OK, so it didn’t work, but Mike Smith made the right choice
Sometimes football is, as Michael Turner said, "a game of inches." (AJC photo by Curtis Compton)
I’d have gone for it. I’d go for it again. I might call a different play the next time, but I find no fault with Mike Smith’s reasoning. His choice was to try and keep possession by gaining six inches or to rely on his defense to halt the great Drew Brees yet again. That’s no choice at all.
Said Dunta Robinson, who we should note plays defense for the Falcons: “We were more bothered when we saw the punt team going out there [which it did before Smith called timeout and changed his mind] than when we saw the offense. We felt there was no way we weren’t going to get that first down.”
But they didn’t, and the Falcons lost another wild and crazy game in the series that leads the world in wild and crazy games, and now they’re 5-4 and trail New Orleans by 1 1/2 games in the NFC South. Give them this, though: They went down swinging, surging from 10 points behind in the final five minutes to force overtime, losing in overtime on their terms — not Drew Brees’.
We can and will debate whether these Falcons are as good as they should be, but we cannot question their guts. They out-dared the Saints, who as we know are a dauntless bunch, and came within an eyelash of stealing a game Brees and Co. should have locked away. That’s not to excuse the loss — there are no moral victories in the NFL — but it is to suggest that anyone who believes this excruciating game will crush the local team hasn’t been paying attention.
This is a feisty bunch, and this coach is a gutsy guy. Mike Smith made some curious decisions Sunday — a poor challenge that cost a timeout, an onside kick that came too early — but his team was in position not just to tie but to win at the end of regulation. (To me, Sean Payton messed up worse than Smitty did.) And that fourth-down call at the 29 in overtime wasn’t some flight of fancy but a considered decision based on, of all things, a grasp of history.
Said Smith: “We have had no success in giving them the ball back.”
He referred to two games: A five-point loss in the Superdome on Dec. 7, 2008, when the Falcons punted to the Saints with 3:15 remaining and saw New Orleans kill the clock, and the deflating game here on Dec. 27, 2010, when the Falcons, trailing by three, again punted with 2:44 left and never touched the ball again. Many among us ripped Smitty for a failure of nerve after the second game — that’s my hand you see raised — and we can’t have it both ways, can we? A coach can’t be half-daring, can he?
Smith again: “The message all week was that we were going to be an aggressive football team.”
As to the play itself: It was awful. Needing six inches, the Falcons eschewed a quarterback sneak and handed instead to Michael Turner, who had two lead blockers but had to wait for those blockers to array themselves. By that time, the Saints had him.
Said Turner: “If I didn’t like [the call], I would have walked off the field and let somebody else run the ball.”
The bottom line is that Smith’s daring gave the ball to Brees 40 yards closer than a punt would have, but there’s a line that undercuts even that bottom line: If you can’t get six inches in a game of this magnitude, you don’t deserve to win.
Said linebacker Curtis Lofton: “Fourth-and-inches, it being overtime — why not? You’ve got to go for it.”
Actually, you don’t. A skittish coach would have punted and, after the great Brees had driven his team to victory, have said, “Whaddaya want from me? I played the percentages!”
This is what we got from Mike Smith: “It’s something I take full responsibility for … It’s not anybody else’s fault. It’s my responsibility.”
Loading ...As Smith spoke, his employer sat five yards to his right. Asked if he’d have gone for it, Arthur Blank said: “It was absolutely the right thing to do. You can’t keep giving the ball back to that offense.”
Let’s say again that there are no quality losses in pro football, and the Falcons somehow lost a game in which they outgained the great Brees and his offense by 118 yards. But these teams will meet again the night after Christmas, and the Saints have the tougher schedule from here. This division race isn’t over, and I’m pretty sure this coach’s men aren’t going to quit on him. On the contrary.
“I’m behind Smitty,” said center Todd McClure. “In this situation we didn’t get it done, but I like that our head coach has faith in us to get it done.”
Maybe in December they’ll gain those six inches. But a few words to the daring Mr. Smith: Quarterback sneak next time.
By Mark Bradley
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352 comments Add your comment
the real Kirby Smart
November 13th, 2011
7:37 pm
As a saints fan i wanted atlanta to punt…..I’m sure Brees & co did too. I think that says a lot about if it was a gutsy call or stupid call. I say gutsy.
katherine
November 13th, 2011
7:38 pm
the real Kirby Smart
November 13th, 2011
7:37 pm
As a saints fan i wanted atlanta to punt…..I’m sure Brees & co did too. I think that says a lot about if it was a gutsy call or stupid call. I say gutsy.
thanks for being a reasonable saints fan on this blog today…..
Paul Hewitt
November 13th, 2011
7:39 pm
It was a stupid call. When I coached at GT, I never did anything that dumb.
MarkATL
November 13th, 2011
7:39 pm
GB is way too cheesy for me. No pun intended.
katherine
November 13th, 2011
7:40 pm
you totally intended that pun lol
katherine
November 13th, 2011
7:41 pm
looks like stafford has bulked up
Loserville USA
November 13th, 2011
7:41 pm
Lions lose. Good for Atlanta.
SeenThis B4
November 13th, 2011
7:42 pm
Ray Edwards, he still has never met Drew Brees. Never.
katherine
November 13th, 2011
7:43 pm
aj green and moreno both hurt today
Sid
November 13th, 2011
7:44 pm
On that 4th and inches play Turner could have cut around behind Gonzalez on the right and he might have even been able to take it to the house. Sometimes I wonder if Turner doesn ‘t see the field all that well, so many plays he just runs into the wall instead of improvising. I didn’t like the play called or the formation. The O line moved nobody but themselves…backwards.
htwo0rider
November 13th, 2011
7:44 pm
Mark,
The onside kick was asinine, and going for it on 4th & 1 even worse. Are you kidding me!!!! At least Smith’s taking the blame. Easy to be the armchair qb now, but this seems like a no-brainer
TnDawg
November 13th, 2011
7:46 pm
The right call by Smitty in overtime to go for it. The play was definitely a bad call and the o-line didn’t execute.
Douglas was open on the deep ball Ryan tried but Ryan underthrew it. Matty can’t seem to throw a deep pass.
The zone defense isn’t that good but Drew had some perfect throws.
Plenty of blame to be shared will all the players and coaches. The biggest attrocities in my mind are Roddy’s penalties. He’s got to clean that up.
Arx Ferrum
November 13th, 2011
7:47 pm
I don’t much appreciate how the subject has been sent down a one way street. The choice of going for it on 4th down was right. The play that was called was horrid. But, of course, we don’t have that option on your pretty poll. We have to buy the official line or not vote.
Ghost of Don Meredith
November 13th, 2011
7:47 pm
It was the right call, but the offensive line did an EPIC FAIL with the game on the line. They simply lifted their skirts and showed their lacy panties.
htwo0rider
November 13th, 2011
7:48 pm
Not exactly trusting your defense, to make a stop….considering they kept them from scoring after the onside kick, perhaps Smith should have shown a little confidence in his defense.
atlbird
November 13th, 2011
7:48 pm
Zero pass rush, poor hustle on the onsides kick..
katherine
November 13th, 2011
7:48 pm
or their granny panties
Orlando Dawg.
November 13th, 2011
7:49 pm
Ryan should have ran a quaterback sneak.only needed 2 inches.you never hand off 2 or 3 yards deep in the back feild.
seed
November 13th, 2011
7:49 pm
What is it with the media in this town. They will do anything to support Smith, Ryan, and Blank. That call was most certainly the wrong call. I challenge Bradley or anyone else to cite historical precendence for this blunder.
MarkATL
November 13th, 2011
7:49 pm
OH BOY OH BOY!!!! LIONS, EAGLES, BUCS AND GIANTS ALL LOSE TODAY!!! SUCKERS!!! LOL
GREAT NEWS FOR THE ATL AND CHICAGO!!
katherine
November 13th, 2011
7:49 pm
so the colts lose their qb and are suddenly the worst team in the league? why?
katherine
November 13th, 2011
7:51 pm
so you expect the media in this town to NOT support the local teams? this isnt new york
Orlando Dawg.
November 13th, 2011
7:52 pm
Ryan should have ran a Qb sneak.only need 2 inches
Ryan highly over hyped and their GM
November 13th, 2011
7:52 pm
They look like a 5-4 team with a GM that looks worst. Still think the first pick was best for this team? If you do you will stay 5-4 forever! Ryan played OK today now having said that they still lost!!
Vinny T
November 13th, 2011
7:53 pm
NOT A GOOD CALL AT ALL!!!
THIS WAS A TERRIBLE, GAME (AND MAYBE SEASON) CHANGING CALL!!!
You do not put your team at risk like that. If they missed it, game over.
They missed it. Game over.
And to see some sports writer now say it was the right call is called A JOKE.
Mr. Nola
November 13th, 2011
7:54 pm
Good game ATL! Competitive game between two good, not great, teams. Both need to improve to go deep in the playoffs.
Saints had birds at their own six yard line and couldn’t stop them from tying the score.
Birds were too inconsistent in both running and passing game.
See yall in Dec in the dome!
Fan of the Game
November 13th, 2011
7:55 pm
Everybody said he didn’t show confidence in is defense. The same could be said about the offense. He made the right choice. If you can’t get a foot you don’t need to win anyway. Personally I thought we had the first down anyway. I still can’t see why they placed the ball where they did.
around town
November 13th, 2011
7:55 pm
I haven’t read all these posts, and someone may have already commented, but why didn’t he Falcons try to draw them offside, like Tampa Bay did to the Falcons. The defense was primed to get a really fast jump (which they obviously did), so any count change would probably have been very effective.
katherine
November 13th, 2011
7:55 pm
thanks mr nola….see you in dec
Ghost of Don Meredith
November 13th, 2011
7:56 pm
Lotls of blame to spread around for a game that should not have been lost. The secondary lapses that led directly to one wide-open TD catch, plus many other intermediate routes. The pass rush that just wasn’t. The pathetic effort on the on-side kick. Roddy White’s drops. Roddy White’s penalties (one, of course, never should have been called). The missed field goal. The offensive offensive line play. The play selection inside 60 seconds in the 4th quarter. The play selection in the last 2 minutes of the first half (were they using a spinner wheel from “The Game of Life” to choose plays, or what?). Get mad. Get even in December. Beat them like you know you can.
Loserville USA
November 13th, 2011
7:59 pm
It was NOT just the 4th and 1… it was all those 2nd and short and 3rd and short PASSES where we took shots that weren’t there INSTEAD of running the ball, moving the chains and keeping Brees off the field.
We did it for 9 MINUTES in the 1st quarter. Then, we got MULARKEYED.
around town
November 13th, 2011
7:59 pm
I agree with other posters that the Falcons’ missed FG looked good . And the offensive interference against Roddy White was a ridiculous call. Next play, NO intercepted and got a FG out of it, I believe.
GTBob
November 13th, 2011
7:59 pm
I agree with Mark. Going for it was the right call. A better play call would have been nice, but I will always take a chance at getting 6 inches over sending my defense out there for a big stop again.
katherine
November 13th, 2011
8:02 pm
omg sean payton really does look like frankie muniz from malcom in the middle!
John Galt
November 13th, 2011
8:02 pm
Smith made the right call.
My concern is Ryan’s decision making; way to many throws going for broke when we need to be moving the chains. He is way too quick to take a shot downfield to a covered receiver.
OPEN YOUR EYES
November 13th, 2011
8:06 pm
THE FALCONS NEED TO FIND PASS RUSHERS FAST, BECAUSE IT IS A SHAME HOW WE ARE PAYING RAY EDWARDS AND JOHN ABRAHAM ALL THAT MONEY TO UNDERACHIEVE!!!!! IM JUST FED UP WITH ATLANTA SPORTS IN GENERAL!!! ITS LIKE THIS CITY IS CURSED OF SOMETHING!!!!! EVERYTIME WE PLAY AGAINST AN ELITE TEAM, WE ALWAYS LOSE!!! YOU KNOW WHY GUYS??????? BECAUSE THIS TEAM IS A BUNCH OF SORRY WIMPS THAT WILL NEVER GET THE JOB DONE!!!!!!
katherine
November 13th, 2011
8:07 pm
its pretty simple then…switch teams open your eyes and quit your whining and moaning….
Nativebird
November 13th, 2011
8:10 pm
Not on your own 30, in overtime, when your defense has held Drew Breez to 23 points for the game. Falcons D is the best thing about the team. The OFFENSE and bularky, mularky is the issue.
Angus
November 13th, 2011
8:10 pm
Fire Mularky and drop the conservative game plan on O – you put up 6 vs. the 27th defense in the first half.
You’re not only losing games – check out the empty seats next week.
Phil
November 13th, 2011
8:13 pm
I agreed with the decision to go for it. but I was hoping Ryan would QB sneak and let Turner help push the pile forward. Too deep of a handoff in the backfield. QB sneak was all we needed to get 6 inches. Bad play call in my opipion.
Phil
November 13th, 2011
8:17 pm
Fan of the Game
Turner didn’t come close to getting the first down. I will argue all day that the QB sneak would have been a better call. Let Turner come up and help push the pile, teams do that all the time.
Hoo Dat
November 13th, 2011
8:23 pm
You uppity Lanta losers got it handed to you. Lol.
NO is great! You sux.
Sonic Boom
November 13th, 2011
8:25 pm
1 – We run the ball when we should pass……We pass the ball when we should run……Something just doesn’t seem right.
2 – With Gonzalez, JJ, Roddy, and HD, we should be hotter than this. One of these guys should be open when they’re all in the game…..Could it be that Ryan is not going thru his progressions fast enough and just locking in on one receiver? Or are these receivers just not good enough to get separation? Something just doesn’t seem right.
3 – Talk about having no confidence in your defense (pretty good run defense – horrible pass defense), and with Donte Robinson’s comments about preferring for the offense to remain on the field instead of punting, who can blame them…….I think even Smitty has recognized that his defense is gonna need a makeover at some point in the future. And I think we can safely say this – Ray Edwards is garbage – Absolutely no pass rush.
4 – Decision to go for it was correct – based on the no-confidence in the defense. But, as most folks have said on here, TERRIBLE PLAY CALL.
Falcons: Play 60!
November 13th, 2011
8:26 pm
“Needing six inches”
the Falcons turn to Turner who is further behind Ryan and a 4th and inches just became 4th and 2 maybe even 3 … a situation where you, of course, punt.
I’ll say it again, 4th down and “inches” around midfield, go for it … 4th down where they’re already in FG range, punt it and make Brees earn it instead of just giving it to him. You can be aggressive but don’t do it to the point of stupidity
atltodolavida
November 13th, 2011
8:29 pm
I completely agree: sneak it!
Loserville USA
November 13th, 2011
8:30 pm
Honestly I’ve been going through the past 46 seasons in my mind and I have never come up with a more controversial Falcons coaching call than today.
It wasn’t the decision to go for it on 4th and 1. It was the whole game. I just don’t understand it. 3 wins in a row emphasizing the run and then, it’s almost like we’re showcasing Matt Ryan. Ridiculous. He’s not an elite QB. He’s an excellent GAME MANAGER.
cdog
November 13th, 2011
8:31 pm
I TOTALLY AGREE WITH YOU AND COACH SMITH.IF YOU CAN’T MAKE AN INCHE, YOU DESERVE TO LOSE.BUT I STILL SAY THE OFFICIALS SPOT WAS NOT CORRECT BUT I CAN’T BLAME THE OFFICIALS ON THE LOST.THE PLAY CALLING AND THE MISUSE OF PLAYERS HURT THE FALCONS CHANCES OF WINNING THE GAME.THE SAINTS WERE BRINGING PEOPLE AND WE NEVER TRIED TO SLOW THEM DOWN BY THROWING TO OUR BACKS PLUS WHEN YOU HAVE AN ALL- PRO RECIEVER IN RODDY WHITE, YOU HAVE TO USE HIM WITH THE GAME ON THE LINE. WHY NOT SWITCH HE AND HARRY DOUGLAS IN THE SLOT IF THE BULK OF YOUR PASSES ARE GOING TO YOU’RE SLOT RECIEVERS.THIS LOST CAME ABOUT BECAUSE OF LACK OF EXECUTION BY O-LINE AND BACKS. TURNER HAS TO BE TOUGH MENTALLY IN THAT SITUATION PLUS THE LINE HAS TO COME OFF. THE GAME COULD HAVE WENT EITHER WAY . WE WILL GET THEM IN NEW ORLEANS ALSO, LETS LEARN FROM THIS GAME ESPECIALLY MURLARKEY AND LET GET BACK ON THE WIN COLUMN NEXT WEEK.THE SECONDARY HAS TO BE AGGRESSIVE AND LEARN, WHEN THE BALL IS IN THE AIR, ITS THEIR BALL JUST AS MUCH AS ITS THE RECIEVER’S.THEY NEED TO GO AFTER IT AND QUIT WORRYING ABOUT COMMITING PASS INTERFERENCE WE WILL BOUNCE BACK NEXT WEEK.
Falcons: Play 60!
November 13th, 2011
8:33 pm
compared to the laughable 472 who have voted “Yes” in this poll, 38 thousand voted on ESPN’s Did he make a mistake by going for it and 57% still have their sanity and said Yes he did make a mistake
“Smith’s decision cost the Falcons a very big game – and, in the long run, maybe a lot more” (the NFC South, an edge over potential WC competition)
“Being aggressive can be a wonderful thing, especially when it’s the smart thing. But the sad reality is Smith’s decision was neither aggressive nor smart. The smart and aggressive thing would have been to punt, trust his defense, and put his offense in a better position to win the game”
not often I can say ESPN was spot on with things but here, they were.
D'onavan
November 13th, 2011
8:33 pm
We have sissies on the o-line. You let the Aint thugs stop us for one yard. At least we don’t live in that God awful, stink hole of a city called New Orleans.
Joseph Allen McWhorter
November 13th, 2011
8:35 pm
I loved that call by coach Smith. He definitely should have gone for it. It was just a bad play call. You are right, Mark. Why not a quarterback sneak? Coach Smith is still a quality coach and an aggressive coach. The Falcons should certainly be a playoff team. Today, they went toe to toe with one of the best teams in football in the New Orleans Saints. These two teams will meet again in December in Louisiana and maybe again in January in the playoffs. This was a crucial loss today, but our local birds still are a very good football team and will make enough plays to get back into the postseason. Go Coach Smith and go Falcons!!!