On a night with everything to gain, the Falcons somehow lose
Do you believe in miracles? For Matty Ice, there were none this night. (AJC photo by Jason Getz)
The biggest home game in franchise history: That’s how this was billed, and here we pause to note that 46 seasons make for a considerable chunk of history. (Almost half a century!) And even if the Falcons entered Monday night’s game against New Orleans with a comfy Plan B — they could lose to the Saints and still win the NFC South and clinch a No. 1 seed by beating Carolina on Sunday — nobody wanted to do it the easy way.
But that, alas, is the way it will have to be. The Falcons tripped over their moment. This isn’t to say they can’t have moments still, but they couldn’t handle this one.
If you’re going to be a champ, you have to show you can beat a champ. The Falcons had already taken down the reigning champs once this fall, but that was in Week 3 in the Superdome when not many people thought this team would be 12-2 on Christmas. That was a case of a rising team slipping up on an established power. Monday night was different: It was a match of peers, a prime-time convocation of two of the NFL’s finest.
It wasn’t a game of precision. Center Todd McClure whiffed on a shotgun snap that spawned the Saints’ first touchdown, and Michael Turner fumbled when the Falcons were poised to take a third-quarter lead. But the defense kept the game close enough for one play to turn it, and one play did.
It was the Falcons’ defense that undid them in their improbable playoff run of 2008, a defense that was so outclassed in Glendale, Ariz., that general manager Thomas Dimitroff flew home determined to embark on a massive redo, and sure enough he (re)did. The Falcons dumped five starters off that 11-5 team and, in going 9-7 last season, paid the inevitable price of such sweeping change. This year, however, has seen the changes brought to bear.
These Falcons can play D with the big boys. On Monday night they held a high-test offense to 10 points — seven off the aforementioned short field — over 56 minutes. They induced Drew Brees, Sports Illustrated’s Sportsman of the Year, to commit two egregious fourth-quarter turnovers, the first a silly underhand toss the Chauncey Davis fielded and returned for the go-ahead score, the second a bat-and-grab interception by John Abraham.
The Falcons had a chance after the Abraham swoop to close the case, but a possession sputtered after one first down. Whereupon the Saints drove to a touchdown, Brees finding Jimmy Graham on a slant with 3:24 remaining. But this was what the Falcons’ defense, even in its wobbles, had done all season: It had kept games close enough for Matt Ryan to win them at the end.
And here again was his chance. He hadn’t had a great game through 56 minutes, but the beauty of Matty Ice is that those first 56 minutes can be a red herring. On the first snap after the Saints took their late lead, Ryan scrambled for 20 yards, and you thought, “Here it comes” — the final copyright-protected Falcons Finish of calendar 2010, to be placed on the shelf alongside the escapes against the 49ers and the Ravens and the Packers.
But then a strange thing happened. Ryan threw incomplete on third down, and Mike Smith, the coach who dares to dare, chose to punt inside the final three minutes. It almost worked — the Falcons thought they’d recovered a Graham fumble, but replay correctly overruled — and Matt Ryan never got another chance.
“We didn’t get the outcome we wanted,” Smith said, “but we like where we’re at. Fifteen other [NFC] teams would like to be where we are.”
And that’s true. But there was no hiding the disappointment. “You’ve got to look at the body of work,” Smith said, but this was a night that went against what we’d seen before.
A formula tested over 14 games fizzled in the 15th. The defense held the Saints to 17 points and scored seven itself, which should have been enough to win but wasn’t. The offense couldn’t hold up its end, and the dauntless Smitty outsmarted himself at the end. The biggest regular-season game in Falcons annals will go down, sad to say, as a whiff.
By Mark Bradley
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405 comments Add your comment
smooth01
December 28th, 2010
1:17 am
i know yall saints fans r excited, but let be relisted…..to be the champ.. u have to beat the champs..did that, so did clevland,arizona and the raven, so what that make them the champs…yall won a game got a wild card spot…ok….do something with it
M
December 28th, 2010
1:20 am
I am a true Falcon Fan and I cannot believe we gave this game away. Will somebody please tell me why, why, did Mike Mulaurkey and Smith allow Turner to continue to run in a crowd of Saints on the Goal line when u saw it was not working. We have so many weapons. A high toss to Finneran, or a sweep play with Snelling, or a pass to Gonzalez. Dam man, we should be up by 2 touchdowns. This game was the Falcons. Fans its not over yet, and just because we can beat the Panthers is not good enough. We have to be able to beat the good teams too. I hope we don’t screw up next week. This was a big TV game. Dam man! Rack up the score man, keep scoring, keep scoring, dont stop, choke the Bitches man please!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Im ok, just kidding. But we need to win dammit!!!!
C
December 28th, 2010
1:22 am
Saint’s won, but should not feel too proud about this one.
Not a fan of the Falcons offense playing it so conservative.
Next week. Go Falcons!
smooth01
December 28th, 2010
1:23 am
yall saints fan enjoy…..we’ll be at home waiting 4 yall in the playoff if yall make it…
TCCB
December 28th, 2010
1:25 am
REMATCH IN THE GEORGIA DOME YOU SAY? then ALL THE SAINTS COME MARCHING IN IT”S VOOOOO DOOOOOOOOOOOO BABY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! NO WAY THE FALCONS WILL WIN!!!!!!!!!!!
smooth01
December 28th, 2010
1:26 am
saints did’nt win the game …the falcons lost it…clearly
WeBurn
December 28th, 2010
1:27 am
The 1998 Falcons remain the beat regular-season team in history. I have a feeling that they will also remain the best postseason team in Falcons history.
This team is good, not great. As good as the defense played, how many missed tackles and blown sacks did they have? The Saints exploited our one remaining weakness on offense…we can’t throw deep. They kept everything in front and totally contained Matt Ryan. We saw Ryan throw twice to Douglas when he was double-covered…wtf???
Dr. Kenneth Noisewater
December 28th, 2010
1:29 am
good points M…. i agree. we had this game but gave it away. let’s face it, the saints did not blow us out of the dome…hard fought, good game.
bigdave
December 28th, 2010
1:30 am
need a nickle corner..
smooth01
December 28th, 2010
1:30 am
if yall watched the same game i watch, then ya know we gave the game away…saints did’nt look all that good…..brees 2 td, one in the 1st off a turnover and one in the 4th…high power, yell rite..
Matt Ryan highly overrated
December 28th, 2010
1:31 am
The saints took away Matt Ryan weapon. IN doing so showed Matt patty melt Ryan is no real weapon! where was the offence!! where was the great Matt Ryan? hype overrated !! First round loss the cons!!
T
December 28th, 2010
1:32 am
Oh you poor Fal-cants!!! All that talk and then u lose on your home turf (AGAIN). Got to beat da man to be da man!!! Saints fans love reading these blogs, they are so delicious!!! We took all you had, and you just weren’t man enough. Suck it Roddy!! I see it now, Falcants lose first playoff game. It is so nice to read these pathetic Falcon Blogs, I just laugh and laugh and laugh. We have the better team, better QB, better coaches, and BEST CITY!! I sometime get sad for Atlanta, I really do. I pity Atlanta. All of New Orleans does. They try so hard, and yet……. If not for fluke wins, well, you know….. hahahahahahahahaha.
smooth01
December 28th, 2010
1:33 am
yall just make it to atlanta…..
T
December 28th, 2010
1:34 am
Without a couple of fluke wins….. Atlanta would be barely breathing. Where is the pride? Gut check time, and the falcons showed their true colors. I would hate to be a Falcons fan (yeck).
Once "Recent" Reader
December 28th, 2010
1:35 am
Billy (Not) Martin . …. .our Offense doesn’t have to scare anyone . . . it just has to be as consistent as it normally has been throughout the year. Today they did not do what they have normally done . …..great on 3rd downs, control time of possession, and score around 25 points .. . .their average. I don’t think many teams watching this game think less of the Falcons because of a close loss to a very good NO team. They may look for pointers on how to hold the offense to 14 points . . .. .but that is easier said then done as has been proven throughout the year.
T
December 28th, 2010
1:35 am
Why we were just there. Crushed you in your own house AGAIN.
Once "Recent" Reader
December 28th, 2010
1:37 am
T . . … .I really don’t know what game most fans on this site were watching. I though both teams played with pride tonight in a very tough defensive battle. If the Falcs had pulled it out, I wouldn’t be saying the Saints played with no pride after this hard fought game.
Bob R
December 28th, 2010
1:37 am
We needed this loss badly.
It wasn’t a complete wake-up call like the Bears losing to New England a couple weeks ago but just a gentle reminder that “you ain’t all that”.
While I love my Dirty Birds, I told more than a couple people that I hope we lose tonight to get some perspective back.
This week will be a great practice and that Carolina team might even perform better than our 3rd string so we’ll get a good workout while humiliating them further at the Georgia Dome.
Fact remains this is the finest 3 years of Falcons performance in all the years I’ve been watching them. We are now a force in the NFC and everyone around the league is taking notice – all eyes are now turning towards Atlanta.
I’m proud of that.
Once "Recent" Reader
December 28th, 2010
1:38 am
T . . . .again, I confused with your terminology? Played with no pride . . .now indicating the Falcons were crushed??? Did you TiVo some old game and watch that tonight?
smooth01
December 28th, 2010
1:38 am
better team, better city….i can’t tell, yall a storm away from being destoyed…thats y all these no people moving to the A, so don’t go there…..4ever i love atlanta and from the looks yall do to
anywho
December 28th, 2010
1:39 am
Painful as it is, the truth remains, chumps choke at home against arch rivals under the spotlight. Billed as the single most important game in franchise history, the falcons choked. When you lack heart, top seed and home field advantage are meaningless. The Falcons will not win a single playoff game and will lay down to current champ Saints, former champ Giants, Vick’s Eagles, or Packers.
M
December 28th, 2010
1:40 am
Hey “T” at 1:32am, now I have been waiting for a Saint Fan to get on here and say something stupid. Did u just say u pity Atlanta????????????? Wow. UH, did u guys have a water problem?? The game was given to u as a Christmas gift our coaches ok.
Mark Bradley
December 28th, 2010
1:41 am
Closing this now. I’m going to bed. We’ll reopen things in the morning.
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Drew Dat
December 28th, 2010
11:46 am
Sorry Falcons fans, but your team had this coming thanks to Roddy White and his arrogant, look-at-me tweeting. Call the reigning Super Bowl champs Aints and you’ll get a fight, not that the Black and Gold needed any extra motivation.
Last night the Saints drew the blue print for beating the birds in the Georgia Dome: stop the run and play-action, and watch Matty Ice melt.
Skeezix
December 28th, 2010
11:51 am
The Saints are a very good team and proved it again last night. Don’t worry Falcon fans–the Carolina Panthers are so bad that the inevitable outcome (a Falcon’s win) will be decided by the end of the first half.
hjones
December 28th, 2010
11:51 am
COACHING FAILURE!
Earth to Falcons coaching staff: Matt Ryan, Roddy White, Michael Jenkins, and Tony Gonzalez are the offensive engines of this team. Micheal Turner is only one man.
OUR DEFENSE PLAYED AT A LEVEL THAT WOULD LET ATLANTA BEAT ANY TEAM IN THE NFL. OUR OFFENSE PLAYED WITH ONE ARM TIED BEHIND ITS BACK BECAUSE OF THE PLAY CALLING!! TWO catches for Gonzalez and THREE CATCHES for Roddy White SAYS IT ALL
WE HAVE A CHAMPIONSHIP CALIBER TEAM WITH A COACH CALLING HIGH SCHOOL TYPE PLAY SEQUENCES!
DO YOU READERS THINK WE CAN WIN A SINGLE PLAYOFF GAME IF WE OPERATE OUR OUR OFFENSE THIS WAY?
WE WILL BE PLAYING GOOD TEAMS PROBABLY NEW ORLEANS AND PHILADELPHIA. ONE LOSS AND WE ARE OUT! BOTH OF THESE TEAMS ALREADY HAVE OUR NUMBER (OFFENSIVE PLAY CALLING SEQUENCE)!!!
I have said this MANY times in posts during the year. Our play calling is too predictable!!! It is obvious that NEW ORLEANS knew our usual sequence of how Mike Malarkey calls the plays. We were beaten before the initial kick-off.
There are too many Turner runs on first and second down when he has 0, -1, -2, -3, ,,,, -5 yards to put the team in a no-win situation. Then Matt Ryan is under pressure to make a first on third down.
HOW MANY TIMES HAVE YOU READERS SEEN THIS HAPPEN THIS YEAR? And last year?
I am not a football coach but if I see the tendency, the NEW Orleans coaches certainly see the tendency. After the Jenkins interference in the end zone, our objective should have been to score points NOT to prove that Turner can run the ball into the end zone. A play action pass would have been a great first down play call. We didn’t learn on the first attempt, so let’s run Turner again. COME ON MAN (Malarkey), points win a game not your stubbornness to continue to run Turner in this way.
After the Abraham interception, there are no excuses for not scoring points. This low level scoring urgency has been the norm all year. We are playing the big boys now, not the losers of the NFL.
Running Turner this way has happened so many times this year and mostly at a first down situation. I said it before, if Mike Smith continues to let Malarkey call plays like he does, then Mike Smith is part of the problem too.
Farnsworthy
December 28th, 2010
11:54 am
Mark: I see that blogger pontification is not in short supply today.
Open Minded
December 28th, 2010
12:11 pm
OK… the Falcons got beat. They lost 1 game. Everybody learned on this experience. We are still the likely Home field advantage which is huge for us. Smitty is good enough to adjust and give the Falcons every chance to win big in the weeks ahead.
When the season started… who thought we’d be this far along?
C’mon guys, let’s face it we’re still in the thick of thngs..BIG TIME……
Michael in Dunwoody
December 28th, 2010
12:15 pm
I think we all need to pump the brakes here a little bit. This wasn’t the crushing defeat that some would lead you to believe. Would it have been great to beat our rivals on Monday Night Football? Absolutely. But on a night when Atlanta’s offense was uncharacteristically poor, the team still managed to hang in the game and only lost by three to a high-powered offense.
Consider:
- The fumble by McClure, a rare mistake by a team that makes very few. Brees is one of maybe two QBs that will capitalize on a bad turnover like that, and he did.
- Turner’s fumble at the Saints’ two yard line, another rare mistake by a guy who had yet to turn the ball over this year. If the Falcons come away with even only a FG there (which is very likely), it’s a completely different game.
- The lack of production from three of the team’s four MVPs (Ryan, Turner, Gonzalez). The play calling was certainly suspect, but rare is the game when a defense shuts down all three of those guys. I think the announcers said it best by pointing out that the familiarity the Falcons and Saints have with one another probably contributed to the shutdown defense the Saints played.
Call me biased, but I’m still positive the Falcons are the better team. With any kind of offense the Falcons win that game hands down.
This was a humbling loss for Atlanta. They’re not unbeatable at home, nobody is, but there’s still a considerable advantage for them playing at the Dome, without question. They should be able to work on a few things this week and go out and take care of business Sunday. If they win, they’re number one. And they should. Forget the Saints.
JSS
December 28th, 2010
12:26 pm
Y’all had poor Mark Bradley so wore out from reading foolishness that he couldn’t open the comments back up till almost Noon time!!! Ice pack, Execidrin Migraine Plus, and some Wayne Dwyer tapes, sorry I can’t offer more help!!!
JIm
December 28th, 2010
12:30 pm
I knew this would come the first time this team lost a game. They have won 8 straight games and get blasted because they lose to the SB Champs. The Saints are champions people, you beat them once, that’s about all any reasonable fan should expect. Do you people expect them to never lose again, unreal. The other guys get paid as well, the Saints just played better tonight. ATL beat them there, NO beat ATL here, so what now? ATL just need to do what NO did and beat Carolina twice.
This owner and team is about to do something no owner or team in the history of this franchise has ever done, host the National Football Conference SB tournament. Mike Vick, Chris Chandler, Steve Bartkowski, Dave Archer or any other Falcon was able to do what Ryan and his group is about to do in two weeks.
They are who I thought they were, sorry Denny!
Michael in Dunwoody
December 28th, 2010
12:30 pm
I think we all need to pump the brakes here a little bit. This wasn’t the crushing defeat that some would lead you to believe. Would it have been great to beat our rivals on Monday Night Football? Absolutely. But on a night when Atlanta’s offense was uncharacteristically poor, the team still managed to hang in the game and only lost by three to a high-powered offense.
Consider:
- The fumble by McClure, a rare mistake by a team that makes very few. Brees is one of maybe two QBs that will capitalize on a bad turnover like that, and he did.
- Turner’s fumble at the Saints’ two yard line, another rare mistake by a guy who had yet to turn the ball over this year. If the Falcons come away with even only a FG there (which is very likely), it’s a completely different game.
- The lack of production from three of the team’s four MVPs (Ryan, Turner, Gonzalez). The play calling was certainly suspect, but rare is the game when a defense shuts down all three of those guys. I think the announcers said it best by pointing out that the familiarity the Falcons and Saints have with one another probably contributed to the shutdown defense the Saints played.
Call me biased, but I’m still positive the Falcons are the better team. With any kind of offense the Falcons win that game hands down.
This was a humbling loss for Atlanta. They’re not unbeatable at home, nobody is, but there’s still a considerable advantage for them playing at the Dome, without question. They should be able to work on a few things this week and go out and take care of business Sunday. If they win, they’re number one. And they should.
Ted M
December 28th, 2010
12:40 pm
This will be a blessing and not just because it may wake up the coaching staff from its delusions of conservatism but because it will force the Falcons to play next week. The Falcons were not good enough to take 2 weeks off before the playoffs.
I was praising Smith a week ago for going for it on 4th down and what does he do…punts the ball away in an obvious situation never to see it again.
Did I jinks him?
Ted M
December 28th, 2010
12:41 pm
Perhaps a shot of whiskey…JSS
Ted M
December 28th, 2010
12:44 pm
Mark,
Maybe your jinks has been transferred to me and all of your 2011 predictions will be spot on.
Ivan
December 28th, 2010
12:50 pm
lol @ Saints fans.
It took the only botched snap of McClure’s career and the first and only fumble for Turner this season to beat the Falcons by 3.
Falcons are still sitting higher. Division will be clinched next week. 1st seed will be clinched next week. And the Falcons had plenty of real game time for blitz schemes.
Ya’ll go enjoy that wild card spot okay
Who Dat got a Super Bowl ring?!!
December 28th, 2010
12:51 pm
Matty Ice got melted by a Cool Brees!
What a game. Both Defenses came to play. The Saints just showed that they are the truely better team. In December you have to win these games. Saints did, falcants didn’t. Can’t wait for a rematch in January but it probably wont be a different outcome.
13-3 NFC south CHAMP falcons
December 28th, 2010
12:54 pm
we’ll see the Aint’s in 3 weeks in the dome, and stop with the Who Dat stuff it just gives us another reason to laugh at you.
bigstack
December 28th, 2010
12:56 pm
Come down off the ledge everybody. Falcons will still win the division and get homefield throughout the playoffs and the Saints will have to come back through here. They played like crap especially the offense and still almost won. It wasn’t a bad omen. It was a hard fought game against a division opponent when Atlanta brought its C game. The defense was amazing not counting the last TD drive. They were due a loss. Now they can re-focus and prepare for what will likely be a 2nd round showdown with these same Saints. I would be willing to bet my life the Falcons win that one.
Who Dat got a Super Bowl ring?!!
December 28th, 2010
12:56 pm
@Ivan
and it took a Hartley missed FG in overtime for the Falcons to finally beat the Saints in week 3….
so what’s your point? The point being made by Saints fans is that you guys are not as good as you think. The Falcan’ts had a chance to wrap up everything last night and show the nation how good they are…boy did they ever choke. In the biggest game of the season, your workhorse RB fumbles in the redzone, your (louisiana bred) Center fumbles, and your “elite” QB can’t make a comeback. Let that sit in a minute…. Now, what are they going to do when the game is not just a regular season game but the NFC championship? My guess is probably $h!t their pants….
Ted M
December 28th, 2010
12:58 pm
It was a fun game to watch.
Who Dat got a Super Bowl ring?!!
December 28th, 2010
1:00 pm
hey Falcan’ts fans what happens when this is the NFC Championship game?????
In the biggest game of the season your workhorse RB fumbles in the redzone, your solid (louisiana bred) Center fumbles a snap, and your “elite” QB can’t make a comeback… that’s called CHOKING!!!! on and you allowed a 13 play 90 yard drive in the 4th Quarter. OUCH!!! hahahahaha
You guys are in for a rough ride in the Playoffs.
Who Dat got a Super Bowl ring?!!
December 28th, 2010
1:02 pm
oh and hahahaha, a friend told me “we’ll beat ‘em when it counts” I’m sorry but I’m pretty sure this game counted… a lot!!! CHOKE!!
WHO DAT!!!!!!
A Fan
December 28th, 2010
1:08 pm
Just Curious. Anyone thought about this. We KNEW we were in the playoffs. We also KNEW NO would be there too. They pulled out a lot of stuff we hadn’t seen. They beat us, fair and square, or we beat ourselves. Do you think Coach is holding some things back? Do you think Roddy’s knee is healed, really? Defense played great against a top tier offense. We actally gave them the lead, twice, adn came back. Can’t discount Brees. He’s an MVP, and played like Matt Ryan on that last drive. I say Kudos. We learned something, or we had better learn something. One of the Better Monday Night Games ever. I won’t dog the Saints fans. They can’t help it. They deserve to boast. You have to beat the best to be the best.
NoodleArm Ryan
December 28th, 2010
1:11 pm
Who cares about homefield advantage ESPN analysts are already naming 4 different teams that can beat the Falcons at home during the playoffs. The formula for beating up them birds was shown on MNF. Matty has a nice record but no meaningful wins meaning playoff wins. Turner phat*ss fumbled again in his biggest game as a Falcon. The most overrated team in football is located in ATL
Glenn
December 28th, 2010
1:12 pm
Personally speaking, this game didn’t concern me, too much. I’m hoping they “lay low” last evening against the Saints, not wanted to give away too much, in the event they play them again, or to have anyone injured prior to the playoffs. The winning streak and home “aura” of invincibility is all well-and-good, but getting through the game healthy was more important, and winning Sunday against Carolina will serve the same purpose as beating the Saints – all roads STILL come through Atlanta.
Rise Up
December 28th, 2010
1:15 pm
Some of you so called Falcon Fans need to relax. That loss last night cost us nothing. If anything it’s a positive thing in that it revealed some kinks for our guys to work on during our first round bye in the playoffs after handling the toothless panthers in the dome. Everything is right on track still because you best believe that Falcons Rise Up!!!
NoodleArm Ryan
December 28th, 2010
1:18 pm
Glenn dude are you high, who the hell in any pro sport would ” lay low” when they have chance to clinch?????? YOU PLAY TO WIN THE GAME & THE BIRDS LOST LOL. Thats why Peyton outcoaches Smith every time its called “making adjustments” ——not wanting to give away too much WTF!