Golden Talon – FalconAlley Football

Why Did We Want Falcons Football Back?

September 16, 2020

Article by Allison Smith

Photos courtesy of the Atlanta Falcons

An excellent question after week 1 of Atlanta Falcons football. While we could not attend the opening game of 2020 in person, after a while, you didn’t regret that. The long 4 + hour drive back to Charlotte, the exhaustion from being up at 5 a.m., the expensive of gas and snacks and game goodies. Glass half full.

Also, in the glass half full category, the good of the game. The Falcons have 3 leaders in the league after week one. Matt Ryan leads all quarterbacks with 450 passing yards, Julio Jones leads all receivers with 157 yards, and Takk McKinley lead the NFL with 6 quarterback hits. The Falcons also had 3 receivers with over 100 yards each. Calvin Ridley with 130 yards and Russell Gage with 114 yards, joining Julio. Early in the fourth quarter, Ryan passed John Elway to become the 9^th all-time NFL passer.

TE Hayden Hurst had a good Falcons debut with 3 receptions for 38 yards, one, a stretching catch of 27 yards. His 2 additional targets were non-called PI’s, but we won’t get into that here.

Todd Gurley’s debut was successful as well, while he was in the game. Gurley had 14 carries of 56 yards, one blast for 15 yards. Brian Hill and Ito Smith combined for 4 carries of 16 yards, not what we want to see out of the additional running backs. Qadree Ollison was not on the active roster Sunday. It appears the Falcons will attempt a one running back team, with Gurley being limited and relieved by Hill and Smith, but not the tandem we are use to from the past few years. Hopefully he can hold up.

Once again, like the last few seasons, short yardage and red zone inefficiencies plagued the offense. The offense was 0-4 on 4^th down conversions, and 50% on 3^rd downs, especially the short yardage 3^rd downs. And once the Falcons were having to play catch up, they had to abandon the run game and be a throwing only offense. Younghoe Koo had 2 field goals over 40 yards, Gurley a single yard touchdown, and Ridley’s 7 and 18-yard touchdown receptions, late in the game. Touchdowns on 3^rd downs and a missed 2-point conversion added to the frustration of the day.

The offensive line held up well. With Ryan’s 54 pass attempts, he was only sacked twice, so the blocking was good most of the time. Jake Matthews completely missed a block. James Carpenter and rookie Matt Hennessy were swapped out at Guard all day, both playing well, but no stand out yet. Kaleb McGary’s play was good, but the Seattle pass rush is not the strongest the Falcons will see.

While the defense did give up 24 second half points, the offense did not help with 4 failed 4^th down conversions that lead to Seattle scores, and other mistakes. While driving early, Gurley runs out of bounds instead of pushing for more yards, Matthews misses a block, the Gurley isn’t looking for the ball on the 4^th down and the Seahawks get the ball at their own 40. The fake punt was executed perfectly, until the fumble. A pass to Julio for a 44-yard gain would have been a touchdown if placed properly. Little things along the way decide the game.

Of course, the referees did not help. On the Seahawks’ first possession, they were given 41 yards on a very questionable PI called on Ricardo Allen. Hello, it’s Rico! Two plays later, a touchdown. The defense kept Russell Wilson in the pocket, most of the day, but his arm still burned them. The front 7 were good overall, tallying 3 early sacks and holding running backs to 55 yards, only one rush over 12 yards. Of course, Wilson did get loose a few times, once or 28 yards himself, but since the Seahawks were limiting him, when he did take off, it was unexpected.

Deion Jones made a good comeback with 9 tackles, followed by Isaiah Oliver with 7 and rookie AJ Terrell with 6. Foye Oluokun and the returning Keanu Neal also tallied 6 a piece. Grady Jarrett had 5 tackles, 1 for loss, 2 sacks and 3 QB hits.

Takk had the 6 QB hits, a sack, 4 tackles, and a pass defended – in an opportune time. John Cominsky and Deadrin Senat both had limited playing time in 2019, but were active and aggressive on Sunday. Darqueze Dennard was in for Rico much of the game and was missing tackles or at least not playing close in man to man coverage. Rico was in for 25 snaps, Keke for 51 and Damontae Kazee for all 62, wrapping with 4 tackles and playing as aggressive as ever.

The defense only gave up 14 points in the first half, but also caused no takeaways, which will be needed this year if the offense continues to sputter and not help themselves in crucial situations. The first touchdown, after the 41-yard gift, was a good play that would fool many defenses. It was a loop pass, just when the defenders think the running back has the ball, you realize he doesn’t, change your attention and Wilson finds him anyway with the pass.

The defense only gave up a couple of big plays, but one was a 4^th and short that went for a touchdown, Oliver was burned. Overall, they need to tighten up the man to man coverage. The pass rush was successful in the first half. Dante Fowler was taking on major guard blocks, allowing others to get to Wilson, and sniffed out the toss sweep for a big stop and loss. Overall, the tackling wasn’t bad, Seattle was very physical and Wilson nearly perfect.

Keke did look good, back to 100% after another season of being injured. Even with him on the field, Rico was playing in the box, which he did some last year, but may account for his lack of tackles on Sunday. The rookies did not have first outings. Terrell wasn’t picked on or challenged directly, but he held up well. Seattle was running over routes, which is hard for anyone to guard and stay glued to the man. Mykal Walker was in the box and had limited time, but was active, similar playing still to Keke, although he didn’t knock anyone’s head off.

Sterling Hofrichter has 2 punts, a 45 yarder and 55-yarder, with one return of 15 yards, on a missed tackle. Koo was good on both a 44 and 49-yard field goal, but missed an extra point.

On the plus side, the Falcons continued to fight on both sides of the ball. They were just out matched and out coached in some aspects. The offense had missed opportunities on good field position and the defense had no take-aways and only two 3 and outs in the game, the second with 8 minutes to go in the game.

The turnover ratio wasn’t all together bad. The fumble on the fake punt was crushing, but the other was an interception at the end of the game in the end zone, so technically 0-1 in the turnover margin. But the Falcons do need to force some turnovers to give the offense a short field, or score themselves.

Only 6 penalties on Falcons all day, one of which was the PI early in the game, which was questionable for big yards. So that was cleaned up

Injury Update

DNP Weds: Jake Matthews – knee; Kendall Sheffield – foot; Charles Harris – ankle

Limited Weds: Julio Jones – hamstring; Marlon Davidson – knee

The Golden Talon

Grady Jarrett and Takk McKinley for making their presence known early and often, early sacks and many quarterback hits.

Calvin Ridley for 130 yards and 2 touchdowns; and Russell Gage with 114 yards. Combined being legit receivers.

#RiseUp

FalconAlley OWT

Falcons Take a Big Step Back

November 26, 2019

Article by Allison Smith

Photos courtesy of Atlanta Falcons

Wow. Talk about two steps forward and one step back. Fans completely discounted the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, then the team gets slaughtered, in their own house, first time back home in quite a while. And coming up in 4 days, the New Orleans Saints. Wanting revenge.

No one can seem to explain how the team could go so far backwards after 2 excellent games against good teams. The defense is back to cover 3, for no good reason. The Falcons didn’t have enough depth covering the Tampa Two plays. Most of what Tampa got were big plays. Obviously the 71-yard touchdown, but a 22-yard reception, on 2^nd and 21, a 30-yard reception, on 3^rd and 9, twice, converted on 24 and 25-yard runs. The Bucs were excellent on 3^rd down conversions, while the Falcons were 25%, inside and outside the red zone. There were too many missed tackles. There were no sacks and only one hit on Jameis Winston, when they had nearly lead the NFL is sacks allowed…and interceptions.

Deion Jones lead the team in tackles with 9 and had the only hit on Winston. Ricardo Allen was on a mission with 9 tackles, tied with Damontae Kazee. De’Vondre Campbell had 8 tackles, one for loss and one of the interceptions and a pass defended. Foye Oluokun, getting more playing time, had 5 tackles, and rookie Kendall Sheffield with 4 and a near pass defended on a touchdown, but just out of reach. Qadree Ollison had 2 tackles – on punt returns. He is really making a contribution in limited playing time.

Winston was able to step up in the pocket and make plays, throwing for 313 yards and 3 touchdowns, with his 2 interceptions. The Bucs ran for an additional 133 yards. The Falcons tried to balance their man to man vs. zone, but whatever “disguising” was supposed to be happening was not working. While the Falcons did have 2 picks on the day, they got no points out of the first one, a touchdown out of the second. After starting out quickly, moving 68 yards in 3 plays, then stalling at the 7-yard line and ended up kicking a field goal to open the game. Instant momentum slasher themselves. Two plays later they get an interception, then end up punting themselves. There was never any momentum.

The Bucs had so few sacks all season and had given up the most in the NFL, until Sunday. They sacked Matt Ryan 6 times and hit him 13 times. The Falcons’ offensive line was horrible. Allowing pressure, sacks, hits, or were holding. Wes Schweitzer was rotated in, according to Dan Quinn, as a designated/planned rotation. In my opinion, they need to revamp the entire line again (short ofAlex Mack – but need to think of a replacement for him before too much longer). And find someone that can evaluate O-Line talent, because the partial revamping done this season has not done any better than the last few years, while still keeping some of the weak points as back-ups. Jake Matthews and Kaleb McGary needed help and Luke Stocker was in as a legit blocker, ie, no additional receivers down the field. Which explains how/why Julio Jones and Calvin Ridley were both double covered a couple of times, and Ryan still could not find anyone.

The Falcons could not run the ball, again. Ollison had 8 carries for 20 yards and Brian Hill 9 for 15 yards. Accuracy on passing or receiving was way off – even from our earlier bad games. Overall Ryan was 28 of 52. Ridley caught 6 of his 14 targets (some out of bounds so not drops or complete misses) for 85 yards. Russell Gage 8 of 10 for 76 yards, with Jones limited to 5 of 9 receptions for 68 yards, one of which was 31 yards. Christian Blake caught 2, Ollison 1. Jaeden Graham caught 1 of his 2 targets, which he turned into a 53-yarder.

Again, so many coaching decision questions. Down 15 points in the fourth quarter and go for the field goal instead of the touchdown. Late in the game, inside the 10 yard line – went for 3 passes and no run plays, after you had seen some good running from Ollison. Unlike most of the games in the first half of the season, there did not seem to be adjustments at half time, as the same team that went into the locker room at half is what came out after the half.

Julio moved up on the All Time Receiving Yards list – now 30^th, passing Calvin Johnson.

One highlight continues to be Sheffield, who blocked an extra point that Sharrod Neasmen picked up and returned a long distance before being tackled.

Injury Report:

· Julio Jones tweaked his shoulder.

· Brian Hill – no information, but did play the rest of the game.

· Kemal Ishmael – no information, concussion in Panther game.

· Devonta Freeman – making progress, evaluation continues Tuesday/Wednesday.

· Austin Hooper – making progress, evaluation continues Tuesday/Wednesday.

· Chris Lindstrom – being evaluated, once released from IR will determine play date.

Golden Talon

Qadree Ollison – coming in when called, scoring another touchdown, 2 special teams tackles, trying to make things happen.

De’Vondre Campbell – another interception, nearly leading in tackles again.

#RiseUp

FalconAlley OWT

The Rivalry is Real

November 12, 2019

Article by Allison Smith

Photos Courtesy of Atlanta Falcons

So, apparently change IS good. Not only did the Falcons move coaching staff around after the bye, but on game day, instead of Dan Quinn calling the defense plays, play calling was split between Jeff Ulbrich (Linebackers coach) calling 1^st and 2^nddown defense and Raheem Morris (formerly WR coach) calling 3^rd down and 2 minute defense. Morris’ work with the secondary was evident immediately. Also, after winning the coin toss, for the second time this year, the Falcons chose to receive the ball first.

The extra Captain this week was Calvin Ridley.

The offense started strong, pushing down the field quickly. The first play was a speed sweep to Calvin Ridley for 19 yards. Then run-run-run by Devonta Freeman. Within the first series, Free had 27 rushing yards. Then, on cue, the offense stalled with back to back false start penalties pushing them back to unmanageable down and distance and forced a 37-yard field goal. Out comes the Saints’ offense, Latavius Murray and Alvin Kamararunning for short bits and pieces, then Drew Breeshits Michael Thomas for a 16-yard gain, Jared Cook for a 22, then back to Thomas for another 17 yards. The defense stood up. Murray had no gain,Taysom Hill had a 2-yard reception, then De’Vondre Campbell sacked Brees for a 9-yard loss, forcing the 29-yard field goal. This is when you knew you had a game.

I did hold my breath until the 20/9 touchdown, as I know what Brees can do and know you need a big lead, but felt good about the Falcons most of the day (after the initial forced field goal by the D). The only real negatives on the day were an interception by Matt Ryan and a slightly short kickoff that lead to a big run back….even those were not followed up with any points. After the interception, the defense came out inspired, allowing 8 yards and receiving the ball back on downs at the New Orleans 19. After a 46-yard return, the Saints had another 4 downs to move the ball -9 yards and turn it over on downs again, this time at their own 33.

With a successful run game, the Falcons were able to dominate the time of possession, 34 minutes to New Orleans’ 26. The Falcons had 4 drives that took at least 5 minutes and 4 scoring drives that were 10+ plays. While I have always heard “The best offense is a good defense” the case here is “the best way to keep Brees from scoring is to keep Brees on the bench.” This allowed the defense to be rested and ready when they did take the field, and seemed to energize them as well. Even on the final drive, while playing prevent, they still did not allow a score. The Saints had the ball with a 1^stand goal from the 9 and the Falcons forced a 4^thdown, that was a yard short of the end zone as time expired.

The offense played allot of no huddle, which is Matt Ryan’s comfort zone. Ryan even had a 17 mph run himself for a big first down. Freeman went out early with an injury, but tallied 38 rushing yards at that point. Brian Hill had 20 carries for 61 yards and a touchdown reception. Ridley had 1 rush for 19 yards and caught 3 of 5 balls thrown his way for 28 yards. Julio Jones caught 3 for 79 yards, one being the 54-yard breakout, mostly YAC, and had several crucial blocks, and is of course, is the world’s best decoy. Russell Gage continues to impress with 4 receptions for 23 yards, Austin Hooper 4 receptions for 17 yards and another touchdown. Newcomer Christian Blake snuck in and caught his first 2 NFL receptions, one for a big 11-yard gain.

The defense was almost unrecognizable, there seemed to be no confusion or communication issues this week. The defensive line and secondary were in sync, the backend playing tight coverage made it easier for the D line to be aggressive. At one point, with 3 on the blitz, the Falcons managed a sack. Campbell logged a sack on the first drive, leading the team to 6 total sacks on the day, when the team had 7 on the season. Clemson was repped well with Grady Jarrett and Vic Beasley, Jr sharing a sack, which was for a loss at the 10, forcing the unsuccessful 3^rd down attempt. Grady ended the game with 2 ½, Vic got another – WWE spear on his own, and one by Adrian Clayborn, who uncharacteristically seemed to be missing most of the season. Claybo started this week, which was enough to shake it up and help Beasley and Takk McKinley work differently and get pressure on Brees all day. There were times when Brees actually looked confused. They crowded the pocket all day and when the Saints were doubling Grady, that opened it up for other guys to get pressure and sacks.

Who knows which came first, the chicken or the egg…but the defense was working perfectly Sunday. Whether the man on man coverage provided the line more time to push to Brees, or the line forced Brees into rushed and errant throws, it was a well-orchestrated defensive day. Brees completed 32 of 45 passes, was sacked 6 times, losing 46 yards and hit 11 times and nearly hit many, many more. The defense was tackling in space, wrapping up, and not giving up much YAC. The Saints started at the 38 and were held to a field goal. The defense allowed no big plays and only allowed 25% completion on 3^rd down conversions, there were several 3 (or 4) and outs.

Rookie Kendall Sheffield is really coming on strong in Desmond Trufant’s absence. He recorded a coverage grade of 89.9 on 53 snaps Sunday. He was targeted 7 times and allowed 5 receptions for only 28 yards, no first downs or touchdowns. Foye Oluokun lead the team with 8 tackles, Isaiah Oliverstepping up with 6, along with Campbell andDamontae Kazee, the later had a pass defended. Kazee was injured late in the game, but did come back in. Ricardo Allen and Deion Jones had 5 tackles a piece.

Special teams. WOW. New kickers all around and still was a successful day. Younghoe Koo – now known as #KooDat, had 4 successful field goals, with a long of 48 yards. Ryan Allen only had 2 punts on the day, but was also the holder for Koo. After a punt attempt where Allen was tackled and left, it seemed, crippled, the Falcons were provided the first down on the roughing the kicker penalty. A few plays later, the Falcons were forced to kick a field goal, Matt Schaub comes out to hold, Allen takes the field and shoos Schaub off the field, as he is ready to do his job. Talk about touchness. Younghoe Koo was awarded the NFC Special Team player of the week in his first week in the NFL! Kenjon Barner had 2 punt returns, one a breakoff of 21 yards. Defensively, was the one long kickoff return that yielded no points, and one punt return of 19 yards. Koo was also the tackler on the 48-yard return. We may like this kid.

The Saints scored double digits at home in 100 straight games…until Sunday. This put them one shy of the NFL record. Drew Brees has not been sacked 6 times in a game since the Panthers in 2013….until Sunday. The Saints had only 4 games since 2006 without a touchdown…..until Sunday. No one has ever had 4 “Hands to the Face” penalties in a game…..until Sunday. The Saints WERE the least penalized team in the league…..until Sunday. They had 12 penalties for 90 yards, many turning their 3^rdand short into 3^rd and long, their defensive penalties providing the Falcons with many free first downs

The Atlanta Falcons are the only UNDEFEATED team in the NFC South. Are the Saints the new “Get Right” team????

Per the Atlanta Falcons website, Grady Jarrett was quoted “It’s definitely encouraging. Going through any kind of losing streak, it’s definitely hard. For us not to be able to give up and try to make changes where we can, wherever we can, to not quit and beat a real good team in their house, it means a lot and it says a lot about our team.”

Injury Report: Devonta Freeman and Austin Hooper are both being evaluated through the week and are listed as questionable at this time.

Golden Talon: THE WHOLE TEAM. 11 and 11 all did their jobs successfully, without mistakes. With injuries, next man up stepped up. And Special Teams was on fire.

#RiseUp

FalconAlley OWT

Second Half Come Back, Not Enough for Falcons

Seattle 27/Atlanta 20

October 27, 2019

Article and Photos by Allison Smith

Stop me if you have heard this one before…..the Falcons are down at half and have to abandon the run game to come back in the second half. Once again, the Falcons, offense and defense, come out soaring in the second half, but again, were down too much to overcome.

After a great morning of meeting other Falcon fans and actually some nice Seahawks, and my weekly picture with Freddie, I headed into the stadium. The limited crowd still seemed rowdy as I headed to the Mercedes Benz dance cam and did my touchdown dance with Grady Jarrett and Vic Beasley, Jr. As I started to my seat, I was awarded the #1 fan of my section and given a Falcons prize. I feel like this is going to be a good game. Well…..then there was the game part.

The most annoying part was the fact that I had already resigned myself that we may not win another game this season, but the team still suckered me in with their fight and comeback, al biet, some in trash time. But you could definitely tell a difference in the first half vs. the second half. Again.

Russell Wilson is no Deshaun Watson, but he can escape and make some crazy things happen, which he did on Sunday. Near escapes for successful passes or massive runs on his own. The Seattle defense may no longer be the Legion of Boom, but they did manage to hold the Falcons to 20 points, had an interception, near interception (that would have been a pick six) 2 sacks, 7 quarterback hits, and forced and recovered 2 fumbles. The Falcons, well, they finally managed 2 sacks. Which was a major feat as they have not had a sack since the 3^rd week of the season. As a total team, they have 7 sacks, 3 by Grady Jarrett who added to his total on Sunday.

The Falcons started with Damontae Kazee at Free Safety, Ricardo Allen at Strong Safety, Isaiah Oliver and Blidi Wreh-Wilson at the outside Cornerback spots, and Kendall Sheffield a the Nickel. The line was set up normally.

When Grady got the sack, for a 9 yard loss, forcing a punt, you would have thought we had won a game. Everyone knows how long it has been and Grady is so excitable, his celebration was infectious. The team did manage 4 hits on Wilson and some good pressure and near tackles or sacks, but alas, almost doesn’t count. Tyeler Davison had the other sack on the day and continued a good season on his part. Both Beasley and Takk McKinley were close several times and Takk did get hands on Wilson. There were literally only 3 tackles for loss on the day, Grady and Davison’s sacks, and one by Allen. The defense continues to allow teams to come to them.

On DK Metcalf’s 2 touchdowns, the Falcons defense was not set, they came out and quick snapped. The other was a communication error between two players. Even on the 3^rd touchdown, the defense seemed confused. But also, the defense had 3 back to back to back 3 and outs. The first half and second half look completely different. Again.

On the bright side, Alex Mack, Kaleb McGary, Devonta Freeman, and Austin Hooper all had tackles. Maybe we are preparing to flip some of these guys to defense? Seriously, the offense and team have improved their penalties. Only 5 for 40 yards this week, and the OPI on Julio was complete BS, so I will tally 4 penalties. Holding or false starts, two by Mack, which normally is unusual, but becoming a habit this year. Is that because he is doing too much to make up for other offensive line deficiencies?

Matt Schaub did not appear to have lost a step since his last start in 2015. He was 39 of 52 for 460 yards….in the FALCONS LOSS. He did have an interception, but still a pretty good game for an old man. He spread the ball around to 7 receivers, including all 3 tight ends, who had big catches. Luke Stocker with an 18 yarder and Jaeden Graham with an 11 yarder. Sometimes the big guys aren’t just blockers or decoys. Naturally, Hooper had another good game catching 6 of the 7 passes thrown his way for 65 yards and a touchdown, and his biggest reception of 35 yards was mostly YAC. Freeman took most of the running duties, 13 carries for 39 yards, but also had 8 receptions for 63 yards, catching everything thrown his way. Free did fumble the ball trying to stretch across the goal line for a touchdown, but was on his back and not ruled down as the ball was knocked out.

Some people say that was the turning point/play of the game. Mine, was not. Schaub had a 20-yard pass to Julio Jones along the sideline. Instead of a first down, OPI was called on Julio, and the Falcons were backed up with a 1^st and 20 at their own 35. The Falcons call a time out. There is no challenge or question on this call. This is when I lost my mind (the first time) and really questioned Dan Quinn’s thought process. That was not the only time on the day. After returning from the time out, Schaub throws an errant pass that was intercepted.

On the losing my mind and screaming things to the field topic…..I still do not understand calling time outs near the end of the half to help Seattle have time for their touchdown. I believe I suggested Pete Carroll load Dan Quinn on the plane to Seattle at that point. With a 4th and 1 on their own 34, the Falcons go for it. On their side of the field, the attempt two over 50-yard field goals. Then, at the end of the game, already wasted time outs through the second half. After the 2 minute warning, DQ has Schaub spike the ball and Bryant come on for a field goal, which still leaves the team in a 7 point deficit. Why not go for the touchdown first and worry about the field goal IF you get the ball back? Bad clock management and wasted time throughout the half left little time for the ultimate comeback. It is annoying to look that close, but Seattle was giving up more late than they had all game, knowing that time was running out for a comeback.

Julio Jones ended the game with 10 receptions and 152 yards while Calvin Ridley had 4 receptions for 70 yards. As mentioned, Russell Gage, Justin Hardy, and all 3 tight ends had receptions. It was obvious that Gage will be the air-apparent to the 3^rd WR spot have 9 targets on the day.

Jarrett continues to get better every week, tallying 8 tackles, followed by De’Vondre Campbell at 7 – who leads the team in tackles and is #6 in the NFL. Kazee had 6. The up and coming Sheffield, Allen, and Beasley had 5 a-piece.

Punter, Kasey Redfern was released Monday after having 1 punt on Sunday. Currently, we have no punter. Quarterback Danny Etling was added to the practice squad, which makes you question Matt Ryan’s health, but he may be released again after the bye. Longtime kicker Matt Bryant was released after missing 2 over 50-yard field goals Sunday and replaced by Georgia Southern’s Younghoe Koo.

Injury Report:

· Matt Ryan is rehabbing well, should be ready to head to New Orleans for the November 10^th game.

· John Cominsky left the game with a sprained ankle, hoping to be back after the bye.

Golden Talon:

· Grady Jarrett – Clearly he is going to get this every week. Closest to making plays, always moving and pushing the line back. Disruptive. Lead the team in tackles this week and got the first sack in 5 weeks.

· Kendall Sheffield – Really stepped up and playing well in Desmond Trufant’s open CB spot. Has had some really good coverage and still not being picked on as much as Oliver.

· Matt Schaub – Dude is 38 years old. Didn’t play a snap in 2017 and hasn’t started in 4 years. Lit the field on fire for 460 yards and had limited mistakes.

FalconAlley Owt

Need a Get Right Game? Play Atlanta.

October 13, 2019

Atlanta 33 at Arizona 34

Article by Allison Smith

Photos by Atlanta Falcons

In this week’s episode of “How can the Falcons lose?” they had a good strong start, lulling fans into a happy zone. They took the ball, went down to a score by Calvin Ridley. The defense held the Cardinals to a field goal. Then…..they allowed scores on the next 5 drives, while not scoring themselves. In the second half, they had to come out fighting for their lives…..again….and almost made it this week. Well, to a tie. Matt Bryant, very uncharacteristically misses an extra point with 1:53 left in the game.

While some want to bash Bryant, let me write out the rest of THAT game. The game is tied with 1:53. Arizona gets the ball. Works to get down field. The defense holds them, forces 3^rd downs. With seconds to go in the game, the defense breaks and the Cardinals score with :08 seconds to go and crush all hopes anyway. I’ve been a fan a long time, I know how this story ends. Bryant’s miss just ended it earlier.

Sadly, it crushed him. The rest of the team could have done so much more in the other 58 minutes, that this game is not on Bryant. I don’t know the issue for sure, but he does need some consistency in his holds. The injury of punter Matt Bosher, then parade of other punters, and now Matt Schaub holding cannot be good.

Now, the referees did not help any on the day. They ruled a catch, that was not an Arizona catch. A Falcon caused fumble was ruled not a fumble. There was a no call on a fair catch interference, and near the end of the game, Kyler Murray was ruled to have a first down, when he did not actually reach the marker.

A bright spot of the day was Austin Hooper. He caught all 8 balls thrown his way, tallying 117 yards and a touchdown. Devonta Freeman had another good game, looking like his old self again. He accumulated 88 yards on 19 carries and one breakout run of 15 yards; and again, caught all 3 targets for 30 yards and 2 receiving touchdowns. Running the ball worked well early and late in the game, but during the catch-up time, it was more difficult. Keith Smith had some good blocks, working hard and getting into a little fight, good fullback play.

The offense did score 33 this week, Matt Ryan had another stellar game, one so good, that of the 67 other times these stats were recorded, 66 of those quarterbacks won their games. Ryan was 30 of 36, for 356 yards and 4 touchdowns with no interceptions; a 144.9 quarterback rating. Ryan spread the ball around well with 8 (or 9) different receivers, even Kaleb McGary “caught” a pass. Ill-fated as it was. The offense had several big packages, and lots of tempo and mixed packages, in which Ryan thrives. Which makes one wonder where these have been all season.

Ryan admittedly made a bad decision on an overthrow to Ridley while Jones was on a sail route, Ridley came back, but Ryan missed him. Naturally, this was on a 3^rd down. Ryan was heard admitting to this overthrow, but saying that they would continue to work and just needed one game under them to start. He even quoted former teammate Mud Duck (Todd McClure) “There ain’t no mentum like momentum.”

The defense gave up so many explosive plays, many on Isaiah Oliver again. Note that Oliver was only in because Desmond Trufant was out with a toe issue, as Kendall Sheffield was slated to replace Oliver until Trufant was ruled out. There were no quarterback hits at all this week, clearly no sacks. Gave up a 4^th and 2, which eventually led to a touchdown. The defense has allowed an average of 34.5 points in the 4 losses.

The defense also came out strong in the 2^nd half. After being down 20/10, the defense had 3 back to back stops while the offense scored 17 points. They weren’t giving up any free lanes or open looks. Even with no hits on Murray, they were starting to get good pressure on him. The defense gave up 240 yards in the first half, 100 in the second. Why can this not be the entire game?

On the glass half full view, the Falcons lead the league in forced fumbles, none recovered, but they are hitting hard and grabbing for the ball on occasion.

In the 4^th quarter, Deion Jones made a big stop on David Johnson, forcing a punt, with led to the Falcons tying the game at 27. If the Falcons had won the game, this may have been the play of the game.

Once again, Grady Jarrett was the best player on defense, affecting the quarterback, causing penalties, stressing the line. Grady had 6 tackles. De’Vondre Campbell lead the team in tackles with 9, followed by Oliver, Kemal Ishmael, and Debo at 6 a-piece. Rookie Sheffield had 4 tackles, one of which was on a 3^rd and 10, forcing an Arizona punt.

Penalties were down this game, only 8, but again, at costly times. On the Falcons’ 2nd possession, from the Arizona 49, Ryan scrambled for 4 yards, negated by a James Carpenter hold. 1st and 20, delay of game. Way back in Falcons territory, at 1st and 25, Julio Jones gains 3 yards, Hooper has a 6-yard reception, then Jones drops a ball, which would have been mute with a Ridley PI. And it’s 4th down and a punt. In the beginning of the 2^nd half, on a 3^rd and 8 by Arizona, Oliver has a penalty, on a no catch, that instead turns into a first down.

There was a block in the back on a punt, so instead of the ball at the 25, the Falcons were backed up to the 10. On a 3^rd and 10, a sack/fumble leading into a punt. A horse collar on Vic Beasley that lead to the final Arizona score.

Special teams was looking better this week, trying a variety of returners. Kenjon Barner was back and returned 3 punts for 17 yards, and 1 kickoff for 24 yards. Ito Smith had 2 kickoff returns for 59 yards. Newly acquired punter Kasey Redfern punted 3 times for an average of 43 yards. Bryant had 2 successful field goals and 2 of 3 extra points made. One of his field goals was close in the right side, which is why I think he pulled the missed XP too much to the left.

Again, the young quarterback of a seemingly hapless team ends up being the offense player of the week, setting records. Chase Edmonds has his first touchdown (ended with 2) of his career.

Overall, the offense looked good, special teams was ok – between returns vs. coverage, and the defense was good in the second half. Both sides of the ball were not consistent throughout the game and led to the fourth game in a row.

Injury Report:
Jamon Brown left the game with a knee injury, but was full practice on Wednesday.

Desmond Trufant did not practice on Wednesday, continuing with his toe injury.

Several others were limited after tweaks from the game, Blidi Wreh- Wilson is trending up and hopefully will be back this Sunday.

Golden Talon

Austin Hooper and Devonta Freeman for standing out and stepping up offensively this week, getting better each week.

FalconAlley Owt