…..
PMC
November 20th, 2012
4:24 pm
Spoon is the key to fixing a lot of the misfits.
A defense can usually take one player out of position or taking a bad angle but not many more than that. Akeem Dent hasn’t been in the right spot a lot, and then the two safeties, well, when they are in the right position we right it on the calendar.
hiramsaint
November 20th, 2012
4:48 pm
capt crazy- if the word fits – use it
hiramsaint
November 20th, 2012
4:49 pm
pmc- isn’t that what was said about big pay ray ?
PMC
November 20th, 2012
4:50 pm
Just kind of funny to see Saint’s fans talking crap when they actually lost AT HOME to Kansas City.
PMC
November 20th, 2012
4:52 pm
Indeed Hiram, It was, but that was wishes and hopes I think. That guy was a bust from the word go.
He’s been a punk since he got here. He ought to send that million dollars he got on the way out to the Williams Wall and Jared Allen. He didn’t earn a dime of it.
PMC
November 20th, 2012
4:53 pm
Most of the issues with this edition of the Falcons were evident in the offseason. I’m just glad it took until now to matter.
We thought this was a 9-7 team and they have already won 9 in week 11.
Barry
November 20th, 2012
5:24 pm
We need to copy cat some of the offensive running plays that other teams are running against our defense and others. This is a copy cat league. Let’s start copycatting running plays from successful running teams in the NFL, if we can ‘ t come up with original, successful running plays. What are they doing in Tampa for s running back to have 1,000 yards at this point of the season. What’s really going on????