A 5-step program to ensure a better Falcons future
Step 1: Relax. This season was almost a worst-case scenario — defensive overhaul, tougher schedule, injuries by the boatload — and it wound up 9-7. This tells us the Falcons have the right kind of men in administrative places, and it also tells us the core of the team is talented enough to withstand a series of reversals.
Step 2: Get edgy. The Falcons ranked 28th in a 32-team league in pass defense, and I know what you’re going to say — because of the cornerbacks. And I won’t pretend that Brent Grimes and Chris Houston were the second coming of Lester Hayes and Michael Haynes, but even that Hall of Fame pairing would have struggled behind a pass rush that generated only 28 sacks. (Tied for 26th in the NFL.) Look for the Falcons to draft an edge player — a defensive end or an outside linebacker — in Round 1. Look for Lawrence Sidbury to contend for a starting position. Look for a wholesale commitment to rushing the passer.
Step 3: Give the secondary a second chance. Thomas Dimitroff made his reputation as a scout, and he’s known in the industry as a keen analyst of defensive backs. He believesHouston and Grimes and Christopher Owens can be solid NFL performers. And let’s not forget safety William Moore, who missed 14 games due to injury but for whom Dimitroff’s hopes remain massive. These are all young guys. Give them the benefit of a pass rush and see how they fare.
Step 4: Trust Matt Ryan. The Falcons had 39 completions of 20-plus yards (tied for 21st in the league) and five of 40-plus (tied for 25th). In 2008 they had 45 and nine, respectively. For reasons unclear, they stopped throwing long. And it isn’t, as some continue to insist, that Ryan can’t deliver the deep ball. He can and has. The Falcons just stopped stretching defenses. They need to start again.
Step 5: Open the screen door. I’ve heard your pleas, and I’ve come to agree: Mike Mularkey needs to mix in the occasional screen pass. (He seems to favor reverses, which seldom work.) It’s believed the Falcons don’t like the screen because they feel duty-bound to keep a back in to pass-protect, but this goes back to Step 4. Ryan is no longer a rookie, and even when he was he didn’t act like one. He can handle a blitz. And I’m thinking Michael Turner would like the chance to get the ball in the open field. I’m thinking he’d like it a lot.
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222 comments Add your comment
Mark Bradley
January 7th, 2010
9:59 am
JT, John Abraham is coming up on the final season of his contract. If he wants a big new one, he’d better deliver.
Sonny Clusters
January 7th, 2010
10:00 am
That’s okay, Mark, we’ve got your back.
DHD
January 7th, 2010
10:02 am
Bring back the Gritz Blitz!!
Realist
January 7th, 2010
10:02 am
Jt: Here’s a list of QBs who started 2009 as backups and who are better than Chris Redman:
- Matt Moore
- Alex Smith
- Vince Young
- Ryan Fitzpatrick
- Brady Quinn
- Bruce Gradkowski
- Michael Vick
- Kevin Kolb
- Billy Volek
Alan
January 7th, 2010
10:03 am
On 790 The Zone they started talking about T.O. and the Falcons receiver needs, please for gods sake whatever we do lets avoid this cancer.
ElBraggO
January 7th, 2010
10:05 am
I agree with Bradley’s 1 thru 5, Cluster’s 6. Step 7 is build a monster Oline, something like the Cowboy’s have.I believe that if you give Ryan as much time as Romo gets from his line, that it could become a wonderful thing.
Mark Bradley
January 7th, 2010
10:05 am
I cannot imagine the Falcons hiring Terrell Owens.
We're on the way up
January 7th, 2010
10:06 am
I believe we are on the way up.
If you add all the draft picks from last year (most were injured) to the class we are about to draft…it could be a difference maker.
In addition, if you sprinkle in the right free agent or two…we could be talking superbowl this time next year.
Ryan, will be much better with Turner skinny and 100% healthy.
We are about to blow the roof off the dome with some really great stuff.
I can not wait til next year!
Jt
January 7th, 2010
10:06 am
OK Realist, let’s get real here. Vick- come on man. Vince Young is a first round pick not a backup. Alex Smith is also a mighty high priced back up. I will give you Volek- not sure about Kolb. Quinn also is a first round pick-not a backup. Fitzpatrick was Buffalo’s starter after only a few games- he is not available. Gradkowski was an unknown quantity who turned out to be pretty darn good- I still would take Redman over him
Alan
January 7th, 2010
10:06 am
Coach Crim, what the %*$@ are you smoking, go to another siter please.
Without-a-clue
January 7th, 2010
10:07 am
I’m in total agreement. Hmm, maybe I better go back and read it again.
Mark Bradley
January 7th, 2010
10:08 am
I would suggest that as well, Without.
1eyedJack
January 7th, 2010
10:09 am
Sonny, are guns allowed in the Dairy Queen there? And did you and Jeff ever get in any deer hunting between ball games and golf?
Turtsnap
January 7th, 2010
10:14 am
Greg and others who question Matt Ryan:
Take a look at 1st and 2nd year stats for Matt, Drew Brees and Philip Rivers.
G GS Comp Att Pct Yds Avg TD Int
Brees1 16 16 320 526 60.8 3,284 6.2 17 16
Brees2 11 11 205 356 57.6 2,108 5.9 11 15
Rivers1 16 16 284 460 61.7 3,388 7.4 22 9
Rivers2 16 16 277 460 60.2 3,152 6.9 21 15
Ryan1 16 16 265 434 61.1 3,440 7.9 16 11
Ryan2 14 14 263 451 58.3 2,916 6.5 22 14
Hopefully the format will keep when I post, if not…. here are the links
http://www.nfl.com/players/drewbrees/profile?id=BRE229498
http://www.nfl.com/players/philiprivers/profile?id=RIV651634
http://www.nfl.com/players/mattryan/profile?id=RYA238179
Pretty comparable stats, and it should be noted that in Brees and Rivers case, they had their breakout year in their 3rd year. Let’s hope the same for Matt Ryan!
Juice
January 7th, 2010
10:15 am
Nice work. Didn’t agree at all with your 5 players we need to rid ourselves of, but this article reflects many of my thoughts as well.
Bride of Chucky Knapp
January 7th, 2010
10:15 am
Clusters needs his own blog.
cattle dawg
January 7th, 2010
10:16 am
How bout drafting bay bay in the 3rd round. Hes a big physical guy, smart.
Mark Bradley
January 7th, 2010
10:18 am
I thought Clusters had taken over this one, Bride of CK.
Pompano
January 7th, 2010
10:19 am
I agree with Bob Clark – can’t stand listening to Chip. What a pathetic choice!
PreyDawg
January 7th, 2010
10:20 am
Finally, Someone is addressing my biggest concern. Mark, I hope you ask some questions on this topic at the end of year presser Monday. Where was the explosiveness? I dont think Mularkey trusts the protection. Did you notice how many pass plays this year were run out of max protect. I think the biggest thing the deep passing game needs is one or two more linemen. Baker is good but gets beat frequently by speed rushers.
I also remember how Ryan reacted in camp to Douglas going down. I think the system counts on the 3 receiver to open up things down field more than we realize.
Please press Coach and Thomas D on this Monday.
jerry
January 7th, 2010
10:29 am
Now that Chuck Dowdle has retired, Chip Carey is now the #1……..what?
Coop
January 7th, 2010
10:30 am
Mark – Good read. I like most of what you say, but would like a slight tweak or two. I agree that the secondary would look better with a better pass rush. Here’s where I disagree:
1. I’m not ready to give up on our DE’s. I think we lack the anchor in the middle. Whether Jerry will be able to accomp-lish that is unknown, but I’d love to see us draft Cody from Alabama in round one. Put him with Babs or Jerry and watch our DE’s (Abe, Beer Money, and Sid) go beserk.
2. While that will also help the secondary, I just don’t think Houston and Grimes are starting material. I love Owens. Perhaps Brian Williams comes back, but I’d rather see us go after a veteran lock down corner to pair with Owens and put Grimes at the nickel. Don’t know if a vet CB exists in FA or trade, but that’s my hope. Don’t spend a #1 on a CB. Too much risk, and like I said above, the pass rush will disguise a lot of probblems.
The final thing is stop playing soft on 3rd and long.
willie martinez
January 7th, 2010
10:34 am
Mark, i’ll take that as your assurance. willie
Touch
January 7th, 2010
10:36 am
Bradley I agree a lot with you assessment. I’m going to say this and its not a knock on Gonzales but I think he indirectly played an impacted on us not going deep as much. There were definitely times where Ryan would become way to dependent on looking just for him. That said I love Gonzales I just think Ryan could spread the ball around a little more.(Including Mularkey calling more screens to Turner)
Mark Bradley
January 7th, 2010
10:38 am
When you have a tight end as good as Tony Gonzalez, it’s hard not to rely on him. Still, Roddy White did go over 1,000 yards on the season. I don’t know that Gonzalez was always the first look, but he did seem the default option.
PMC
January 7th, 2010
10:40 am
I’m interested in seeing what they do with Biermann and Sidbury. They have both shown more than Anderson and Chauncy Davis appears to be seen as a solid back up. It will probably help Abraham quite a bit to have Jerry back, they need to add quality depth though at nose tackle.
The receiver thing that Steak was harping on this morning is a little overblown. Roddy was awesome this year so was Gonzo. Jenkins was very average and the 3 guys they had trying to fill Harry Douglass shoes came up ridiculously short.
What they need is Harry Douglass to come back healthy and maybe try to upgrade the depth at WR. They need a guy wide with explosive speed. (Deverey Henderson type)
Also 2 has to be better early and also throughout. He’s got to get them touchdowns early in games to help the defense.
I still think they could upgrade both Offensive Tackle positions but especially the left side. I think I’ve taken Todd McClure for granted a bit.
They probably need to find another running back somewhere and they really need to upgrade the explosiveness of the strongside linebacker position.
I think they might be pretty solid at safety. If they can find maybe one corner in the draft that they could go with it would be nice. Sure I can dream for Joe Haden but he’s long gone by 20. I don’t know that there are any other corners in the draft worthy of a pick that high.
74Dawg
January 7th, 2010
10:41 am
upgrading the O Line needs to be a top 5 priority.
SirReal
January 7th, 2010
10:41 am
Mark, Do you think Brian Van Gorder will be gone? I hope so…
Mark Bradley
January 7th, 2010
10:42 am
No, SirReal. VanGorder will be back.
TROTTINGHOME
January 7th, 2010
10:43 am
Leave it to a lawyer to turn a 12 step program into a 5 step program without knowing a damn thing about real football.
Touch
January 7th, 2010
10:46 am
I don’t think they need another running back Snellings definitely proved his worth this season and that he can be productive in all aspects of the game. If anything we may need to get rid of Norwood even though he can be fun at times to watch. What is he really bringing to the table in production?
SirReal
January 7th, 2010
10:57 am
Mark, I just think there’s a better defensive mind out there than BVG. His schemes are atrocious to me. Who drops Abraham into coverage? Do you think (and this is just your opinion) he’s the best man for the job? I can name 3 D-coords RIGHT NOW that I feel could do a better job.
midnite
January 7th, 2010
11:00 am
Who ever said Grimes needs to go has needs to put down the pipe and watch that kid play. If every player on the Falcons had his athleticism and heart we would be playing this weekend. Grimes has game and will only get better, ask Drew Brees.
Mark Bradley
January 7th, 2010
11:01 am
I think VanGorder is an above-average defensive coordinator. Have for a long time.
Sonny Clusters
January 7th, 2010
11:01 am
Clusters played some ball and one thing we know – there’s no hiding on the field. If we was playing baseball and put little Bradley Wintes out in left field that was a sure way to get a ball hit out there. If we was playing football and had to get everybody some playing time and put little Bradley Wintes in to hold for a kick that was a sure way to get a bad snap. Chris Houston and a few more Falcons got exposed this season because there’s no hiding on the field. They will find you. It’s a lot like that at Dairy Queen. You go in there to get a Mr Misty and then you see the peanut buster parfait and and get one of those and the next thing you know there’s a hot fudge sundae in front of you, too. We was always weak at the Dairy Queen. As to carrying guns to the ball game, Warren Buffett told us one time, “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently.”
Mark Bradley
January 7th, 2010
11:04 am
On a separate note, did you know Warren Buffett is Jimmy Buffett’s uncle?
ElBraggO
January 7th, 2010
11:05 am
Where is John Abraham.He is right there in the opposing teams backfield being doubleteamed or held or both.Bradley is right about getting another Dlineman to give the rush an edge.Maybe that would take some of the pressure off of Abraham so he can do his job, or outfit him with tear-away jerseys.When they played the Patriots I thought they were going to pull his shirt off,but the refs never called holding against them. ALSO, I wish that whoever is in charge, would reconsider making Chip Carey the announcer for the Braves.Maybe they could put him on the radio with Sutton, they would make a good boring team, and we don’t get the Braves on the radio here in Savannah, as far as I know, because I have tried to find them when Skip’s son was announcing games on Peachtree, so I could shut him up.He is annoying to say the least,and has been voted the worst baseball announcer in the USA on many polls, and when you can beat out Joe Morgan and Tim McGraw that is a saying something.
SirReal
January 7th, 2010
11:07 am
Interesting take Mark…I think he’s a great DC for college….great LBs coach for the NFL…but in all fairness, he hasnt had a whole lot to work with. Perhaps he’ll excel with better talent. He and Smitty did get a lot out of the D last year so I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt. Thanks for responding Mark. This is the first time you’ve actually responded to me.LOL Have a good day and stay warm!! lol
welikebaseball2
January 7th, 2010
11:07 am
Mark Bradley: Agreed on all except a couple things…
1st, while it’s definitely not time to cut ties with Grimes, Houston, & Owens, I say let the 3 of them battle it out for one of the starting CB spots & go get a shutdown corner to plant on the other side. How can we sensibly go with 2 starters out of the bunch on the current roster? Haven’t we pretty much tried that the last 2 seasons?
2nd, I’m not sure why or even if the Falcons have not gone downfield as much. The attempts just might be there. I’d have to see the stats. Anyway, I disagree on your assessment of Ryan’s ability to throw the deep ball. I think that’s actually one of the glaring weaknesses in his game (decision making being the other…see picks). Of all the things Ryan brings to the table, throwing the deep ball is not one of them. I dare say most of his picks this year were from failed attempts to throw the deep ball. I’m not saying we shouldn’t still attempt to stretch the field, I just don’t think Ryan has the arm to make that an integral part of our offensive identity. As for last season’s stats, I’d bet most of those yards came from our receivers racking up yards after the catch.
Buddy Curry made every tackle
January 7th, 2010
11:09 am
Why in the name of Sonny Clusters would we draft a running back. We have 3 very good ones. Get faster and more physical at linebacker and d-line. I think Brent Grimes will have 10 picks if he starts 16 games next year, and Owens is excellant in run support.
OUTSIDE LINEBACKER MAKES AN IMMEDIATE IMPACT.
‘
We do need another good o-lineman and a deep threat. SC
A Rod
January 7th, 2010
11:09 am
trade tony G for some draft picks. He ruined the offense, and matt ryan
Mark Bradley
January 7th, 2010
11:10 am
Tony Gonzalez also won about three games by himself.
Sonny Clusters
January 7th, 2010
11:11 am
Dairy Queen has a slogan, We Treat You Right” and Clusters has always tried to abide by that slogan. When we was a Boy Scout we would help old sportswriters cross the street. When we was playing state champion sports we would always be polite to our opponents before we crushed them. Then, we would all go to the Dairy Queen for some treats and they would treat us right. Some things you can count on and some things require a lot of work. The Falcons will require a lot of work to get fixed but doing those 5 or 6 things mentioned will go a long way to fixing them. That, and some new promotions. Free hardware would go a long way to bring in some new fans. Mr Blank could give out hammers and saws with a paid admission.
SirReal
January 7th, 2010
11:11 am
A Rod you sound ridiculous!! Without TG this year, we’re 6-10!!!
Mark Bradley
January 7th, 2010
11:12 am
Or he could emulate the folks at Turner Field and have a Tool Race between quarters. I’d pay good money to see Blank himself slip on the saw costume.
Ramblin Wrecker
January 7th, 2010
11:14 am
I agree MBradley. This season was not a complete failure as a lot of fans like to think. The NFL is setup to have teams rise and fall from year to year because of the way they assign schedules. And the Falcons after having an 11-5 seasons against a last place schedule, were due for a drop back to the pack with a more difficult schedule and guess what, it was only a 2 game difference in the win column. Last year they had 16 full games from Matt Ryan, Michael Turner, Harry Douglas, Grady Jackson, and Lawyer Milloy. This year they got 0 games from Douglas, only 13 full games from Ryan, only 9 full games from Turner and essentially no contributions from Peria Jerry and William Moore who were the replacements for Jackson/Milloy. They also lost one of their starting CB’s after just 5 games.
To me all those injuries to key players against a tougher schedule and the result was only 2 more losses leads me to believe that the Falcons actually had a better season, performance wise on the whole than last season. They were competitive in every game except the Philly game. That says to me that the character of this team is solid (especially winning the final three games after being eliminated from playoff contention) and the direction of the team is pointed correctly.
If Peria Jerry and William Moore rebound from injury next season, it will be like having an extra 1st and 2nd round pick to add to the mix. Plus the schedule will not be any more difficult than it was this season. So with the possibility of an improved roster (thru another year’s experience for the current young players and thru the draft) I think the Falcons set up well to contend for the division title.
Bank Walker, Texas Ranger
January 7th, 2010
11:14 am
The biggest need is a pass rush. I would agree with the idea of a WR with speed to match with White. I think another concern is RB. I’m concerned that Turner will continue to break down leaving Snelling as our only back cause you know Norwood will be on the inactive list.
Gatorzone
January 7th, 2010
11:17 am
Sonny, you are a hoot. Are you from South JAWJA?
Sonny Clusters
January 7th, 2010
11:18 am
As Mark knows, we admire the way Arthur Blank dresses for the games. Mr Blank looks like he stepped out of GQ. Most owners look like they stepped out of DQ which is what we’d look like if we was Arthur Blank. Seeing him in a saw suit would lighten things up a little on game day. We could also see him as an oil can but at present there are no oil cans in the tool races.
Mark Bradley
January 7th, 2010
11:19 am
Pretty good line, Sonny: GQ to DQ. I chortled.