Key question: Do the Falcons still know what they’re doing?
It has gotten this bad: Even the Bucs are mocking the Dirty Birds now. (AP photo)
Tampa – The Falcons are too good to be playing this way. They’ve trailed by double figures in all three games. They look great when they finally get serious, but by then their margin for error has been reduced to the nub, and any more wobbles — a dropped pass, a sack that shouldn’t have been taken, a lurch offside with the game literally on the line — can result in a good-looking team taking a big ugly L.
Asked Sunday night if he has been seeing the team he thought he’d see, coach Mike Smith said: “No, I’m not seeing that team … We’re making way too many mistakes.”
The same question was posed to center Todd McClure, who said: “No. We’ve got a great group of players, but we haven’t put it all together.”
Then this: “I feel like we’re holding ourselves back. We’re not making the plays that are there to be made.”
The obvious next questions: Why not? Why is a team fancied as a Super Bowl winner darn fortunate to be 1-2? Why do the Falcons start so slowly? Why has their devotion to details — a Smith staple — gone missing? Why must the long-promised “explosive” plays be saved for the desperate hours?
Nobody seems to know. The Falcons spent three quarters letting an OK Tampa Bay team get ahead and stay there, and it wasn’t as if the Bucs seized every moment. They netted three points from two sacks-and-recovered-fumbles inside the Falcons’ 20. They had a chance to pull ahead by three scores but threw an interception on the first play of the fourth quarter, whereupon a mystery guest appeared.
A team wearing the Falcons’ uniforms drove inside the Tampa Bay 5, then got the ball back and scored in two plays, then got the ball again and surged to the 5 again. At that moment you’d have sworn this team would seize the lead and win the game and talent would have finally been served, but at the same time you wondered: Where had this team been for 2 1/2 hours?
Let’s not fault the defense. It held the Bucs under 300 yards. Let’s turn instead to the high-priced offense, which has in two road games managed one touchdown. Asked if the Falcons aren’t a better team when three wide receivers are deployed and the no-huddle offense is implemented, Matt Ryan said: “I think we’re a good football team regardless of our personnel.”
For the first time in the four years of their partnership, it’s possible to wonder if Smith and general manager Thomas Dimitroff are as like-minded as we’d come to believe. Dimitroff traded 21 spots upward to land the hugely gifted Julio Jones, and through three quarters Sunday the receiver had one catch. He had five — for 97 yards — in the fourth. How hard is it to pull a Keyshawn Johnson and say: “Get that guy the darn ball”?
But it cuts deeper than tactics. There’s a weird air about this team. On the one hand, the Falcons seem careless. (Three turnovers and five penalties in this first half.) On the other hand, they seem scared to cut loose until circumstances render cutting loose a last resort. Former Falcons punter Michael Koenen, now a Buc, told the Tampa Tribune: “Up there, it’s a lot tighter. There’s a lot more nervous energy.”
There’s pressure on this team, yes. Dimitroff didn’t make big moves for Jones and Ray Edwards because he thought the Falcons might win a Super Bowl sometime in the next 30 years, and Arthur Blank — he of the not-exactly-relaxing late-game sideline appearances — has made it clear his only goal is to win a ring. But is a 53-man roster that includes only two Super Bowl winners capable of knowing what it takes without having ever come close?
The Falcons’ stated position is a reasonable one: They have enough talent to do whatever needs doing and enough time to correct the errors. Said John Abraham, the defensive end: “We’ve got to be back to playing Falcons football.”
For three seasons we thought we knew what that entailed — power football, focused football, precision football. Today we see a team that can’t handle the small stuff and seems, big-picture-wise, not to know what it’s trying to do. It’s as if the Falcons keep falling behind because falling behind is the only way they get to play the way they play best. It’s as if this grand design has lost all coordination.
By Mark Bradley
Tell us what you think about the site
Customer Care »
Vacation stops, manage subscriptions and more
AJC Services
Sections
Other Editions
Visitor Agreement | Privacy Statement
© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
598 comments Add your comment
Najeh Davenpoop
September 26th, 2011
12:03 am
“NFL might forgive Mike Vick but looks like God is not done with him yet.”
I guess it was God’s off day when he got his $100 million contract a few weeks ago.
TCCB
September 26th, 2011
12:05 am
Hell No!!!!!!! and did you see the look on Blank’s face? WOW
wild'n
September 26th, 2011
12:07 am
O- line got no push today to free up some holes for turner. So matty had to throw way too many times. That said, turner’s production has gone down and that’s why I think we’ve seen matt throwing so much. This is a run first offense. We have to figure out how to become that again.
IT worries me, because the way this team has looked over the season’s first three reminds me a lot more of the team that got blown out by the packers in january than the one that went 13-3. granted, they Were pretty lucky last year and could have easily been 10-6. even so, that time had an offensive edge to it which the 2011 squad has yet to show but for fleeting moments. very worrisome i’d say
Thoroughbred
September 26th, 2011
12:08 am
REALLY… I mean SERIOUSLY… Where talking about the Falcons, the Falcons, c’mon man the Falcons, really the Falcons, were talking about the Falcons, the Falcons… I mean the Falcons… It’s all about the Dream baby!!!!! Thats where it’s at.Tuesday night Game 3 Eastern Conference Finals to see who go’s to the WNBA Finals.
RISE UP ATLANTA… the falcons, man we talking bout the falcons C’mon Dream LEGGO
kenk
September 26th, 2011
12:10 am
TD has made to many mistakes. Mr. Blank please get someone in there that knows talent!!
Columbus
September 26th, 2011
12:17 am
No blocking=no offense=NO WINS. Enough said.
Arthur
September 26th, 2011
12:18 am
Ka-ching! Pay the low-lifes. Bling and blacks, no honor.
Columbus
September 26th, 2011
12:19 am
Oh yeah. We can also forget about the deep threat they have been focused on until these guys learn to block. We wont have a qb for much longer at this rate anyway and there goes the playoffs….SOMETHING MUST BE DONE AND SOON TO THE OL…..!!!!!
Pete
September 26th, 2011
12:23 am
Other than the offensive line I thought the team played fine and the defense looked the best it has all year. Something has to be done to get Matt some protection or run nothing but those quick routes. It seemed to improve as the defense tired, but early in the game he was running for his life and he’s getting hit too much to stay healthy.
Gina K
September 26th, 2011
12:24 am
Wow….the falcons currently have the same record as North Carolina. What a difference a year makes. Disappointed season ticket holder. Our secondary is horrible. Matt continues to look like a deer in headlights and is constantly running for his life. Sam Baker is a bust. Get a LT from the SEC…sick of losing falcons. At this rate, forget the SuperBowl, better yet, forget the NFC South Champs…
Dave
September 26th, 2011
12:26 am
What makes anyone think the Bucs would be an easy team to beat? Did no one watch the ATL-TB games last season? They were both down to the final minutes of the 4th quarter. The Falcons are not going to blow out the Bucs nor the Saints. The Bucs were favored by 1.5 in this game. Tampa Bay is not Carolina. Bucs were a 10-6 team last year…only 3 games worse than the Falcons. And they always play Atlanta tough. They were bound to win sooner or later the way these games have gone. It’s week 3 of a 17 week season. Calm the frick down! Anyone that thought the Falcons would go 13-3 or even 14-2 like some were saying with this schedule in this division is delusional!
#7!
September 26th, 2011
12:26 am
Vick > ryan
dr3dd1ne
September 26th, 2011
12:31 am
Well said Dave…and several others that actually watched the games and are Falcons fans. To Candice the only the ones that come on the Falcons boards to talk smack about a game they didn’t actually play in is the 3 year old that needs a bath by mom…I think she’s calling you just now. LOL Grow up dude!
The Offensive Line and refusal to play the 3 WR set in the no huddle is what cost us the game period. We can’t pass block worth a flip right now and we move the ball in the no huddle. That is not even close to open for debate. So…the real question is…Will Mike Smith step up and say that’s what needs to happen inside the organization? Let MM design the plays…and let Matt call the game. Fire, fine, or set on fire OL until they do their jobs. Then we’ll win some ballgames. Go Falcons!
Mock 1
September 26th, 2011
12:32 am
The falcons have not established a consistent run game which hurts the balance of the offense and the playaction passing game.The Offensive line must get it together real soon.The offensive coach has to be creative with his game plan & be aggresive with throwing down field.The D – Iine needs to be aggresiv e
Techbuzz
September 26th, 2011
12:32 am
If we keep playing like we did today, we aren’t going ANYWHERE, let alone, playoffs!!!!
Here are the biggest issues we have:
1. O-Line
2. If number one isn’t working our protecting, all other problems don’t matter.
First rule in football; Your QB is only as good as his O-line allows him to be!!!!!!!
Our defense is WAY TOO soft right now and we are not getting ANY kind of pass rush, and even if we do, it’s too late and we end up getting flagged for a personal for for late hit on the opposing QB. We have GOT to get Babineaux back ASAP!!
I knew from preseason and I told my friends that if our starters get injured then we are pretty much screwed b/c our No. 2 defense couldn’t stop anyone in preseason.
It was good to see McClure back but he had that COSTLY snap that didn’t even get to Ryan, so he is going to have to shack some rust off.
Daunta, nothin’ but love for ya but you have GOT to play the ball quicker. Yet again, you slipped down after your receiver caught a quick slant. You get paid WAY TO MUCH to making ROOKIE mistakes like that.
Will Turner EVER hit the hole without stopping five yards in the back field first????? He has NO SPEED when Ryan hands off the ball to him. That’s why he only gets 3 yards per carry. Snelling at least hits the hole at full speed and says, “Try and stop me!”
The offsides on the last play of the game was COMPLETELY INEXCUSABLE!!!!! Again, these guys get paid way too much to making these types of STUPID mistakes.
In closing, I will say that the Falcons ARE BETTER than their 1-2 record, but as the old saying goes, your only as good as your last game!!!!!
Right the ship FAST or we are staring at an 8-8season….IF WE ARE LUCKY!!!!!!!!!
thrasherdawg
September 26th, 2011
12:34 am
Arthur should have bought the Thrashers….then he would have had a team in the playoffs this year.
Braves will not even get into the post season, Falcons will go 6-10, no basketball, probably should kept the hockey team.
TheAntiMe
September 26th, 2011
12:36 am
If nothing else it was very cool to see that punk QB Josh Freeman nearly get his head torn off by the Falcons defense when he took off and ran with the ball in the late 3rd or early 4th quarter (I forget).
bart
September 26th, 2011
12:42 am
“Why must the long-promised “explosive” plays be saved for the desperate hours?”
That’s it in a nutshell – Mr Conservative Smith ain’t going to change. Opposing defenses game-planning for the Falcons have it way too easy.
Jeff
September 26th, 2011
12:43 am
No, this team is EXACTLY where I thought they would be after three games.
I saw the preseason and I saw the playoff game last January. We still can’t stop anybody on defense, we still can’t cover a reciever on a big third-down play and prevent them from catching it, we still can’t run the ball effectively on anybody more talented than a high school team, and our effing punter can’t kick it out of my dam* living room.
Until our offensive line grows some onions and chooses to BLOCK for our runners and PROTECT our quarterback; until our defense grows some onions and chooses to fight through blocks and STOP people in key situations (such as, oh, I dunno, 4 minutes left when we need the ball back); and until our special teams grows some onions and quits playing like a powder-puff girls team, then MAYBE we can win some games.
The schedule makers were also BRUTAL to the Falcons… the first 8 weeks of the year and we have to play all these dam* playoff teams? (Chicago, Philly, Tampa, Seattle, Green Bay, Indy AND New Orleans? My God, can we PLEASE have a Kansas City or St. Louis or Miami in there somewhere?) There are some softer games late in the year, but I doubt it wil matter. I made the prediction before the year: 9-7, miss the playoffs.
Atlanta will be 4-5 after a loss to the Saints on Nov. 13. They will rebound in December, but the NFC is fairly even and deep this year… the Packers, the Saints, the Giants, the Redskins, the Buccaneers, the Bears, and the Eagles should all be fighting for playoff spots. It will be tough for Atlanta to get in.
I feel good about the general direction of the team… but until we get some LEGITIMATE LINEMEN ON BOTH SIDES OF THE BALL and until we get some LEGITIMATE STOPPERS ON DEFENSE, NOT PRETENDERS LIKE DUNTA ROBINSON, the Falcons will struggle to achieve playoff success.
We need to get back to the punishing run game we had in 2008 and the ability to pull out some clutch wins like we did in 2010… otherwise, it’s going to be a long season for the Falcons.
Rick V
September 26th, 2011
12:48 am
Let’s face it : we stink this year.
Matt “King of The Dink” Ryan is pathetic. He’s got a serious case of Happy Feet, can’t throw downfield worth a darn, is too emotional, etc. Bad quarterback.
We had our chance last season and we blew it bigtime. It sucks b/c the Saints took advantage of their Dream Season and we flushed ours don the toilet. We won’t do a thing this season that’s for certain.
PMC
September 26th, 2011
12:54 am
Mr. Blank has wanted to win the SB from day one, that hasn’t changed. I don’t question his dedication to the cause.
The issue as it has been for 45 years is blocking and tackling. Having the right players at the right positions. The people picking the players here have simply not been good enough. This team is not an upper echelon team and they won’t be until they start to exibit patience.
Julio Jones is a great add. The problem is what did you do with the rest of the draft? Sam Baker can’t play Left Tackle PERIOD!
They get Akeem Dent who as far as I can tell doesn’t play at all. They got more WR’s late last year that don’t really play. Some offensive linemen that aren’t good enough to play in the NFL and a punter who well to say something nice….he’s a great tackler.
This team does not resemble a team that could go deep into the playoffs without miracles happening.
They did some great stuff in this one late. FINALLY they found Roddy and Julio, but they couldn’t run the ball today.
The problem now, they need a new center, they need a left tackle, they need to upgrade Michael Turner in the near future, They have a #1 corner that better at hitting people than covering them.
Safeties are still young and play well sometimes and horrid other times.
It’s a team that wants to play dink and dunk passing/ smash mouth running in a vertical offense league.
The QB that they drafted is incapable of pushing the ball up field in the manner that the rest of the QB’s in the game can. At least that’s what he’s shown so far.
captguitarman
September 26th, 2011
1:10 am
To answer the question . . . No, they are not. It was pretty darned obvious during the “meaningless” pre-season. The reason they are 1-2 instead of 0-3 is because Vick got a concussion in the Eagles game. A hard trutth that no one wants to admit, and very painful to say. Don’t know what happened to them. Has anyone checked Atlanta’s/Gerorgia’s water supply? This miasma in government, business, education, and now is sports is starting to worry me. The game was completely in the Falcons’ hands in the last quarter at 1st and goal at the 5, but 2 or 3 dropped passes and other goofs fixed that. Plus, Ryan got the hell beaten out of him the entire game. A great quarterback with no protection is just another quarterback in the NFL. At least we are seeing it early instead of at the eleventh hour, as with the Braves. Would someone please check the water supply?
dfn
September 26th, 2011
1:11 am
Ka-ching. Ha-ha I got my money.
Dave
September 26th, 2011
1:12 am
How many teams that go 13-3 equal or better their performance the following year? Not many. This is a tougher schedule. And I still think this is probably the toughest division in football. And a lot of football left to be played. The Packers won the Super Bowl with a 10-6 record. It can be done. Dont throw the towel in on the season because 2 games are lost. Bears are a tough team. They were in the NFC Champ game last year. And we lost to a divisional rival on the road…not uncommon in the NFL. Its too early for this kind of talk. Now if they lose to the Seahawks and dont play better by end of October…that’s a cause for concern.
captguitarman
September 26th, 2011
1:16 am
Today they didn’t. It was their’s to lose. 1st and goal at the 5 with a little over 4 minutes left. Can’t belive they couldn’t score in that situation. Lot’s to be concerned about. Real protection for Ryan must become Job One, or nothing else will matter. And thinking back to the 49’s during the Joe Montana era, a running back with good hands coming out of the backfield on passing routes would create a huge advantage for Ryan and the Falcons. Especially after the decision has been made not to give Turner the ball at all.
Nick R.
September 26th, 2011
1:25 am
Mularkey must GO!
PMC
September 26th, 2011
1:30 am
Probably would have been a great offense in 1985.
SXS
September 26th, 2011
1:32 am
ATL is a miserable sport town with only one major sports championship. As much as I want ATL teams to succeed they seemed to be jinxed for failure especially when you have fairweather fans and transplants that root their hometown teams.
PaulieOldSchool
September 26th, 2011
1:43 am
I think an awful lot has to do with the porosity of the offensive line. They are just not a unit, not blocking well, not protecting well, and not opening holes. The defense is actually playing pretty well. The offense is sucking pretty badly. Unimaginative play calling, porous line, uninspired running. If your QB has no time to move, and set and throw, you got what we got now. I think it’s time to have a closed door, come to Jesus meeting with these guys and really lay it out. We shouldn’t be losing like this, we should be 2-1, nothing less, and that includes playing like we were a good team against Da Bears. Can we beat the Seahawks, I’m not so sure. I’m damn sure, as of now, we get our asses handed to us by the Pack.
Realist
September 26th, 2011
1:44 am
Can’t fix stupid!
Michael
September 26th, 2011
1:48 am
Too many third and long situations in the first half, also when you get inside the 10 yard line, you must score, a field goal is not good enough.
Michael
September 26th, 2011
1:53 am
The Braves don’t look like a playoff team at all. The offense is woefully unproductive right now. Chipper can’t carry the team every game. What happen a month a good since we won the series against San Francisco, and Arizona, and was ten game up, they stop playing and went on these losing streaks.
MB
September 26th, 2011
1:59 am
Is this for real??? As soon as Mr Blank shows up on the sidelines in the 4th, the coaches decide to go to Julio Jones. Wow!! It took that long for them to realize that they can go deep??? I have been saying it all along, Mike Mularkey is killing this team in the Booth. Coach Smith you need to take charge man and be desperate in the 1st quarter not the Dam 4th, its to late!! We had the whole game, the defense held the Bucs in reach. No deep passes till the end, Dam. When are the Coaches going to WAKE THE UP?????
MB
September 26th, 2011
2:01 am
When are the Coaches going to WAKE THE CRAP UP?????
MB
September 26th, 2011
2:05 am
Why must the long-promised “explosive” plays be saved for the desperate hours? << Well said MB, my question too??
MB
September 26th, 2011
2:15 am
We want the Falcons to “Rise UP” Early in the game, not late, OK COACHES?????
blank call
September 26th, 2011
2:31 am
on the sideline late in the game, arthur blank should call plays and send them in—he probably can come up with something better than malarkey.
who dat!
September 26th, 2011
2:34 am
mark this down–the saints gonna be giving a beatdown to the falcons on nov 13—it going to be ugly early. The saints are the best in the nfc–ingrams going to run wild against that weak atl defense. who dat wins big!
MB
September 26th, 2011
2:43 am
Hey who Dat, If the Falcons dont win any game this season id be upset. But if they lose to the aints???? That would be a sad day in America. Not going to happen. Enjoy your NFL token fixed ring OK??
MB
September 26th, 2011
2:46 am
Ohh and ahh “who dat” @ 2;34am blog, how do like Atlanta Living??? Go Falcons!!!
Crockett
September 26th, 2011
3:17 am
Bottom line is, our offensive line is really not getting the job done in pass or rush blocking. That may be contributing to Ryan looking like he has Happy Feet which is a very sad thing to see.
That said we should have had the lead at the end. The thing that will chew away at me is the play call on our last drive after the roughing the passer call when we had first and goal from the 5 yard line. I feel that was a situation where you bunch up and ram our 250 pound bowling ball at them 4 times if needed. Instead they went for a pass that led to a sack and in one play call we severely reduced our chances our chances of scoring a TD on 2nd and 3rd down and eliminated the possibility of going for it on 4th down.
That play call showed me that this team has completely lost the offensive identity that gave us 3 winning seasons in a row.
I would like to hear from the Falcons coaching staff about their thoughts on that first and goal call from the 5.
MB
September 26th, 2011
3:42 am
IlliniBrave>>> Im still up, that was a”great blog”, Im still laughing dude. GREAT!!!
Rowsdower
September 26th, 2011
3:53 am
It’s too early to know where the Falcons are. Yes, they’ve struggled early, but let’s remember that there was no OTAs, very little training camp and we’re starting a rookie WR. I have no doubt the Falcons will be contenders when it’s all said and done. We’ve lost 2 road games against very good opponents (let’s not forget that the Bucs won 10 games last year and the Bears were in the NFC Championship Game).
Let’s get back to .500 against the Seaducks and take our chances against the Pack at home before we panic. If we somehow lose to the Seaducks, then i’ll panic, Braves style. 5 of the next 6 are infinitely winable.
Please Falcons, take my mind off the riduclous Braves!
Mike Jones
September 26th, 2011
3:55 am
This team is a disaster and I’ve officially begun the process of selling my Falcons memorabilia–and I have lots of it–online through Ebay and Amazon.com. There is hardly any coordination between the Falcons and they just have no firepower or drive on offense. You can’t win games like that.
We went through this with Vick, remember? The more things change with the Falcons, the more they stay the same.
The playoffs are a fantasy. At best, we’re looking at a 8-8 season, unfortunately. The only way the Falcons stand a chance of being an elite team is a whole new roster on offense. Am I the only person thinking a rebuild is already in order?
Its shameful these guys can no longer deliver the game for themselves, let alone the thousands of Atlanta fans who have believed in them,supported them and made excuses for them when they inexplicably collapsed.
I won’t be wasting any more time, energy or money on this team any more. I’m done.
DCSTAN
September 26th, 2011
3:59 am
hey guys you were a Mike Vick injury away from being winless
IlliniBrave
September 26th, 2011
4:08 am
@MB: the thing is, I’m not exaggerating one bit about being there exactly one year before Katrina. But mind you, I harbor no ill will toward the folks of NO, nor do I ever wish for them to have to go through something like Katrina ever again.
Rowsdower
September 26th, 2011
4:15 am
@DCSTAN – And you’re a few IQ points from being a retard. Thanks for stopping by, but this team will just fine.
ijonathan
September 26th, 2011
4:37 am
For those of you deriding Ryan for seriously underthrowing Jones on that 50-yard pass (I also thought it was an underthrow watching it live) go to nfl.com and watch a replay. There is a deep safety in the middle of the field, and Matt gives a pump fake to the right to (most likely) try to get him away from Julio. Then he throws to Julio who is coming from the left hand side and drifting towards the middle of the field on his route. The reason Julio looks awkward catching the ball is that Matt is throwing it away from the middle of the field (where the deep safety is running) and towards the left numbers, which is wide open. Julio first looks over his right shoulder, and seeing the ball is actually further to the outside of the field he keeps turning and ends up facing Ryan as he makes the catch and falls. He never fully breaks stride, although he does slow down some as he’s turning around. Could the ball have been thrown a couple of yards further? Yes. But if it was, maybe Jones doesn’t catch it while he is re-adjusting. When a receiver is that wide open, it is better to underthrow than overthrow him — at least he can adjust to the underthrow. It was probably a deep post route and Matt made the decision to throw it more to the outside of the field to avoid the safety.
Rowsdower
September 26th, 2011
4:42 am
Let’s be honest. I think we can all agree that we would rather have the Falcons struggle early and lose 2 games against very good teams and wreck shop the rest of the way than play 5 months of great baseball only to historically collapse in the final month.
Please Falcons, wreck shop the next 6 weeks to make me forget about bad the Braves have been in September.
Ted Turner
September 26th, 2011
4:49 am
“I see the boo-birds are out a little early Jane.” Friggin fair weather fans!