Falcons give performance to leave us wondering again
DeAngelo Williams' 53-yard touchdown off a screen pass buried the Falcons late. (AP photo)
CHARLOTTE – It started with the Carolina Panthers winning the coin flip for the first time this season. It ended with the Falcons being trash-talked off the field by a last-place team. Somewhere in between, we witnessed Atlanta’s worst four quarters of football of the season.
And the Falcons’ deserved it all – the loss, the mocking, the questions about what this means moving forward.
“I can hear everybody right now,” tight end Tony Gonzalez said. “They’re getting off the bandwagon. I can hear them jumping off. Looking at our history, people are going to go, ‘See, I told you.’”
OK. It’s a little premature for I-told-you-sos. The Falcons haven’t lost a playoff game yet. But it has to be concerning when an 11-1 team falls behind 23-0 to a 3-9 team, and at one point finds itself being outgained 356-66. It’s concerning any time a defensive front is so thoroughly shredded the way the Falcons’ front was Sunday, and the offense can’t run the ball (again), and all hopes of opening the regular season’s final month with an impressive win are emphatically squashed.
Cam Newton account for 403 yards and three touchdowns passing and rushing. (AP photo)
The Falcons lost 30-20 to Carolina. They managed to make Cam Newton feel like he was back at Auburn again.
If Newton could combine for 403 yards and three touchdowns with his arm and legs in victories every week, media members wouldn’t be hiding behind potted palms and waiting for anonymous quotes that rip him for being petty, immature and ego-maniacal (just paraphrasing the attack pieces).
The fact the Falcons lost a game in itself isn’t devastating. They’re 11-2. They’ve already clinched the NFC South Division and remain in a strong position to clinch home field through the NFC playoffs.
But Gonzalez is correct: This was like feeding steroids to a doubting public.
Next week’s game against the New York Giants will tell us something. The Falcons find themselves having to rebound, physically and emotionally, against the team that drop-kicked them out of the playoffs last year.
“We all knew we were flat,” linebacker Sean Weatherspoon said. “It seemed like every time there was a play to be made, we were almost there. You can’t be almost in this league.
“We get a chance to go after some guys who controlled our destiny last year.”
Yes. Best to turn the page as quickly as possible. Embrace the possibility of amnesia.
The Falcons made the Panthers look like a playoff team. Carolina scored on its first five possessions (two touchdowns, three field goals), and only one of those ended in a big play (Newton’s 72-yard touchdown run, finished off with a flip). Mostly, the Panthers punched the Falcons in the mouth.
It figured they would milk this a little, and they did. When the Falcons rallied for a 30-28 win back in September in the Georgia Dome – Matt Bryant’s game-winning field goal coming with five seconds remaining – quarterback Matt Ryan was caught on camera screaming toward Carolina’s bench to, “Get the [bleep] off our field!”
So when this one ended, several Carolina players were overheard trash-talking on the field, led by defensive end Greg Hardy, who witnesses say mimicked Ryan’s comment, “Get the [bleep] off our field.” Bryant’s reported response: “Watch us in January.” Introducing, the trash-talking kicker.
Hardy is the same obscurity who earlier said the Panthers were a “better” team than the Falcons, adding: “I’m trying to mess up their whole playoff experience. I want them to go home sick in the stomach, mad about life, a couple depression issues …” (He didn’t make himself available for the media Sunday.)
Down 23-0, the Falcons showed a pulse. Ryan’s four-yard touchdown pass to Julio Jones closed it to 23-13. But a seemingly successful two-point conversion pass to Roddy White was ruled incomplete (questionably), deflating the comeback. DeAngelo Williams’ touchdown on a 53-yard screen pass slammed the door shut.
When asked if he considered this loss a bump in the road, Gonzalez responded: “It better be, if we’re the team we think we are.”
Instead, they’ve left everybody wondering again.
By Jeff Schultz
The last dozen from the digital juke box
– Short takes: Cam Newton and Panthers’ line dominate
– LIVE: Falcons have chance to clinch playoff bye
– Even at 11-1, Falcons know they can’t afford to settle
– ‘Sack Schultz’ Bowl Blowout contest (from Potato to BCS)
– Hawks are surviving nicely without Joe Johnson (gee, go figure)
– OK, Falcons’ critics: Find something wrong with John Abraham
– Brian Gregory may have Tech on way to something good
– Trying to win is only half the problem at Georgia State
– Georgia earns respect in defeat, but loss will be hard to take
– Braves dump a pitcher (Hanson) they once viewed as gold
– Falcons’ offense hits a wall, but as usual it doesn’t matter
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722 comments Add your comment
tidog
December 9th, 2012
7:30 pm
Giants playing the Saints like they getting ready for playoffs. We may be heading for a 2 game skid if both teams play the way they played today.
Georgia Dome has roaches AND losers...
December 9th, 2012
7:32 pm
Let’s all chip in and buy “Answer This” a dictionary, and a spelling book for Kwanzaa.
JSS
December 9th, 2012
7:33 pm
Why curse “Kwanzaa” like that?
Georgia
December 9th, 2012
7:33 pm
Leave us wondering? We cant explain why we’re 11-2. This is football none of us have ever seen B4. And who isn’t totally entertained with the most exciting footsy totsy ever.
Gator CHOMP Champ
December 9th, 2012
7:36 pm
This team finally getting exposed. They’re no better than 9-7..just got a ton of breaks.
Eric C.
December 9th, 2012
7:37 pm
Today was definitely a market correction. The panthers were better than their record, and the Falcons were not worthy of their 11-1 mark.
Having said that, yes, this display is very concerning. This has nothing to do with jumping off a bandwagon. How can you watch the last 7 quarters of Falcons football and think this team is going to do anything but lose the first playoff game?
When the Giants win next week, the Falcons will likely be staring at the 4th playoff seed down. I don’t see them winning any of their remaining games — unless something changes drastically. Just being real.
Who Cares?
December 9th, 2012
7:37 pm
Man, if the Falcon’s could have just played that game in their new proposed stadium………….
The Truth
December 9th, 2012
7:38 pm
Coaches have to coach.
Blazerdawg
December 9th, 2012
7:39 pm
RBob, been going to the Dome since it opened and those folks have been nothing but hospitable. Go back to Akron or Pburg and take a few of those transplants with you, ungracious idiot.
Answer This
December 9th, 2012
7:39 pm
Thats the best you two knuckle draggers have? Lol the spelling of bens name? Lol i spit facts and you both spit out! So hey what can i say?
Georgia
December 9th, 2012
7:40 pm
Trash talking has no place in winning football, and I’m shocked to hear that Ryan is guilty of it. Trash talk is for trolls on sports blog like this. Shame on Ryan. Grow up, Ryan. Play football.
Eric C.
December 9th, 2012
7:41 pm
Yep, we’ve asked when are the Falcons going to play to their potential? Well, I guess barely beating the Bucs, Raiders, and Cardinals, is their best potential…how crazy is that?
BronxBill
December 9th, 2012
7:41 pm
every pro team in this city sucks. 1 title in 40 years of playing all these sports?? what a joke! come to NY to see championships—the Giants will beat the falcons next week and roll through the playoffs again—-book it.
DawgNole
December 9th, 2012
7:41 pm
Schultz: “Next week’s game against the New York Giants will tell us something.”
_______________
Agree. Win that one–against a LEGITIMATE playoff contender and the defending NFL Champion–and today’s stinker will be largely forgotten. Lose it, however, and the Falcons are setting themselves up for yet another major postseason collapse.
Roswell bob
December 9th, 2012
7:41 pm
Sorry Falcons today are only exceeded by the sorry falcons fans. I have lived here 15 years and don’t support this team – no tradition, sooty stadium, bad fans. You all stink
Panther Paw In Yo Head
December 9th, 2012
7:41 pm
Embarrassing ! The Panthers talked smack then backed it up ! Mike Smith was laughing on sideline much the game. Was it funny watching Hardy show you his team is better than yours ? The only players I saw playing hard today were Roddy & Quizz. The rest of the team deserves no paycheck for this week.
Georgia
December 9th, 2012
7:42 pm
I SAID PLAY FOOTBALL!!
TGT
December 9th, 2012
7:42 pm
Falcons haven’t looked good (especially the offense) in 6 games. Though we have 4 wins in that span, it has been obvious that this team was just surviving from week to week. (Also, the level of competition during said span has been mediocre at best.) We have question marks in every aspect of the game: Offense (Ryan looks spooked WAY too often, and the running game is sorely lacking); Defense (gives up too many yards, especially rushing, and little pass rush outside of Abraham); Special Teams (kicking game a little suspect, but the lack of a return game is most troubling–when is the last time we took one back for a TD?!).
Next week will be a good barometer as a Giants team that just hung 52 on the Ain’ts (as in “ain’t” goin to the playoffs) comes calling. Forget “Rise-Up!”, Falcons better wake up.
However, better to get the wake-up call now instead of in January.
yellowfever
December 9th, 2012
7:43 pm
Falcons go 1 & 3 to close out the season that was so promising.
Samuel
December 9th, 2012
7:43 pm
Mike Smith better have his team ready to play The New York football Giants, If not they’ll get physically manhandled like the Panthers did them today. Rumor through the week said the Falcons would use Jaquizz Rodgers more, I didn’t see it today. Also the offense seems out of sync again, you can’t start playing better after a first half of lousy football. Matt Ryan is not playing consistent good football- he’s streaky at best. And his pocket presence wasn’t good at times, if in doubt take off running toward the side lines. Falcons keep running Turner on those same plays and getting the same results. A two yard gain, that eventually means three and out. I think the fans want to be optimistic about this team, but every time they seem to have us skeptical of what their trying to accomplish. I’ll be watching closely next week- and it shall tell me what I need to know, about this team moving forward.
Chuck
December 9th, 2012
7:43 pm
Quit whining about the officials, little girls. It wasn’t officiating that had your ladies down 23-0 before they decided to take some Midol and start playing football. Your second place schedule is responsible for this fools gold record, and there’s not a team in either conference’s playoff draw that will be intimidated playing this bunch of January underachievers on ANY field come playoff time.
Carolina manhandled you like they were the first lace team. Own it. Stop whining about the Saints. They STILL own you, AND a Lombardi. Stop whining about officiating. It is always terrible when you lose, and the Falcons haven’t been the victims of any worse officiating than any other team in the league.
Stop whining, too, about this perceived lack of respect around the league in the national media. Win some playoff games and people will shut up. Respect is EARNED, and a decent regular season record doesn’t earn it for your team any more because of its shameful playoff performances in recent years. Ask New England how important 18-0 was after they lost game 19. The regular season means squat when you can’t close, and your team hasn’t proven it can get over that hump.
You think Pittsburgh fans are satisfied with great regular season records? That franchise is about one thing–championships. Not division championships, not conference championships, SUPER BOWL championships. They get it, their fans get it, their organization gets it, and that’s why they have won so consistently.
Until you clowns nut up and take care of business in January, you are what you are–September champions with a flaky qb, a terrible O-line, an awful secondary, and a track record for choking on the big stage. You can’t argue with any of this because it is TRUTH.
Answer This
December 9th, 2012
7:43 pm
As for you Georgia….i can help with half your trailer rent this month….i got 5 on it! At least the roaches wont roam if you use the other half for a can of Raid…..JSs…well u are who we think you are!
Eric C.
December 9th, 2012
7:44 pm
Roswell bob, well f u, lol.
Pigskin
December 9th, 2012
7:45 pm
Eric C.@7:37 -
All true., especially the last paragraph.
*sigh*
DawgNole
December 9th, 2012
7:45 pm
BronxBill
December 9th, 2012
7:41 pm
every pro team in this city sucks. 1 title in 40 years of playing all these sports?? what a joke!
____________________
It’s one title in 46 years. Can’t you New Yorkers get ANYTHING right?
jo
December 9th, 2012
7:45 pm
Giants just beat nola by 25 points…they have a running game, falcons cant defend against the run. Ny31 falcons 13 – take it to the bank. Falcons are in big trouble!
D-bo
December 9th, 2012
7:45 pm
Not fair assessment of falcons. They went without Asante Samuel and William Moore who is key to stopping the run. They played with a bunch of third stringers. The only one capable is MacLaine .
yellowfever
December 9th, 2012
7:45 pm
we aint got no mean nasty dirty players. that what it take to win superball.dem dirty birds are two nice, dont like it when they get smacked in mouth.
Panther Paw In Yo Head
December 9th, 2012
7:47 pm
This just gives the world more ammunition to nay-say the Falcons. Good teams don’t lose to 3-9 teams. The Seahawks would beat Falcons 35-0.
Exposed!
December 9th, 2012
7:47 pm
Roswell Bob, please go home! (or ask your parents). You and your ilk are the biggest problem in this paradise. Love it or leave it!
JSS
December 9th, 2012
7:47 pm
And nobody is nicer than fans and workers at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh (unless you’re from Cleveland or Oakland)…
Thomas Brown
December 9th, 2012
7:47 pm
I will let you know when the Falcons accomplish something, haven given up our seasons’ ticket a long time ago. That game was no fun to watch from the beginning. We’re playing a 3-9 team who is 1-5 at home 2012, and we’re 11-1, and Cam Newton promptly stands up and points to the camera, did you see me ? He keeps it up every drive against us, and takes the ball down the field to the end zone every single drive. Fortunately for us, Cam Newton did not run the football against us and had to settle for all those field goals, or the score would have been a total embarrassment.
10 of 16 on 3rd and 4th downs for the game, Carolina took the lead while we did nothing.
23-0 should have been 35 to nothing.
35 rushing yards Falcons 195 for Carolina.
23 of 35 for 2 TD Cam Newton Passing and 116 yards on 9 rushes and another TD rushing for Cam Newton.
We play defense like Georgia Tech does.
Carolina out played us in every phase of the game.
Eric C.
December 9th, 2012
7:48 pm
D-bo, I’m more concerned with the offense…how many plays did they run in the first 20 or so minutes?
DawgNole
December 9th, 2012
7:49 pm
Chuck at 7:43 p.m., that’s the unfortunate truth for ALL ATL pro teams.
jay
December 9th, 2012
7:50 pm
How can a panther’s fan or player say the Falcons suck when they suck harder. Go sit down. You’re not no where near the playoffs Carolina. Not now, not never. You suck and you let a great team who was down by 23 points almost catch up to your sorry azz
steve s
December 9th, 2012
7:50 pm
Matty was cold as ice..
JSS
December 9th, 2012
7:51 pm
Son, show booty is a dime a dozen… If you’re going to pay for it, at least get your money’s worth!
Ron Roberts
December 9th, 2012
7:53 pm
44. Give him the damned ball, already. There’s your solution. Been there all year. Been with us for a few seasons, and he doesn’t let us down. Run with 44 and sit 33 down til we’re up big in the fourth. I don’t know whose stubborn insistence keeps feeding 33 the ball, but it has to come to an end. And quickly. Give 44 the damned ball.
Georgia Dome has roaches AND losers...
December 9th, 2012
7:54 pm
The Falcons fa la la la la la la la LOST!!!
Nativebird
December 9th, 2012
7:55 pm
I’m a life long Falcon FA and I’m telling you that this team plays with no passion…no fire. And that starts at the top. Here we have a offense with two abject beasts at wide receiver and a HOFer TE and we are down 23-0 in the 2nd quarter having touched the ball once in the entire first quarter. This offensive line is a JOkE. It has been all year even going 11-1. The reason nobod gets behind this team is they don’t pass the eye test….or the smell test. Mike Smith Cannot get this done. Period. If they lose In the first playoff game…..he needs to go.
TomDawg
December 9th, 2012
7:55 pm
Who the hell were the announcers today? If they had sCam up there butts any deeper they would have had to call the local fire department to bring out the Jaws of Life to remove him. Pitiful performance by the Falcons, but hopefully they will learn from this loss. Carolina, not near as good as we made them look. BTW, that first TD Carolina had…..he never got 2 feet in bounds, look at it. 2 pt. conversion should have been over turned. A better play should have been called on 4th down interception. Watch the Falcons look like a completely different team against the Giants next week. They will bring there “A” game.
okeetee
December 9th, 2012
7:55 pm
“Lil’ Manning is licken hiz chops when he thinks of our secondary. Look what hes doin to the Cain’ts.”
…..actually, I think Matt Ryan is licking his chops thinking about that Giants secondary! Look, our secondary didn’t lose this game today, and is actually one of our better secondary’s in recent years, maybe decades! The Giants will not slap 50 points on us next week……but we might score 40 on them! That Giant secondary is a sieve!
Thomas Brown
December 9th, 2012
7:58 pm
When the score is 23 to nothing and should’ve been 35 to nothing if Cam Newton runs the ball against us in the Red Zone, like he did to get them down there every drive, you have lost the game because your defense cannot stop them on 3rd Down. I guess they like staying out there until they cannot play any more. Our strategy was to wear them out on offense by having them take the ball up and down the field on a 11-1 team by a 3-9 team.
Falcon Fans
December 9th, 2012
7:59 pm
Can’t blame us. We were 30% of the crowd in Carolina today.
JSS
December 9th, 2012
8:00 pm
And name call you want, just another Rubicon moment in your spin cycle!
Thomas Brown
December 9th, 2012
8:00 pm
TomDawg, there wasn’t anything conclusive on the 2-point conversion. All those cameras and none showed anything, like it matters in a 23-13 game the way we played defense. They made us 1 dimensional by taking away the run.
Panther Paw In Yo Head
December 9th, 2012
8:01 pm
I’d be ashamed to lose to a 3-9 team and never even really be in the game. Carolina looks like the 11-2 team. Mike Smith “We will look at film & fix it” that’s a big pile of horse manure. You can’t fix the offensive line,M.Turner,& M. Ryan. They are what they are already. Ryan isn’t the 6 int qb but he’s not the 24-25 completion qb either. He chokes in games and is never consistent. And Jeff, what is your view of sackless J. Abraham now ? Quizz needs to start & get 25+ carries.
Elvis is Alive
December 9th, 2012
8:02 pm
3 for 19 in Third down conversions in the last two games says it all. I predicted a blowout but the other way around. How easily I was fooled.
Limp,unimaginative and predictable offense. Those that say our pathetic effort it is a “ruse” to fool the other teams in the division are totally whack.
Winning means winning..Losing does not build confidence.
Lets replace all the starters with the second team players. At least we will see some fire,anger and aggression.
Then if we lose we can make excuses about how it was ,”only the second string”
D-bo
December 9th, 2012
8:03 pm
Matt Ryan doesn’t have the stamina for a whole season, never clutch in last quarter of the season, including the playoffs. Gets physically and mentally fatigued. Need defense to carry us and it won’t without all our starters on the field and everyone playing their A Game
Milo
December 9th, 2012
8:04 pm
LMAO….
…….”Matt Ryan licking his chops thinking about the Giants secondary”…….”we might score 40 on them”