Welcome back fans, friends and family!!! Finals are over down here in Savannah which means so is the Fall Semester and I couldn't be happier. Glad you all came back for another week of Dirty Bird blogging and more Falcons action here with the WeDatNation page. Last week’s game was a great battle between two teams looking to make a deep run into the playoffs, both bolstering top ten defenses and offenses that can put up a lot of points. Atlanta headed to Houston to face a team missing not only their first string quarterback Matt Schaub to a foot injury but their second string quarterback also in Matt Leinart to a fractured collarbone. The Falcons were set to rookie fifth round pick Taylor Jonathan Yates native of Atlanta and the first and only North Carolina quarterback to start an NFL game. Atlanta with an extremely injured secondary and the Texans on quarterback number 3 this was sure to be a great game. With that said time for a RECAP!!!!
Recap
Down in Texas, The Falcons win and elect to receive the kick off. Early in the week Atlanta made it obvious that they were going to give all they could to the league’s top ranked defense. First and 10 Atlanta came out swinging, Matt Ryan drops back and flings a pass deep down the side line to Roddy White who has the defender beat but the ball is over thrown and falls incomplete. Second and 10, Turner tries the middle and gets absolutely nothing except an introduction to the heart of the Texans defense, Brian Cushing. On 3rd and 10 Ryan comes out in the shotgun, scans the field and tosses another pass deep, this time down the middle of the field to a wide open Julio Jones and again it’s over thrown and the Falcons send on Matt Bosher to punt the ball away to the Texans, who also went 3 and out.
On Atlanta's next possession, they get the ball on the 24 yard line looking to hopefully put up points. 1st and 10 Mike Mularkey, who is regarded as one of the top offensive minds in football and nicknamed Inspector Gadget in reference to his ability to catch the opposing defense off guard using innovative plays to expose a defense and keep them guessing. 1st and Ten Mularkey goes into his bag of tricks and pulls out a Flea Flicker, for those who are not as familiar with the game, a flea flicker is a type of play action play (fake hand off) to get the defense to attack the run. The difference is on a flea flicker the quarterback (Matt Ryan) actually hands the ball the running back (Michael Turner), who fakes as if he is about to run the ball but instead turns around and pitches it back to the quarterback who then throws the ball to the receiver (Roddy White) who has slipped behind the coverage for a supposedly a big gain. Everything has to be perfect and on time, the blocking, the hand off, the pitch, and the throw down the field... However that is where the problem was presented on the pitch back to Matt Ryan, Turner throws it high and Ryan has to jump up to get it, which throws off the timing of pass and gives the defender (Kareem Jackson) time to catch up and make the play on the ball.. INTERCEPTION!!!!!
After the turnover Yates and the Texans have the ball at their own 35. First and ten Ben Tate runs off the left side for a gain of 6 yards, two plays later Yates hits Johnson for a gain of 5 yards and a first down. Two plays after the first down Yates hits Owen Daniels for a 17 yard pick up and then 20 yards on the next play to Andre Johnson down to the 15 yard line and the Texans are rolling. 3 and 8 from the 15 T.J Yates rolls out of the pocket left and is hit by Vance Walker, who knocks the ball out of his hand. With everyone in Reliant Stadium thinking it’s an incomplete pass, James Sanders recognizes he didn't hear a whistle and scoops the ball up and runs 90 yards to the end zone TOUCHDOWN FALCONS!!! WAIT WAIT WAIT Stop everything the there are flags on field. With the confusion of thinking it’s an incomplete pass, players and coaches from both teams are marching onto the field which is considered as an illegal substitution penalty. Both fouls offset each other, the touchdown is NULLIFIED and Atlanta is rewarded possession at the spot of recovery, which is the 35 yard line of the Falcons. However this turnover means nothing because 3 plays later Julio Jones, rookie sensation out of Alabama, apparently runs the wrong route and Matt Ryan throws his second INTERCEPTION of game which turns into a field goal for the Texans (3-0).
Talk about a lot of action in the first 15 minutes of a football game. A few drives later now into the 2nd quarter, the Texans have the ball on the 20 yard line. 3rd and 12 T.J. Yates finds Arian Foster for a 28 yard catch and run and first down. 1st and 10 from the 46 yard line Yates finds Andre Johnson, who was being covered by Dominique Franks who is starting in place for injured Brent Grimes, for a 50 yard completion. Taking nothing away from Franks but Yates threw a beautiful pass, Franks had perfect coverage but Johnson has strong hands and was able to hold off the fighting corner back until he was eventually tackled at the 4 yard line. Two plays later on 3rd and 3 Yates finds Joel Dreessen for the 3 yard Touchdown to take the lead to 10 over the visiting Atlanta Falcons. On the Falcons following drive they go 10 plays but the drive stalls and Atlanta kicks the field goal (10-3). HALFTIME!!!!
Late in the 3rd Quarter after the Texans missed a 54 yard field goal, Atlanta has good position at the Texans 44 yard line down by 7. First and 10 Ryan looks for Roddy White deep down the left side... INCOMPLETE!!! 2nd and 10, Turner tries the middle again, and it’s completely stuffed but he makes something out of nothing and gets two yards. 3rd and 8, there is a Gonzalez sighting in Reliant! Ryan hit Tony for a 18 yard completion down to the 36 yard line. 3 plays later there is a Ryan to Jones connection down to the 4 yard line and a gain of 26 and FINALLY, Atlanta seems to be heating up and looking to get on a roll. 1st and goal from the 4, Ryan throws it to a WIDE OPEN Roddy White in the right side of the end zone for the game tying score and we have a ball game ladies and gentlemen!!! TOUCHDOWN FALCONS (10-10)
How do the Texans respond you wonder? 1st and 10 Foster runs off the right side and is met by Mike Peterson, who is getting the start for the injured Stephen Nicholas, for a two yard loss. 2nd and 12 Yates drops back, scans the field, coverage down field is tight so what do you do? Check it down to the underneath guy of course, except when you have MIKE PETERSON in coverage!!! Then you end up throwing an INTERCEPTION!!! Peterson breaks on the ball and catches it clean and is off running toward the end zone.
TOUCHDOWN ATLANTA HAS THE LEAD!!! (10-17) Hold Up, is that a Flag? It is.... Prior to the pass.... Holding.... 23 of the Defense... 5 yard penalty. NO PLAY. Another Touchdown nullified score for Atlanta. 14 plays later Foster plows in for the 1 yard score. (17-10)
Last drive of the game: 59 seconds left, Atlanta has the ball at the 33 yard line. First and 10 Matt Ryan pass to Jacquizz Rodgers is completed for a gain of fine and he is pushed out of bounds at the 38. 2nd and 5 Ryan finds Harry Douglas for a gain of 17 yards and first down at the 45. 2nd and 10, after a spike, Ryan finds Julio Jones deep for a gain of 20 and he is tackled in bounds at the 25. Ryan spikes the ball on first down and on second he looks for Jones again, who stepped out before he caught the ball and was flagged for illegal touching. No play loss of 5 yards. 2 and 15 Ryan fires a pass for Roddy in the end zone which ends up sailing out of the end zone but somebody loves the Falcons because there is one second left on the clock. This is it. 3rd and 15.... : 01 left on the clock... Ryan in the Shotgun.... He passes left... Jones is there..... INCOMPLETE!!!!! HE DROPPED IT.... JONES DROPPED IT IN THE END ZONE. . . TEXANS WIN.. (Dramatic finish right?)
Offense
I don't know what to say, Atlanta has been on a roll and just when you think they are ready to go head to head with one of the leagues high powered teams, they Falcons do not show up, this time it was the offense. Atlanta, who has predicated itself on being a run first team only ran the ball 18 times, and came out throwing the ball way more than it should have. Although they did have some chances to hit the big play down the field, the attempts fell incomplete whether it be an overthrown ball, an wrong route or a plan out dropped pass... Throwing the ball is not what the Falcons were built for, and unless they are planning on become a pass first team I strongly suggest that they stick to the formula that has put them in the position they are in which is beat the defense down with the running game and let Matt Ryan throw about 35 passes per game.
I'm not sure if it’s because of the lockout, Atlanta is having problems staying in a groove this season but we are all hoping it was just a poorly executed game plan and this isn't a sign of things to come. I do understand that Atlanta was down at one point by 10 but that was early in the game and no excuse to get away from the game plan, which is run the ball and pass to keep the defense honest. A balance is what the Falcons use and a 46-18 pass to run ratio isn't exactly balance. I would hate to sound like a conspirator but Mularkey's name has been floated around as a possible head coach candidate for the Jaguars who recently cut ties with Jack Del Rio and the thought crossed my mind that he, Mularkey, may have attempted to use this game as an audition opportunity. I hope not but I figured I would throw it out there.
Offensive Notables and Player of the Week
Matt Ryan completed 20 of his 46 pass attempts for 267 yards and 1 touchdown and 1.5 interceptions. I can't be completely mad at Ryan for either of the turnovers because he can’t control Julio running the route behind the defender instead of in front, but I do give him half the credit on the flea flicker interception because although Turner tossed a horrible pitch, Turner is not a quarterback and does not get paid to throw the ball. The part where Ryan is blamed is because he had the opportunity to not throw the ball to Roddy after the timing of the play was thrown off by the bad pitch. Turner rushed for 44 yards on 14 carries which is a 3.1 per carry average. Tony Gonzalez posted a 100 yard reception day, his first of the season. Roddy posted 4 catches for 51 yards and a score and Julio Jones also had 4 catches for 68 yards.
Player of the Week: Tony Gonzalez- 7 Receptions 100 yards 14.3 per catch 10 Targets.
Defense
Before this game I made a statement on my twitter account
@MrShields2 to a friend of mine who happens to be a Saints fan
@bravesoul79 that whichever team brings the best defense on the field will win this game, turns out, I was wrong now let me explain why I say that. Atlanta's defense had two touchdowns nullified and 1 turnover taken away. The first was in the first quarter when James Sanders scoops up a fumble and bobs and weaves through a sea of players and coaches on his way to a 90 yard touchdown before it a penalty not only takes the points of the board but brings the ball back to the 35 yard line. The Second was when Dunta Robinson, former Texan, was flagged with a hold before Mike Peterson took advantage of T.J. Yates only rookie mistake of the game, which again took the score of the board but gave the ball back to the Texans who took it down the field and scored essentially the game ending touchdown. That’s 14 points off the board for the Falcons. I'm no math major nor do I claim to be but add those points and it’s a different ball game.
I don't know if the defense under estimated Yates coming into this game, but this is something that is very familiar for the Falcons. They let teams in a less than favorable condition play with them and this time, they lost. I understand it was against the first ranked defense in the NFL, a team with Andre Johnson and Arian Foster but it was still a 3rd string quarterback, a 3rd string rookie quarterback to be exact and veteran teams like Atlanta should feast on teams in that position.
Defensive Notables and Player of the Week
Atlanta allowed Houston to convert 50% of their third down attempts which is too high for a team that looking to be a factor down the road in the playoffs. Also Yates had a good game to for it to his first start in the NFL. He completed 12 of his 25 attempts for 188 and 1 touchdown, not mind blowing numbers but efficient and efficient quarterback is the quarterback who wins. The defense didn't do enough to confuse him, I don't know if the blame is on the coach or on the players but it needs to be fixed and fast! On a statistical note, guess who lead the team in tackles, .... Curtis Lofton! You can’t run from the police! Lofton posted 11 tackles all of which were solo, next was James Sanders with 10 and Mike Peterson with 10 also.
Player of the Week: Curtis Lofton- 11 Tackles 11 Solo Tackles 1 Sack 1 Tackle for Loss and 1 QB hit. All I got to say about this man SEND HIM TO THE PRO BOWL, This man deserves to in Hawaii come February.
Preview
This week’s matchup is a divisional game and a much needed win if Atlanta wants to hold on to their Wild Card Seed. Last week the Falcons caught a break with all the other NFC Wild Card contenders losing and shouldn't expect to catch another break. Hopefully the Falcons understand where they are and don't let the hot Panther send them home with an "L". Cam Newton is fresh off breaking the record for most rushing TDs in a season by a QB, and he is looking to pass Ryan for 3rd on the list of most passing yards by a rookie QB. Atlanta is going to have to come in, play focused, beat them up with Turner and leave Bank of American Stadium with a win as they approach a pivotal stretch in their scheduled as 3 of their final 4 games are against divisional opponents.
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