The powerful Falcons, Brees’ INTs and the Saints’ botch
The Falcons' sideline reacts as the first half runs out on the Saints. (AJC photo by Curtis Compton)
This post is an adjunct to the Falcons-Saints game column, which can be found here.
1. The Falcons set out to prove a point. After losing in the Superdome 17 days earlier, coach Mike Smith noted that his time wasn’t winning the line of scrimmage. The Falcons rushed for 46 yards that day. They rushed for 71 yards on Thursday night’s opening drive, which culminated in a Michael Turner touchdown. On the drive, they deployed guard Mike Johnson as a tight end for more oomph. Said Smith: “The game of football is about the line of scrimmage. I thought we did a nice job of getting our running backs to second level, which is how you have 100 yards rushing in a half.”
2. This secondary keeps losing men but making plays. Cornerback Brent Grimes was lost after the opening game, and Asante Samuel left this game early after re-injuring the shoulder he seems to tweak every week. But subs like Christopher Owens and Robert McClain held up their end, and safeties William Moore and Thomas DeCoud combined for three of the Falcons’ five interceptions. “That’s a testament to the depth we have in the secondary,” DeCoud said, and when you hold Drew Brees and the Saints’ offense to one touchdown … well, you’ve done something right.
3. The Saints lost this game at the end of the first half. Seeking to save time, the Saints called their final timeout with 2:24 remaining and the Falcons about to punt. They had first-and-goal from the 7 with 51 seconds left, and Darren Sproles’ touchdown appeared to have brought New Orleans within 17-13. But Jimmy Graham was called for offensive interference and the TD was overridden and the Saints butchered the rest of the half. Two more Brees passes to Sproles were stopped in the middle of the field, and time expired with the Falcons still ahead 17-7, prompting Mike Smith to throw up his arms in exultation. “We were kind of reeling,” he would say later.
By Mark Bradley
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85 comments Add your comment
The 11-1 Falcons leave their nemesis with egg on its face | Mark Bradley
November 30th, 2012
10:36 am
[...] Further reading: The powerful Falcons, Brees’ INTS and the Saints’ botch. [...]
GT Newnan
November 30th, 2012
10:38 am
I think this is the “in your dreams team” -they just might win it all.
Mark Bradley
November 30th, 2012
10:44 am
They just might, GT Newnan.
Marcus
November 30th, 2012
10:48 am
Good game. We have to learn to step on the throat when we have the chance. Flipside is that we are playing hard in tight games and pulling them out more often than not. It was almost de ja vu when we settled for a FG on ‘Spoon’s INT (e.g. scoring min. pts. vs. DEN after 3 1Q INTs).
The Mighty Quinn
November 30th, 2012
10:48 am
3 wins in 11 days, the last two against division rivals who had more to lose (fighting for their playoff lives) than the Falcons had to gain. And we’ll still be the only 11-1 team in NFL history to get no respect. Fine. Don’t respect us all the way to the Lombardi Trophy!
shawny
November 30th, 2012
10:50 am
When Ovie was here, Turner piled up the yards.
When we cut him and let Turner go to the hole alone, he can’t do anything.
Last night, we put in a fullback in the first quarter to be the first one through and Turner ran well again.
Anyone at Flowery Branch listening??? hello, McFly? Bueller?
Marcus
November 30th, 2012
10:50 am
MB,
Win or lose, how much stock should we put on the result of the upcoming (late-season) game vs. NYG?
Could be a playoff preview, but the other side is maybe we don’t want to tip our hand on too much on strategy, etc.
Big Enos Burdette
November 30th, 2012
10:52 am
QB’s aren’t much good when the pass rush comes up the middle and Ryan is no exception. The Falcon’s can’t stop that kind of pressure and the defense can’t produce it. I’m a Falcon fan but this concerns me.
todd grantham
November 30th, 2012
10:53 am
Mark, you might say that Brees cooked his own goose.
GTT
November 30th, 2012
10:53 am
Eighth!
tom
November 30th, 2012
10:57 am
I am grateful for the win. Worried about the playoffs. Take away the interceptions and the defense could not stop the run or pass but a few times. Offense gave up on the run after the first touchdown. Turner can make those runs with the blocking he had. Go figure. Ryan threw a handful of bad passes to his receivers. So happy to spoil the playoff hopes of the Saints. March on and fix the problems. Congrats to all. ps- too bad Bierman has been on the bench during the Edwards experiment. He is rockin!
Big Enos Burdette
November 30th, 2012
10:57 am
Marcus,
The game against NYG is going to be a look at the playoffs. The Giants can bring steady pressure against the QB and Ryan will struggle (all QB’s struggle with constant pressure). He looks very average when teams push up the middle and the o-line hasn’t shown the ability to stop it
phantom9277
November 30th, 2012
10:58 am
I am a diehard Saint’s fan, but must give congrats to the Falcons. I hate them especially Roddy White, but am glad for Matt Ryan (excellent QB) and Mike Smith (excellent coach, good person). After the Mike Vick and Petrino debacles, the Falcons couldn’t have been lower. Hats off to good decision making in hiring Smith and drafting Ryan. All in all, this season has been a disaster for us since March and can’t be over soon enough. Geaux Saints!
todd grantham
November 30th, 2012
10:58 am
listening to the Falcons win last night was an eggistential experience.
blazerdawg
November 30th, 2012
10:58 am
Awesome night. Loved the way the Falcons went with the run early.
GG Saints Fans – your defense gave a heck of an effort.
todd grantham
November 30th, 2012
10:59 am
eggsistential i should say
todd grantham
November 30th, 2012
11:00 am
Mark, you could even say the Falcons “poached” Brees’ passes. heh, heh
After further review
November 30th, 2012
11:02 am
I must admit I was pretty disgusted ofter the fifth straigh three and out, late in the third quarter, especially afer the good start. I’m glad they won the game, and look forward to them continuing to win deep into the playoffs.
After further review
November 30th, 2012
11:04 am
Sorry, meant after
Hankie Aron
November 30th, 2012
11:05 am
Well it certainly left the Falcons feeling “sunny side up” and the Saints “scrambled”
GTT
November 30th, 2012
11:05 am
It helps when Turner doesn’t lie down the second someone lays a finger on him.
Hankie Aron
November 30th, 2012
11:05 am
rimshot
todd grantham
November 30th, 2012
11:06 am
AFR, i bet you werent as disgusted as Falcons’ defense was.
Mask of False Bravado
November 30th, 2012
11:09 am
If only Dwight “Yolkum” was there to sing the anthem.
Mask of False Bravado
November 30th, 2012
11:11 am
I remember similar clock management in CMR’s first year against Auburn, I think.
todd grantham
November 30th, 2012
11:11 am
i suspect that Saints fans consider last night to be an eggregious loss.
todd grantham
November 30th, 2012
11:13 am
Wes Durham did a great job on play by play last night, but David Archer can be eggravating at times.
Flo- Ri- Duh
November 30th, 2012
11:14 am
Nothing new – Falcon’s “D” and special teams are winning games – the “O” line needs an upgrade.
Weyman C. Wannamaker Jr. (A Great American)
November 30th, 2012
11:34 am
Is that Alec Baldwin in the white shirt with the upraised arm?
Georgia
November 30th, 2012
11:35 am
I still don’t understand Mike Smith football. A bend don’t break defense and overindulged offensive coaches. Entertained here.
BamaGuy
November 30th, 2012
11:38 am
Is Samuel lifting up his hurt arm? Give it a rest little fella….Seriously, Great win and now we can can get healthy and work on some things as we get ready for the playoffs….
todd grantham
November 30th, 2012
11:38 am
Georgia, some might take eggception to your comment. The best eggzample to measure Smitty’s success is his W-L record.
Weyman C. Wannamaker Jr. (A Great American)
November 30th, 2012
11:39 am
Hey Alec! What’s in your wallet?
todd grantham
November 30th, 2012
11:40 am
this season is absolute Heaven compaired to what Falcons’ fans have eggsperienced in the past.
todd grantham
November 30th, 2012
11:45 am
new handle for Falcons’ receiver: Roddy Egg White
DawgDad
November 30th, 2012
11:45 am
“The Saints lost this game at the end of the first half”
Disagree. The opening drive was at least as important as it set an early tone. The early stops drove NO into a catch-up mode. The interceptions – especially the late drive-killers, were critical. The 55-yard field goal. Etc.
Your line of thinking leads to the media’s treatment of the Falcons as an 11-1 team with little respect. I had to turn off the Dan Patrick radiio program today because it was all about how NO lost the game. Fact is, when you break the game down to fundamentals the Falcons do almost everything well or very well and execute and are one of the most consistent teams in the NFL, if not the most consistent. The Falcons are the sum of many, many solid parts. What they lack in flash they more than make up for in attention to detail.
BravesFan79
November 30th, 2012
12:00 pm
Falcons all the way! This team has the right blend of talent i believe to win the SB.
SeenDrewThrow5PicksB4
November 30th, 2012
12:04 pm
IN YOUR FACE!!! BLEAUX DAT!!!
Taxi Smith
November 30th, 2012
12:11 pm
Screw ‘Dat!
ItsMe
November 30th, 2012
12:24 pm
It’s ok aints fans…we too know what it’s like to give a QB a 100mill and get eggs on our face. You’ll be alright…you freak’n jerks! Where’s hiramsaint at…SeenThisB4, where are you? TEEHEHEHEHEHEHEHE
Brian N Smyrna
November 30th, 2012
12:24 pm
After watching that game it was hard for me to be excited. From an offensive standpoint I felt that Mike Mularky was back calling the plays. Just like during his tenure, we start off well and once the other team makes adjustments we have no answer. After the 1st quarter we had no offensive identity. Why did we all of a sudden decide to rely on Jason Snelling in 3rd down situations when Rodgers has been lights out? The defense still fails to produce pressure with it’s front four and even when they blitz it gets picked up most of the time. 1 3rd down conversion on offense is sad and we gave up over 6 on defense. The only bright spots were Owens and McClain. A win is a win, but that was tough to watch.
Unfortunately...
November 30th, 2012
12:30 pm
…”CHOKE” has been showing up the past 11 days as #2 for the ‘Birds…
I AM THIRD
November 30th, 2012
12:30 pm
Mike Nolan and Dirk Koetter take this team to the next level. I am tired of the media consistently saying that this team is the same team that lost in the first round of the playoffs. It is not the same team. Mularkey and Van Gorder were good for a young, rebuilding team. Their gameplans were simple and solid, but too predictable for experienced football teams and hot quaterbacks in particular. Nolan has been simply sensational. How many other defenses have racked up 5 interceptions against both Peyton Manning and Drew Breeze? This Defense is dynamic and makes adjustments and attacks. Robert McClain has been dynamite and I no longer cringe at the thoughts of Aaron Rogers exploiting the Nickleback position.
Unfortunately...
November 30th, 2012
12:31 pm
…my comments are being “moderated”…
jj
November 30th, 2012
12:35 pm
Yes the Falcons are darn lucky. However, luck is almost always a factor in a championship.
Clay
November 30th, 2012
12:48 pm
I wonder why the Saints didn’t run Chris Ivory more? As a Falcons fan I’m glad they didn’t but in the first game he shredded our defense.
Big Crimson 75
November 30th, 2012
12:59 pm
Falcon Fans, it’s time to forgive Chris Owens for the GB playoff game!
The guy hustles more than any Falcon(watch him on special teams) & he’s improved considerably in the secondary.
The Secondary balled all night.
Moore, Dunta, DeCoud, McClain & Owens all had great games.
retired
November 30th, 2012
1:01 pm
Lucky is a result more often than not of good preparation…….
D man
November 30th, 2012
1:03 pm
We DAT, great game Falcons…
Bill
November 30th, 2012
1:15 pm
If they’re going to drown, put a hose in their mouth.
who dat black is back
November 30th, 2012
1:20 pm
I’ll give credit to the Falcons for the win. At some point however, the Falcons had better learn to put the nail in the coffin when their opponent is down. That is the most important reason why the Falcons lack respect, amongst other reasons like not winning a playoff game in a while. Winning by 6 against Denver after Manning throws 3 INTs and 1 against Tampa doesn’t help. Those are the only 2 possible playoff teams they have played this season. I didn’t include the Saints because they are probably going to miss the playoffs. I’m honest, not crazy.
Tonyv-atl
November 30th, 2012
1:20 pm
Spoon was the difference. The defense plays at a higher level
when he controls the middle. We’re one pass rushing/cover
linebacker away from being really good.
BigHittas
November 30th, 2012
1:21 pm
I’ve been rough on 21 in the past, but have to give kudos to the kid and number 27 for jobs well done. We do miss Optimus Grimes, but these guys are showing they can step up. I hope they can help us put the ghost of Green Bay past IN the past.
Go Birds!
elephanthead
November 30th, 2012
1:25 pm
Great win last night, although the 2nd and 3rd quarters had me thinking that they were about to throw it away. The defense stepped it up and was tackling and hitting like everyone knows they can. Gotta take my hand off to Dunta, too. He was cracking some eggs out there last night knocking out mouthpieces and all. Here comes the but….
Seeing the offense go conservative and frankly a little inept after they got up 17-0 concerns me. Why did they go away from the run (and using a lead fullback) after that? Aargh, it gives me heartburn. Would it kill you guys to beat down and opponent and keep them through all 4 quarters so I can sit back, relax, and enjoy the game?
Also, tomorrow night watch Alabama’s Barrett Jones playing O-line. My Christmas wish is for TD to draft that boy in the first next year.
tspec
November 30th, 2012
1:28 pm
Offense was horrible, I hope the O gets it together and soon because we aren’t looking like a SuperBowl team!
JK
November 30th, 2012
1:33 pm
Ladies and gentlemen, your 5-7 New Orleans Aints, “owners” of the NFC South and led by their quarterback “Interception Factory” Drew Brees.
PMC
November 30th, 2012
1:35 pm
Just want to say AWESOME GAME Safeties!!! William Moore and Thomas Decoud were spectacular.
Robert McClain is my new Favorite Falcon and Chris Owens played the best game of his career.
Dimitroff is certainly best at finding guys in the secondary.
Esquire
November 30th, 2012
1:42 pm
The Saints fans over on NOLA are hammering Brees.
Kramer
November 30th, 2012
1:46 pm
Spoon is the engine that makes this defense and that’s a fact. You can clearly see the difference when he is out.
What's Important
November 30th, 2012
1:53 pm
It cracked me up when Wes Durham called out Eggs Benedict Arnold Curtis Lofton on the Gonzalez touchdown pass.
Who Dat?
November 30th, 2012
1:57 pm
Go Dawgs! I mean Go Falcons! I must be a Bird/Dawg!
Scannertech
November 30th, 2012
2:07 pm
I would like to say thank you to the Saints’ fans who have posted today on this board and been good enough sports to say that the Saints lost fair and square to the Falcons last night. You offererd no whining, no “troll behavior”, and no excuses. I appreciate a good, solid fan of his or her team, and I respect that you came here and posted good, reasonable posts. Good for you!
On the other hand, even though the Falcons won, we need to remember to have some good grace about the win. The Saints are a good team (I believe that they’re much better than their record) that has faced some real problems this year, and winning last night is very sweet because of that. Let’s temper our enthusiasm of the win and try not to be jerks. No reason to insult the Saints’ fans now, we’ve gotten the monkey off our backs and need to show some class. Go Falcons!!!
FalconJim
November 30th, 2012
2:11 pm
No rushing the QB, and little push from our O-line will get us nowhere in the Playoffs….just sayin’…
But I’m ecstatic that we beat the “Aints”…
Al
November 30th, 2012
2:13 pm
Yeah right. The 49ers would easily beat this inconsistent group. We saw that last week when they manhandled the 49ers. It took brees worst game every to narrowly beat this team. Another first game playoff loss is coming.
Al
November 30th, 2012
2:29 pm
Mean when they manhandled the Saints. We will see in a couple of weeks when the giants beat them w ease again.
dubshakk
November 30th, 2012
2:49 pm
I suppose it’s time to take my medicine as a Saints fan, and tip my cap to the dirty birds, good game. I don’t know wha-ha-happened to my boy Brees last night, some of those INTs were just terrible, and missing open receivers like that. That will put an end to our season, but we’ll be back with Sean Payton next year, so enjoy it while it lasts. As for the birds, we’ll see what yall do in January. I still won’t believe the Falcons will make it to New Orleans until I see it. Better hope yall don’t have to play the 49ers. Oh, and good luck to UGA this weekend, please beat Bammer, I can’t stomach another Saban championship. If there is one team I hate more than Falcons, it’s Bama!
GregKennesaw
November 30th, 2012
2:53 pm
@ AL you mean the same Giants that are 7-4 with loses against Dallas (Falcons won), Philly(again Falcons won), steelers, and (3-5 Cincy).
wasatthegame
November 30th, 2012
3:13 pm
Hey guys, I was at the game, and before we get too high…our secondary played hard, but Brees picked them apart between the 20’s at will–they weren’t stopping any of the passes down the field. The “D” rose up when it counted, but there are just too many tier-1 QB’s in this league that would do the same thing all day long…can we really count on all the turnovers (and yes, lucky “bounces”) that we got last night in the important games moving forward? I don’t think so…love the Birds, but gotta be realistic.
I got "moderated"...
November 30th, 2012
3:16 pm
…because I said the it looked like “C H O K E” was wearing #2 for the past 11 days during 3 Falcons’ games…
Actually, I got censored for saying...
November 30th, 2012
3:17 pm
…it looked like “C H O K E” was wearing #2 for the past 11 days during 3 Falcons’ games…
I Threw the Egg
November 30th, 2012
4:50 pm
Al,
Seeing how you and the national media will not recognize our defensive effort last night against Drew.
If Matt does not have his worst game of the year in the “RedZone” at NO three weeks ago.we would be undefeated.
whatnow
November 30th, 2012
6:46 pm
what a joke. Folks the falcants are turrible as Charles Barkley would say. Even after 5 interceptions the saints could have won this game.
Falcants are like the bulldogs when it is time to show and prove they fold.
godless heathen
November 30th, 2012
7:31 pm
5 interceptions for Brees. And they weren’t tipped balls. Do you think we’ll hear about Drew Brees’ five interceptions half as much as we heard about Ryan’s? And Ryan throws five and Birds still win!
playmeortrademe
November 30th, 2012
7:55 pm
The defense will be fine when Samuel gets healthy, he should get two to three weeks to rest at the end of the season. Guys like Brees are going to get their yards but they are also going to force the ball into tight spots and get picked. The Falcons biggest mistake was trying to create pressure because Brees is going to find the mismatches, like Spoon on Sproles. The Falcons just can’t leave points on the field come playoff time. They still scored 23 points in an NFL game, and they could have scored 30+ easy.
It’s a good team, easily the best Falcons team since 1998, maybe since 1980, they just don’t have the “brand”, so the media doubts them. If this same team was in Dallas, with the same results, ESPN would call the team “gritty” or “hard-nosed” and would have already locked them in to the Super Bowl.
Georgia
December 1st, 2012
6:27 am
How is Mike Smith winning these games? I’ve never seen football like this. Falcon defence can absorb a lot of punishment. Every disaster is marginalized by some odd fluke. The offensive scheme is undetectable. Most calls seem telegraphed and easily defended. Maybe all you really need in football is heart. Maybe Mike Smith has heart.
Mikey
December 1st, 2012
8:14 am
This WAS a great TEAM effort! Every player I saw on the field contributed to the win, all the backups included. We saw consistent effort and very few mistakes throughout the lineup. This team did not beat itself like New Orleans did. The offense stalled at times but that happens when you are playing a top tier NFL team. In spite of that, our Falcons kept doing what they had to do. Although the Saints record does not show it, they play like a top tier team when they play the Falcons and Drew Breeze and their receiving corps are definitely top tier. A GREATwin Falcons! Now enjoy a few days of rest, get healed up and focus on that next improvement. You are getting better every week and you are the BEST TEAM in the NFL. GO FALCONS! YOU ARE RISING UP!
Rdm
December 1st, 2012
8:23 am
Dont you know its all just brees having a bad game and absolutely zero to do with the defense? Just like with Manning. I mean, its not remotely plausible that someone else CAUSED his bad day, right?
ItsMe
December 1st, 2012
9:47 am
I see Asante in the background of the photo raising his arm with the injured shoulder. Maybe its not too serious.
rfgh
December 1st, 2012
7:25 pm
Very classy ‘Phantom”.
Adogg36
December 1st, 2012
11:54 pm
Im not hating on my falcons.But we won by some shaky wins would like to see dem play just a little better. Especially when playoffs come don’t want to be one and done dis year.But I am proud dat we r 11-1.
GregKennesaw
December 2nd, 2012
6:49 pm
Looks like the Falcons won the NFC South – Congrats to Falcons! By the way Brees, the Falcons own the NFC South!
LOL at the Aints
December 2nd, 2012
7:26 pm
NFC South Champs! Who Dat
Mora less Petrino
December 2nd, 2012
7:29 pm
The Falcons not only have won the NFC South, but with the “best” team in the NFC, the 49ers, losing to the mighty Rams, (after playing them to a tie just a few weeks ago), and the Bears losing at home to the Seahawks, the Falcons chances of getting home field throughout the playoffs is looking good!
Bahama Mama
December 4th, 2012
9:04 am
Drew Brees: “This is our division, we know it, they know it”. He sure can use some motivational speech lessons…
meme
December 6th, 2012
9:42 pm
been there B4…unfortunatley