Mike Smith should’ve given Matt Ryan, offense a chance
Matt Ryan lost for only the second time in 21 home starts.
This season has been about comebacks.
This season has been about the Falcons making plays at the end of games to win.
This season has been about Matt Ryan engineering winning drives against New Orleans, San Francisco, Cincinnati, Baltimore, Green Bay and Tampa Bay.
Whether that magic carries over into the playoffs remains to be seen. But it ran out Monday night. One reason: a bad decision by coach Mike Smith.
With the Saints leading the Falcons 17-14 at the Georgia Dome and less than three minutes remaining, Smith pulled Ryan and the offense off the field. The team faced a fourth-and-6 from the Falcons’ 43 and the head coach went the conservative route.
Smith’s mindset: A good punt could pin New Orleans deep in its zone, the defense looked strong most of the evening and the Falcons could get the ball back in good position.
But that same defense had just allowed Drew Brees and the Saints a go-ahead, 90-yard touchdown drive.
Strategy: Epic fail.
The Saints got the ball back with 2:44 left. They made two first downs and ran out the clock.
Smith has made a lot of good decisions over the past three seasons. This was a bad one.
How do you pull Ryan off the field? The quarterback has been nothing but clutch. He excels in the two-minute offense. He excels in no-huddle. Actually, a case could be made that Ryan often is better in pressure situations and in the fourth quarter than in other situations.
Also worth noting: The Falcons went into the game with the NFL’s best fourth-down percentage (84.6 percent, 11 for 13).
Granted, Ryan wasn’t necessarily at his best Monday night. He completed only 15 of 29 for 148 yards and a touchdown.
But do you know what he didn’t do? He didn’t melt down. Even his counterpart, Brees, did that early in the fourth quarter.
With the Saints leading 10-7, it was Brees who threw a foolish shovel pass as he was being sacked by Jonathan Babineaux in the fourth quarter. The pass was intercepted by Chauncey Davis and returned 26 yards for a touchdown and a 14-10 lead Falcons lead. It was Brees who, on the ensuing New Orleans drive, was pressured and ultimately intercepted by John Abraham.
But in the end, it also was Brees who led the Saints to a 13-play, 90-yard touchdown drive, capped by a six-yard pass to Jimmy Graham.
The Falcons trailed 10-0. But that wasn’t all about Ryan. The Saints’ touchdown was set up by a bad snap by center Todd McClure — the ball never making it to Ryan’s hands. To open the second half, Ryan drove the offense down the field to the New Orleans’ one-yard-line, completing four of five attempts and throwing two passes that led to a pass interference penalty. But Michael Turner was stopped on first down and fumbled on second down.
Two turnovers — a 14-point swing.
Ryan’s seven-yard touchdown pass to Roddy White in the second quarter had closed the score to 10-7. Then came the Turner fumble drive in the third.
In September, Ryan led a comeback win at New Orleans. With the Falcons trailing 21-17 in the fourth quarter, Ryan took them on a nine-play, 85-yard touchdown drive, finishing with a 22-yard score to Roddy White to give Atlanta a 24-21 lead. The Saints rallied for a game-tying field goal, but the Falcons won the game with a field goal in overtime. It was a run-dominated, field goal drive but it was Ryan who set the tone with his calmness.
He wasn’t given that chance Monday night.
If the Falcons win next week over Carolina, their regular season goals will be achieved. They can clinch the NFC South Division, a first-round bye and the top seed in the conference. The memory of this loss will fade quickly.
The Falcons have proven themselves this season. They’re 12-3, still the best record in the NFC. But we know teams and quarterbacks are defined by the playoffs, not regular seasons. That’s not meant at a knock on Ryan. Fact is, everything about him — from his talent to his makeup and his leadership — suggests he will succeed in the playoffs. But consider it the unchecked box on his resume.
Thus far, Ryan has had only one chance. Two years ago as a rookie, he led the Falcons to an 11-5 regular season record but looked average in a playoff loss at Arizona, losing 30-24. Ryan threw two touchdown passes but was intercepted twice, sacked three times and fumbled once during an attempted handoff (leading to a 27-yard return for a touchdown by the Cardinals’ Antrel Rolle).
I remember thinking during and after the game that Ryan didn’t look the same and something must be wrong with him physically. I asked a couple of team officials about him, but the response I got was: Ryan was healthy. It’s just that the playoffs are a step up and the rookie quarterback wasn’t ready for that moment.
This season, Ryan has outdueled four of the league’s top quarterbacks: Brees (New Orleans), Carson Palmer (Cincinnati), Joe Flacco (Baltimore) and Aaron Rodgers (Green Bay). He has the best touchdown-interception ratio (26-9) of his career. He looks ready for the postseason.
It just would’ve been nice to see him get one more chance Monday.
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685 comments Add your comment
What the ?....
December 28th, 2010
5:53 pm
You saying you hate Martin Luther King ?! Don’t want to give it up to the greatest Black Man ever ?! You can’t stand him huh ?!
Najeh Davenpoop
December 28th, 2010
5:54 pm
“What do you prefer? A quarterback that doesn’t make mistakes or a quarterback that makes plays?
Ryan didn’t make mistakes (0 interceptions) but he didn’t make plays….That’s the identity of the Falcons whole team. Conservative.
Brees did make mistakes (2 interceptions) and made plays of all sorts….that’s the identity of the Saints….Aggressive. Take no prisoners….go for the jugular. If you’re gonna lose go down guns a blazing.”
Great post. And there are many people, like KC Joyner at Football Outsiders, who would rather have the mistake-free safe quarterback in Ryan as opposed to the risk-taking playmaker in Brees.
But to me, a quarterback who doesn’t make plays is a quarterback who is going to lose in the playoffs. Ryan’s inability to go deep or make something out of nothing when the play breaks down is eventually going to hurt this team, especially when a playmaker like Brees — or Vick, for that matter — is leading the other team. Peyton Manning didn’t start winning in the playoffs until he learned how to take risks and make plays down the field. Ryan hasn’t learned that yet, nor has he shown the ability to hit deep passes with any level of consistency.
NFL analysts often talk about winning the turnover battle, but turnovers are not the only kind of mistakes a team can make. Penalties, wrong routes, missed blocking assignments, blown coverages… these are all mistakes that can lead to the other team winning a game. The Falcons have become an elite team by making fewer of these mistakes than their opponents. Problem is, in the playoffs, other teams step their games up and limit these mistakes just as well. And when that happens, the team that has more playmakers is going to win. Hard to make plays on offense when your QB is the ultimate “safe” QB.
Jaier
December 28th, 2010
5:58 pm
What the ?….You just compared Martin Luther King to Jesus!!
What the ?....
December 28th, 2010
6:00 pm
I said he was behind Jesus ! Second running Fool ! And you know it ! You just can’t come up with no one better !
What the ?....
December 28th, 2010
6:02 pm
Jesus saved the world and Martin made it better for Black people. He was our Moses !
Matt "CHOKE" Ryan
December 28th, 2010
6:08 pm
Jerome Bettis> INSIDE THE NFL
More ColumnsEmail Jerome Bettis
Bus Stops: Eagles are best team in NFC;
The ability to beat teams three ways on offense elevates the Eagles
If Tim Tebow can learn how to read NFL defenses, look out
More thoughts on resting players, Pro Bowl team and more
PRINT EMAIL Buzz up! FACEBOOK DIGG TWITTER RSS SHARE
Eagles opponents often are forced to choose between stopping quarterback Michael Vick (7) or running back LeSean McCoy.
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Throughout the 2010 NFL season, SI.com’s Nick Zaccardi will work with Jerome Bettis to get the six-time Pro Bowl running back’s observations about the latest happenings in the league. Bettis retired from the NFL in 2006 after a 13-year career and is a semifinalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Class of 2011.
• The Eagles are the best team in the NFC. The way they’ve been winning is how you build championship-caliber character. They’re beating the teams they’re supposed to, pulling out comeback victories and last-second wins, and their only loss since Michael Vick came back from his rib injury was at Chicago, arguably the toughest NFC venue. They’re more playoff-ready than any other team, having performed so well with the pressure on. I expect more success against the Vikings tonight.
What makes the Eagles unstoppable isn’t just Vick; it’s all the different ways the offense can score. Most good teams can only beat you two ways, the quarterback throwing or the running back running. The Eagles can do it three ways. Vick throwing, LeSean McCoy running and Vick running. It puts a tremendous amount of pressure on defenses. The philosophy of defensive coordinators is to take away one of those facets on a particular play. With all the weapons the Eagles have, it becomes a guessing game. Guess wrong, and the scoreboard lights up. We’ve seen plenty of that.
The only way the Eagles can be stopped is if they stop themselves through mistakes and turnovers. Coincidentally, the best team in the AFC, the Patriots, specializes in mistake-free football.
“AMERICA HAS SPOKEN”
DJ Sniper
December 28th, 2010
6:10 pm
Najeh, it’s hard to be consistent on deep passes when your OC calls so few of them in each game. Have Mularkey take the shackles off of Ryan and let him do what we know he can do.
Jaier
December 28th, 2010
6:12 pm
What the ?….he needed to do a better job seeing how “our people” are doing right now!
What the ?....
December 28th, 2010
6:14 pm
Not good !
Jaier
December 28th, 2010
6:15 pm
The Saints were the better team and the Falcons are not there yet and don’t know if they will get there as long as brees and payton are in nola.
What the ?....
December 28th, 2010
6:17 pm
But God always bring the people at the bottom to the top when he’s ready. There’s a season for everything and God’s time is not like Man’s time.
Jaier
December 28th, 2010
6:21 pm
What the ?…..I just can’t think of one thing where “our people” have come in, whether it be business community, neighborhoods, etc…..and it has thrived!!! It has always been the opposite. If an area was thriving and then had “our people” came in…..it has gone down the tank! Very discouraging! No one to blame but ourselves.
What the ?....
December 28th, 2010
6:28 pm
@Jaier, Education is the key. It’s missing with us. But it’s turning, Keep the faith.
TCCB
December 28th, 2010
6:54 pm
Hello CHOKE
JSS
December 28th, 2010
7:06 pm
Jaier…
Go read about Tulsa and “Black Wall Street,” there are plenty of examples throughout the post 19th century era… Most aren’t in regular history. For every failure like Patterson, NJ, there’s a success like Sacramento as ethnically diverse as any in America and has not failed to see its a asset and not as hindrance or an adversary… That has come even with a high poverty rate…
The real problems is that as a group, they have never been given a city in ascent.
JSS
December 28th, 2010
7:07 pm
“see its diversity as a asset and not as hindrance or an adversary…”
ejj
December 28th, 2010
7:09 pm
Play-calling sucked, no rhythm, at all. Seemed like Turner, and Snelling, were alternating. No flow of offense at all. Jenkins sucked, NO defense covered G pretty good. White was ok, despite, coverage, need third WO to step up. Offensive line is average, and for this game sucked.
diesel
December 28th, 2010
7:22 pm
Atlanta,your offense scored 7 points.Enough said.
Jamey
December 28th, 2010
7:28 pm
This article is over-the-top with Ryan-Love. The truth is, Ryan’s coach didn’t have the confidence in him to pick up 6 yards on 4th down given his dismal performance so far. His stats were mediocre at best. Ryan performed tentively after he got hit early in the game and seemed unsure of himself from that point on.
DemonReb
December 28th, 2010
7:33 pm
If you think Brittney Spears is the best that New Orleans has to offer, then you don’t know a thing about New Orleans. New Orleans is the birthplace of jazz, and is the focal point of an authentic cuisine unmatched anywhere else in the South, if not the nation. People from around the world aren’t interested in the blighted urban sprawl of Atlanta. They come to New Orleans for the sense of place that emanates from it.
At three o’clock on any Friday afternoon, the perimeter is jam packed with people trying to get out of Atlanta. At the same hour in New Orleans, the interstate is packed with people trying to get into the city—the best city in the South, New Orleans.
xtrablack
December 28th, 2010
7:57 pm
Enter your comments here
WHO DAT WHO DAT WHO DAT WHO DAT WHO DAT
Matt "CHOKE" Ryan
December 28th, 2010
8:04 pm
So CHOKE screwed Aaron Rodgers out of the pro bowl, but as it should be, CHOKE will be holding the clip board for the Great Mike Vick
diesel4737
December 28th, 2010
8:17 pm
I watched that game last night and came to the same conclusion i have thought for quite some time now..the Saints,EAGLES,and the Bucs are 3 of the dirtiest teams in football. they cant win unless they take cheap shots at whomever they’re playing. these teams mentioned almost remind me of the old Raiders and Steelers. I haven’t been too much of a fan of any sports,because in my opininion these players couldn’t make it in the real world of actually having to work for a living. must be nice having someone paying you millions for playing a game.i guarantee I could do their job better than they could the job i retired from. The Saints,Eagles,and Bucs in my opinion are the NFL’S rejects.. so blow it out of your ”who dat asses” leave it to you degenerates to come up with some BS like that
What the ?....
December 28th, 2010
8:37 pm
Matt Ryan is going to the ProBowl !
Katrina says...........
December 28th, 2010
9:03 pm
The Falcons leading the League with 7 ProBowl Selections. I guess we got respect after all ! Congradulations Guys !
Katrina says...........
December 28th, 2010
9:04 pm
And no other team got morer !
E
December 28th, 2010
9:19 pm
Atlanta’s problem is they are to predictable on offense; needs a versitle and fast running back that can hit the hole, catch passes and screens out of the backfield because Turner is not a true all around back (no vision nor foot work); he can’t make something out of nothing. Atlanta also have ongoing issues of poor tackling when trying to sack the QB; No help from the kickoff return and punter return game.
Black and Golds
December 28th, 2010
11:08 pm
Well, it was a hard fought game, as usual with our two teams. This is what rivalries are made of, and we have steadily built one of the better ones in this league as evidence by the fact that this MNF game was the 3rd most watched TV event of the year. I would say this however…Roddy White should have kept his mouth SHUT about eh city of New Orleans and Katrina, as should the minority of Atlanta fans out there who seem to think that its OK to make fun of people DYING in your own country. Would it be acceptable to make fun of the NY Giants or Jets using 9/11 imagery? Think about it, then tell your start side-out that he put his foot in his mouth (before we put ours up his butt).
NEVER underestimate this Saints team. We are NOT your daddy’s aints people. Drew Brees is 8-2 vs. you since he came to NOLA. Think on that.
Capt. "No Comeback" Vick
December 29th, 2010
12:24 am
No comeback for Capt. “No Comeback” Vick
Couldn’t even beat Average Joe making his 1st NFL start.
He should just drive over to Tom Brady’s house, stay away from his dog, and hand the MVP award to him.
Lost to Joe Blow in his own house…. CLASSIC!!
Eagles needed this win and Vick couldn’t deliver nothing but a CHOKE!!
Najeh Davenpoop
December 29th, 2010
4:04 am
“So CHOKE screwed Aaron Rodgers out of the pro bowl, but as it should be, CHOKE will be holding the clip board for the Great Mike Vick
”
No he won’t. Vick won’t be playing in that game, because he’ll be preparing for the Super Bowl the following week.
HATinGA
December 29th, 2010
6:00 am
If the Falcons had won, they most likly would have went into the playoffs on a 12game win streak. In the NFL you get due to lose a game, the Falcons would have been defending the streak and home field now thats 1 less thing thing to worry about. Ask NE how defending a long streak works out!!!
Howie
December 29th, 2010
3:50 pm
LOVE reading this stuff…”we won’t see Saints in Playoff, their season will end in Chicago or Philadelphia”–You HOPE!! Maybe you’re right, the Saints season might end in Philly or Chicago, but that doesn’t mean they won’t beat the Falcons again BEFORE that happens!! EXAMPLE: WC Round, Saints beat Rams, Eagles beat Packers…NEXT round, “Uh-Oh, look who’s comin’ to the Georgia Dome again”….
BTW, Garrett Hartley is off the hook in my book for missing the 29-yarder that lost the game in OT, after making the 52-yarder that ultimately won this one…
Dirtybird
December 29th, 2010
10:34 pm
Matt “CHOKE” Ryan and Who Dat Nation should get married since they ain’t got anything to do but talk trash and dogg my QB Go matty Ice
SuperBowl44
December 30th, 2010
2:54 pm
“Out Dueled” Drew Brees……look at the combined stats of both quarterback from the two games and see who’s numbers are better…..you go figure??
Bob Allen
December 31st, 2010
1:16 pm
it’s all hindisght dude. Can’t fault a coach for the ‘in the moment’ decision. The Falcons had two timeouts and the two minute warning remaining and their defense played very well except for the drive before which the saints scored. I hate “expert writers” making statements like this.