5 reasons I’m (slightly) disappointed in these 4-2 Falcons
This isn't to say there haven't been high points. This was the apogee. (AP photo)
1. Matt Ryan hasn’t yet had the breakthrough season many projected. He’s tied for 17th among in NFL quarterbacks in passing efficiency. He’s tied for 22nd in yards per attempt. He’s tied for 20th in completion percentage. He was very good against the Cardinals and Saints, so-so against everybody else. He’s excellent on third down — he’s not known as Matty Ice for nothing — but as an every-down quarterback he isn’t significantly better than he was as a rookie. (Granted, he was great as a rookie.)
2. Michael Turner is sleeker than he was a year ago but no more effective. Last season Turner showed up heavy and only started to rumble in midseason, whereupon he hurt his ankle. This time Turner reported leaner and presumably meaner, but his numbers don’t reflect the upgrade in conditioning. He averaged 4.9 yards per carry and 79.2 yards per game in 2009; he’s averaging 4.3 and 77.7 now. He scored 17 touchdowns in 2008, 10 more last season. He has scored once in 2010.
3. The Falcons are better at gaining yards than scoring points. They’re ninth in the league in total offense, which reflects yardage, but tied for 11th in points. According to TeamRankings.com, their red-zone offense is tied for 21st among 32 NFL clubs. (And this with Tony Gonzalez, the ultimate red-zone weapon.)
4. They kick too many field goals. Again referring to TeamRankings.com, the Falcons are tied for second in the NFL with 2.7 FG attempts per game. (They’re tied for 17th in touchdowns per game.) This tells us they’re moving the ball — just not far enough.
5. The defense is better but still not Super Bowl caliber. The Falcons ranked 24th in total defense in 2008, 21st in 2009. They’re 18th now — those 474 yards amassed by the Eagles dropped the Falcons seven spots — and their pass efficiency defense is tied for 25th . Opponents have completed 68.6 percent of their passes, which means the quarterbacks who have played against the Falcons (Dennis Dixon, Derek Anderson, Max Hall, Drew Brees, Alex Smith, Seneca Wallace, Jake Delhomme and Kevin Kolb) have been more accurate than Ryan has against their respective defenses. Which shouldn’t be the case.
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179 comments Add your comment
opie taylor
October 19th, 2010
10:37 am
Zero playoff wins!!
Zoomie
October 19th, 2010
10:38 am
What bothers me most is that all the indicators have been present from the first game that the Falcons’ offense couldn’t play power ball, but no adjustments have been made. The shellacking by the Eagles was inevitable and predicted by many within these blogs. Failure to fix glaring deficiencies is on the coaching staff.
I looked for statistics that outline where Matt Ryan throws the football. It seems to me that almost all of his throws are outs or little dump-off passes. Seems he just won’t throw down the middle of the field. Anybody know how to find the stats on where the QB throws?
Cory
October 19th, 2010
10:39 am
It’s Mularkey. It’s Mularkey. It’s Mularkey. It’s Mularkey. It’s Mularkey. It’s Mularkey. It’s Mularkey. It’s Mularkey. It’s Mularkey. It’s Mularkey. It’s Mularkey. It’s Mularkey. It’s Mularkey. It’s Mularkey. It’s Mularkey. It’s Mularkey. It’s Mularkey. It’s Mularkey. It’s Mularkey.
Cory
October 19th, 2010
10:39 am
We need to stretch the field with more deep balls We need to stretch the field with more deep balls We need to stretch the field with more deep balls We need to stretch the field with more deep balls We need to stretch the field with more deep balls We need to stretch the field with more deep balls We need to stretch the field with more deep balls We need to stretch the field with more deep balls
SimpleDawg
October 19th, 2010
10:39 am
Oh, and Mike Mularkey is full of mularkey……
…and Sam Baker is not a reliable left tackle.
cejay
October 19th, 2010
10:41 am
As a Falcon fan I’ve waited for next season all my life. Mike Mularkey has got to go NOW!!!! no more waiting!!! D@man ! Pull one like the 49er’s and fire his a$$ all ready !!!! Maybe the Falcons “brass” need to hire someone whose job is to read these forums!!!! Okay I’ll help you, walk into Mike Mularkey’s office and repeat after me, ” Mike, its just not working out, you’re FIRED!” see, wasn’t that easy. Noooooooo, I’m a Falcon fan, I’ll have to endure more of this crap until someone steps up to plate and makes a decision!!!!!….okay ..I feel better..
opie taylor
October 19th, 2010
10:42 am
Paulitik, you make a good point maybe Mularkey is stunting Matt Ryan’s development!!
O.G. Falcon Fan
October 19th, 2010
10:44 am
Every body has a let down game once a year. Don’t panic. Have Faith
Play the Refs
October 19th, 2010
10:44 am
moorman I don’t know what you are seeing but Lofton is one of the best MLB’s in the league. 11th in tackles, ahead of Patrick Willis and Ray Lewis. C’mon Man!
O.G. Falcon Fan
October 19th, 2010
10:45 am
what do u think changing OC in the middle of the season is going to do to this years chances??
jerry
October 19th, 2010
10:47 am
Run first offense. Now why in the hell would anyone want to do that when it is so much easier to gain yards and score points through the air? What did that get them against the two best teams they have faced, Pittsburgh and Philadelphia? A total of 26 points and 0-2. What did it get them against two of the worst teams in the NFL, San Francisco and Cleveland? 16 and 13 (7 came on Bierman’s int.for a td). Time for a different offensive philosophy or a new OC.
SMITTYSTHEMAN
October 19th, 2010
10:47 am
I agree with a lot of the comments. I think Ryan is a bright quarterback who has great tools. But he has only shown signs of brilliance sporadically. I would put our group of receivers against any other group in the NFL (White, Jenkins, Douglas, Finneran, Gonzalez). I know Smitty strongly believes in the power running game and that is fine, but with our group of receivers, why oh why aren’t we absolutely lighting it up with the passing game? Part of the answer is play-calling and part of it is Ryan. He typically over/underthrows several passes per game that should be long gainers. I can only fantasize over the thought of someone like Brady, Manning, Roethlisberger, etc. throwing to our great group of receivers. There would be no stopping them!
cejay
October 19th, 2010
10:48 am
@FALCONS SORRY
PENCILVANIA!
——————-
LOL !
Ted M
October 19th, 2010
10:49 am
The Falcons simply are not as good as their record. While that does give them a shot to recover and make the playoffs (and hopefully do something in the playoffs) you should be more than just slightly disappointed in them.
I hope they are more than just slightly disappointed in themselves. So far I’m not hearing that.
SAINTS LSU
October 19th, 2010
10:49 am
you played the saints like its were your superbowl like everybody else now its time to put up & you can’t the saints has a better team & everybody is coming back for the saints the only team you beat bad were the cards same old falcons you get a wildcard maybe
cejay
October 19th, 2010
10:53 am
@SAINTS LSU
HAHAHAH ! I laugh at this, look at your teams history, you talk as if the the aint’s have been winning for years……NOT!
TeeJay
October 19th, 2010
10:54 am
Not sure how the Falcons will respond this Sunday, but I can tell you how it will be at the GaDome; should be ready to take advantage of a 3 game homestand to get to 7-2, but no…team coming off a loss where they didn’t play well, we will see a late arriving crowd that will not be in full throat at kickoff, but sitting there waiting for something good to happen before they “rise up”. An early Cincy score and the dome will be flat, dead, useless.
Every NFL team has a clunker game or 2 every season. Just have to keep it to 1 or 2. But, San Fran was a clunker too, only a win because they are so inept. That’s 2 already. Better get it together on offense soon, or this season is a bust. If this season is a bust, year three of “the process”, then the process is failing.
Get in your seats and make some noise this Sunday. In earnest…
JWS
October 19th, 2010
10:58 am
68TH!!
TMoney
October 19th, 2010
10:58 am
Points 1, 2, 3 and 4 can all be tied to one thing: The O-Line. They are not protecting in passing situations, leading to a lot of checkdowns. They are not opening holes, meaning Turner gets bottled up at or near the LOS. The line’s lack of protection is more apparent in the Red Zone, where the D has the same 11 players in a smaller area. Combine their lack of protection with the area of the field, and it means they get to the Red Zone, but can’t punch it in, hence the FGs.
As for point 5, you’re right, they aren’t Super Bowl caliber. But were you really expecting it to be?
Fish Bisch
October 19th, 2010
10:58 am
The greatest part in the Philly game was when Dunta absolutely wrecked Jackson. I cheered and if everyone was honest with yourself you did too for a moment. It was a clean legal hit. It was not helmet to helmet.
BOB
October 19th, 2010
10:59 am
Improving Ryan’s footwork is one area where some immediate results can be had. He is often off balance when attempting to go down field and it shows in his completion statistics.
real fan
October 19th, 2010
11:00 am
Wow ome loss since overtime in Pitt and everybody off the wagon. Cmon guys we are 4-2 shred it if you want but we are still top dog in the division. Lets see how we progress the next couple of weeks before we start throwing coaches under the bus. I like the idea of Matt in the shotgun though. Also would like to see him work through his reads a litle faster . Matt tends to lock on the number 1 and force it too much. Defense looking good but didnt stay with there assignments . That has been a problem for some time this season. Go back and look at the film. Philly is excellent in exposing this kind of weakness. Safeties need to stay at home . Abraham too. Its fixable. Teams that learn from mistakes and correct them go to the superbowl. Teams that show up the same way week in and week out end up with high draft picks and alot of empty seats. Nuff said, Go Falcons.
Dirty Bird
October 19th, 2010
11:01 am
http://pricezack.wordpress.com/2010/10/18/the-bcs-who-will-raise-the-crystal-ball/
Playmakers Needed
October 19th, 2010
11:03 am
Harry Douglas doesn’t get enough touches and we simply don’t have enough speedy, athletic guys that DCs have to gameplan for. Our offense is not very imaginative and the fact Matty’s development at reading the field (post-snap), stepping up in the pocket and delivering accurate strikes consistantly has been slower than expected makes our offense look downright BORING.
It’s one thing when your offense is boring but effective but we have too many bad plays on offense to be effective so the fact that it’s so boring and predictable really makes you wonder how much longer Mularkey, O-line coach and the QB coach are gonna be around.
In Matt Ryan, I believe
October 19th, 2010
11:04 am
It’s not Matt Ryan. He has the talent to be a elite QB. He showed that in 2008. The problem is either Mike Smith or Mike Mularkey, or both.
Somebody is not being creative.
groundfog
October 19th, 2010
11:05 am
I’m really beginning to question the ability of this coaching staff to take it to the next level. They were clearly outcoached by andy reid, and when matched against superior coaching the past couple of years they seem to get beat.
This offense is clearly not better, and the defense is average. I hate bend but dont break defenses,and that seems to be the coaching mentality. Look at the Steelers, the dont bend and dont break
JT
October 19th, 2010
11:06 am
The Falcons are too methodical and conservative on offense, and the pass defense gave up too much yardage and big plays against the Eagles…it could be worse, look at the Green Bay Packers with about 15 players out with injuries. I think the Falcons will be ok.
Educated
October 19th, 2010
11:07 am
@FALCONS SORRY,
You are the prototypical black man!! Uneducated and still using the race card of which you have NO understanding of those times (again, because you are uneducated). Why don’t you use your time to read a book! oh wait, you probably don’t know how. Maybe you should go back to school and get educated and make something of yourself. Stop smokin da weed, and knockin up da girls, only to leave them all alone to raise another YOU!! It’s such a vicious cycle among da brothers, isn’t it?? Everyone is to blame except you, everyone (mainly the white man) is responsible for your lack of a life, right?? Stop blaming everyone else and take responsibility!! Or just go rob another innocent person and take what isn’t yours. It’s what ya’ll do best isn’t it. Take from others cause your too damn lazy to earn your own!!!
Ross
October 19th, 2010
11:07 am
Geezus Mark, chill out! We got out-schemed in one game and you’re panicking? There are 10 games left. We’re in first place. We’re three years from being the worst team in the NFL. Go bowling or something!
Mountain Man
October 19th, 2010
11:08 am
How is it with weapons like Roddy White, Michael Jenkins, Tony Gonzalez, Harry Douglas, and Turner/Snelling out of the backfield we cannot get one of these men open? Surely in a pass-heavy set one of these fine gentlemen must be open, or is the NFL now allowing 14 people on defence?
Our offence does not seem to be predicated on trickery, therefore we must execute percision blocking asignments and pass routes. If the pass routes aren’t crisp, they give the defenders the chance to jump the route, or at least get a hand on the ball.
The running lanes must be blasted open. Turner is not a horizontal threat. The O line MUST create a crease for him to blast through. Turner is a solid back, but our O line is not creating the running lanes necessary for his style of game.
Just some of my thoughts.
groundfog
October 19th, 2010
11:08 am
It is becoming unbearablee to watch this team offensively with all the checkdowns by Ryan. The team refuses to throw downfield. It is up to coaching to creat mismatches too, so it cant be all Ryan’s fault.
Jimv
October 19th, 2010
11:08 am
Matt Ryan had a breakthrough opportunity against the Eagles Sunday. He and the Falcons failed rather badly. Tough to write about, but nicely done, Mark Now think about the next tough one:. Smitty’s conservatism and preparation skills.
Roy
October 19th, 2010
11:09 am
My biggest disappointment is Matt Ryan he is way over rated. Just an average QB!
Mountain Man
October 19th, 2010
11:09 am
That should read offense and defense. Damn I can’t spell this morning.
E's Dirty Bird's
October 19th, 2010
11:10 am
Mularkey needs to develop a contingency offense in the case that we get far behind in the game. Our balanced attack offense does not work when we are down -21 points. I really think that Ryan has not been taught nor allowed to read defenses and do more 7 step drops. I think it’s obvious that we would be a more effective offense if we allowed Ryan to scan the field and find the open receiver vs. the status quo “timing route” offense. And please, for the love of all, scrap the Roddy White wide receiver screen play out of the playbook!! It never works!!
Angus
October 19th, 2010
11:11 am
Despite Ryan’s physical limitations (speed, arm strenght), I believe we team can win a SB with him – he certainly wouldn’t be the least physically gifted QB to ever win one.
Our OL and coaches got worked over Sunday – not sure what you can do about that.
Angus
October 19th, 2010
11:12 am
Geez, bad spelling and bad grammar – my apologies.
vafalconfan
October 19th, 2010
11:14 am
The Falcons are a good team in a poorly devised and outdated scheme..
Bubba Bean
October 19th, 2010
11:16 am
Mark,
Your first four reasons all point to one thing……..the OC! When an armchair quarterback like me can sit and predict what the next play will be, you know an NFL assistant who has studied film and tendencies all week HAS to know. Malarkey’s(sp?) system works when it works, but if it is schemed for and the opponent takes away a portion of it, you are dead in the water! There is no imagination, no innovation, no adjustments. An offense can line up and force their will on a defense only when they are more talented, and in the parity that is the NFL that doesn’t happen too often. Heck, I’ve even wished for that little play action boot-leg that was used WAY too much the last few years, just to get Matt out of the pocket and force the action. We have the talent, we just need more imagination.
FHZ
October 19th, 2010
11:17 am
It’s looking like The NFC East is going to The Superbowl again
1 Division Champ (Giants), and 2 Wildcards possibly (Eagles, Redskins)
…and if The Saints sneak back-in and steal The Division…
It’s looking more like the recent Brave season..The Phillies became healthy, and just slow-walked
The Braves down.. Like The Braves vs. The Phillies, The Falcons will not be able to play The Saints until later in the season.
NFC Championship Game = Saints @ Giants
SB = Giants over Colts
(Brother vs. Brother, Manning vs. Manning, It was bound to happen in The NFL..and The AFC seems weaker than its been in the last few years).
Whatever is wrong won’t be fixed until the off-season after The NFL Lock-Out in 2011..
Ted M
October 19th, 2010
11:18 am
The Hawks really got spanked by the Magic. I know its meaningless preseason but the day before the Hawks were talking about how important this game was to them because of the playoff slaughter last season. Yet the Magic crushed them again.
Playmakers Needed
October 19th, 2010
11:19 am
@ Educated – I can’t tell who comments are more offensive: Yours or FALCONS SORRY. There are some very prototypical negative things we could all say about someone’s race but let me say this in response to your comments:
Before you go talking about someone else’s lack of education make sure you understand the causes and effects of discrimination in the monetary system and what that means for minorities all over the world. Also make sure you have proper understanding of what happens to ANYONE when you live in a society that tells you you are nothing and makes sure you feel that. Your expectations for yourself become lowered and leads to much of the aberrant behaviors you see portrayed in the media. The problems you listed are not exclusive to Black men in America. It is likely that any group put in black people’s place during their time in this country would have turned out similarly.
So educated yourself a little and get a REAL understaning of cause and effect before you go spouting off about what’s “prototypical” about any group.
Playmakers Needed
October 19th, 2010
11:19 am
Oops….so “educate” yourself a little…..
Andy
October 19th, 2010
11:20 am
At times Ryan looks like a great QB and at times he looks very average. I think Turner is close to being done. The Falcons have to look for a RB in the early rounds of the draft next year or decide if Snelling is the answer. I don’t see any improvement in the defense. I still see DB’s getting torched and making average/good QB’s look great. The Falcons will make the playoffs because they have a favorable schedule and the NFC is way down this year but I don’t think they are even close to Super Bowl caliber yet.
Get a grip Bradley
October 19th, 2010
11:21 am
Bradley you don’t know the first thing about winning championships. The Baltimore Raves offense was awful, yet they won a world championship with a stellar D and a rookie RB in Jamal. Kicking field goals isn’t the end of the world if it wins you games. You should stick to baseball. That is a topic of which you have some knowledge. You’re clueless in regards to football. Atlanta leades the NFl in interceptions, and clueless Bradley harps on how the defense isn’t good enough.
MJLC
October 19th, 2010
11:22 am
I think it’s obvious that Mularkey is either a bad OC, or he is covering for Matt Ryan’s arm. When you NEVER throw the ball down field, it makes it a whole lot easier to cover receivers AND stop the run… Turner is fine, the receivers are fine but if you don’t stretch the field vertically it doesn’t really matter..
Go Falcons
BullDawgMike
October 19th, 2010
11:24 am
Falcons look great only against the mediocre teams they face. They have only played three upper tier teams so far, and lost two. If Saints kicker had done his job, they would have lost that game too. As long as they play the Lions, Browns, etc. they look good, but against teams that regularly go to the playoffs, you can forget it….
Playmakers Needed
October 19th, 2010
11:24 am
@ Get a grip Bradley
Please name me ONE other team besides the Ravens to win a SB with an offense as pedestrian as the Falcons…
It doesn’t happen often. Can it? Yes. But who strives to have their defense win every game for them???
Balance is best.
stendek
October 19th, 2010
11:30 am
The NFL czars have spoken! Hard hits are out. Time to issue skirts and tampons to players? Flag football anyone? Jesse Tuggle and Tommy Nobis would be too tough for this pansy league! Sheesh. What next bozos? Personal fouls for politically incorrect overly mean tackles? Heaven forbid! Way to go Mr Robinson. Thanks for being only Falcon to take a stand! You did NOTHING wrong or illegal. Screw corrupt NFL czars. STENDEK Poor offense falls on shoulders of Matt Ryan. Regresses every game. Will soon reach Chris Miller status. So sad. No excuses.
ASHCAN.
October 19th, 2010
11:31 am
Its amazing how everybody gets the blame but ryan.People stop being in denial about ryan,aint nothing icey about him at all.Last i checked,people earn names when they do something to earn it not be crowned a name(matty ice)before hand.D.sanders got crowned the name prime time because he earned it.Revis got crowned the name revis island because he earned it and so on ect….I keep hearing all these excuses for this QB(ryan)when he have not done squat diddly.What has ryan iced? besides being average.Change brings hype,now what do i mean by that? the falcons got new coaches new QB and new players and all that hype has falcon fans decieved to the point where you think this team is elite when in fact its a different team but same ole results.