Falcons off-season thread - Page 4

D-Rod · 09-08-2008, 04:42 AM

Great performance.

However, there's one thing to note: if Paris Leman could catch, Matt Ryan would have thrown a pick six at a crucial moment and the game could have been a lot closer. I just think that we need to manage expectations. Ryan is going to make errors, he's a rookie. Just be aware of that, and don't get too mad when it happens - as is quite likely next week...

georgiafan · 09-08-2008, 09:04 AM

The dome looks much better now that it's painted red and black it auctally looks like the falcons play there. The fans made a lot of noise which was nice to see. (i was at the game)

I said a few weeks back (not on here) that Turner would go down as the best HB in franchise history. He is perfect for the offense and runs hard and has good speed. He will not go down with a arm tackle something the lions didn't pick up on. I never expected 220 yards and 2 TD though. He also had another TD called back because of Roddy White.

The team rushing record was broke and the previous record was also a game that I was at.

Hallelujah finally a coach who is smart enough to give the ball to Norwood on the outside. The last two coaches liked to try and run him up the middle. Everybody has been pleading for him to get more touches for the last 2 years and he finally got them today.

Keith Brooking has lost a step he is terrible in pass coverage. He needs to play less or come out on 3rd down.

Grady Jackson played great he is awesome against the run he looked better then last year. He still can't rush the passer, but he comes out on passing downs anyway.

Jamal Anderson should have got credited for a half of sack. John Abraham scared me he limped off the field 3 times. He still had 3 sacks. The radio guys kept saying John was getting held not sure if it's true.

The OL played much better then I expected espically OG Harvey Dahl.

The coaching staffs move to throw the ball with 1 minute and 30 seconds before half was beyond stupid. The lions was out of timeouts and we was backed up inside the 20. If we just run the ball the clock runs out and we go up by 14 at half. Instead two passes stop the clock and the score a TD. They got the ball at the 3rd quarter and about tied it up. That move was crazy and could have cost us the game.

BamaFalcon59 · 09-08-2008, 04:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by georgiafan

The coaching staffs move to throw the ball with 1 minute and 30 seconds before half was beyond stupid. The lions was out of timeouts and we was backed up inside the 20. If we just run the ball the clock runs out and we go up by 14 at half. Instead two passes stop the clock and the score a TD. They got the ball at the 3rd quarter and about tied it up. That move was crazy and could have cost us the game.

I completely agree about throwing the ball up 14 before the half, with a rookie quarterback.

dunagan15 · 09-08-2008, 05:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BamaFalcon59

I completely agree about throwing the ball up 14 before the half, with a rookie quarterback.

Ya so do I. I think from the coaching standpoint they were trying to show Matt that they have confidence in him to lead an 80+ yard 2 minute drill, which for Matt, sure its nice the coaches believe in you, but I mean come on. We are up 2 touchdowns and have played great, lets get to the half and continue to play great.

It was just plain dumb overall, hell just give Norwood the ball on a sweep and hey if he gets a 20 yard gain the sure maybe try to get in feild goal range but dont put that pressure on Matt right now. He got enough on him to be the team leader and manage the game as a rookie.

ATLDirtyBirds · 09-08-2008, 05:10 PM

By the way, the importance of Grady Jackson has been lost in the shuffle. He is a force in the gun game. 2 TFL yesterday I believe.

D-Rod · 09-09-2008, 04:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ATLDirtyBirds

By the way, the importance of Grady Jackson has been lost in the shuffle. He is a force in the gun game. 2 TFL yesterday I believe.

Yup, that was a great addition.

It's also a massive bonus for Babineaux. Grady's size means that Babs has the freedom simply to attack the gap and penetrate, making use of his quickness and minimizing his lack of size.

There'll be a time when we struggle in run defense - let's not forget that Detroit's O-line is among the worse in the game. However, it's not going to be as bad as we all thought it might be...

D-Rod · 09-09-2008, 04:01 AM

Yeah, Mularkey definitely deserved to spend half-time in dunce's corner for that decision before half-time. Fortunately it didn't cost us, and hopefully he won't do it again.

On the other hand, it does show incredible confidence in Ryan's abilities, which is good - as long as it is not over-confidence.

dunagan15 · 09-09-2008, 12:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by D-Rod

Yeah, Mularkey definitely deserved to spend half-time in dunce's corner for that decision before half-time. Fortunately it didn't cost us, and hopefully he won't do it again.

On the other hand, it does show incredible confidence in Ryan's abilities, which is good - as long as it is not over-confidence.

It did cost us, they got a TD right before half, were lucky it wasnt tied..

iloxygenil · 09-09-2008, 01:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dunagan15

It did cost us, they got a TD right before half, were lucky it wasnt tied..

Winning the game = didn't cost us anything

I'd like to say that I think after seeing that we won't see that happen again. Good time to learn, better now than later.

Mekias · 09-09-2008, 03:07 PM

I was really excited with our offense on Sunday. But Detroit was obviously a huge reason for that. I'm not going to get too hopeful unless we can repeat it against a team like Tampa Bay next week.

A few things I noticed:

1) Grady Jackson almost single-handedly stopped the Lions' running game. Only once did they have a successful run when he was in there. In that play, they double-teamed him AND ran in the complete opposite direction. He even got his paw up and knocked down a pass once.

2) Grimes - generally in position but when they weren't in press coverage, he was WAY off and allowed easy short passes. I don't think that's his call, probably just the coverage but there was one 3rd and long where he let Calvin Johnson curl right at the marker and catch the ball. He may have a super leaping ability but all the receiver has to do is nudge him and his jump loses a foot (what happened on the TD pass). In fairness though, Grimes was in great position and Kitna threw an absolute perfect pass from 30 yards away.

3) Houston - very aggressive with the pressing. I think he had a hard time toning down his aggressiveness and made some bonehead plays in the endzone. The Lions should have given him a game ball for gifting them with 2 TDs. I think he has the ability though.

4) Ryan - incredible pass to start the game. He managed the rest of the game successfully but should have thrown an interception. He missed the zone coverage, threw it right between two defenders and the guy just dropped it.

5) Turner - fantastic game. He broke so many tackles and is just shifty enough and strong enough to make him very hard to get a hold of. He'll fit into our offense perfectly.

6) Norwood - turned a busted flea flicker play into a 10 yard gain and, although Turner is the "burner", Norwood is like watching the game on fast forward. If he isn't getting 10-15 touches a game from now on, I'll be pissed.

7) Baker - almost flawless. Technically it was his guy who got the one sack on Ryan but he had the guy securely in hand and Blalock's guy stunted around and was heading right toward Ryan. Baker pushed his guy and switched off, taking the DT away from Ryan but Blalock couldn't pick up Baker's guy. Ryan ended up almost running into him and got sacked. Baker was also very good in the running game. Several times he was able to take out the D-lineman and block the linebacker on the next level. He's quicker than I thought.

8) Blalock - solid in pass blocking, strong in run blocking. He was getting good push at the point of attack.

9) Dahl - very aggressive in run blocking, he completely whiffed on a guy once in pass protection but it was a quick play and Ryan got rid of the ball early.

10) Clabo - was holding his ground in run blocking but seemed to be best when pulling to the left side. Twice he pulled and took out LBs for big gains. Solid in pass blocking. Once he let his guy way out wide and he almost took out Ryan from behind. Don't think Detroit's left end is much of a pass rusher though.

11) Brooking - seemed late on most plays, got taken out several times by blockers

12) Lofton - only played with the 4-3 D. Had a few good plays up the field but Grady Jackson cleared the way for him. I would like to see more of him.

13) Milloy - incredible interception to sway the game. Laid out and grabbed it an inch off the ground. Seemed to tackle the ball carrier more than the LBs.

14) Coleman - either he was doing his job and no one threw in his direction or he wasn't doing his job and wasn't in place to make the plays. It's hard to tell since I hardly ever saw him.

15) Abraham - beastly, thank goodness his injury wasn't anything serious. Without him our pass rush was non-existent.

16) Anderson - solid, didn't get pushed around but, as usual didn't create any havok. He deserved the half sack though. Abraham and he got there at the same time.

17) Other DTs - got pushed around on running plays and couldn't do much on passing plays. Rather disappointed.

That's all I can think of right now (after watching the game twice now

). Good start to the season but the real test starts next week at Tampa Bay. For now I'll cautiously say 5-6 wins. Our defense is still pretty lousy.

georgiafan · 09-10-2008, 10:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dunagan15

Ya so do I. I think from the coaching standpoint they were trying to show Matt that they have confidence in him to lead an 80+ yard 2 minute drill, which for Matt, sure its nice the coaches believe in you, but I mean come on. We are up 2 touchdowns and have played great, lets get to the half and continue to play great.

It was just plain dumb overall, hell just give Norwood the ball on a sweep and hey if he gets a 20 yard gain the sure maybe try to get in feild goal range but dont put that pressure on Matt right now. He got enough on him to be the team leader and manage the game as a rookie.

If they just run it one of the two times they probley don't score the TD as Williams caught the pass with 16 seconds left.

Bosanac01 · 09-10-2008, 08:49 PM

We have to enjoy being 1-0 as much as we can because i think we'll have some problems with Tampa.

dunagan15 · 09-10-2008, 09:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bosanac01

We have to enjoy being 1-0 as much as we can because i think we'll have some problems with Tampa.

Well at least the days leading up to the game we are winning...1) Didn't lose our starting QB and 2) We still have our stud linebacker 100% and 3) The big MO

I honestly think and not just because Im a fan, but we a a great shot to win this game.

Lets compare: Offense-
QB) Atl-rookie w/ tatlent TB- Journeyman w/ experience - I say both teams are equal

Running Game)- Turner and Norwood vs. Graham and Dunn - edge Falcons

O line) ATL, game one looked promising but Tampa has the edge here

Receivers) ATL w/ Roddy, Jenkins, Harry, Robinson= young athletic bunch w/ Roddy as our star TB- Vet in Joey, and a burst in Jackson, Bryant eh well hes our Finneran..Overall Ill have to the edge to ATL
Defense:

D-line) ATL-Abraham will be a force, Grady will stuff run other will take up space TB- Adams, Carter and White will get pressure and are going up a new and young line - Tie

LB) Lofton looked good, Boley good as well, Brooking(vet leader) sucked big donkey n*ts TB- June, Ruud and even though Brooks is Q...TB wins this category

DB) Falcons CB looked a little shakey, lone bright spot was Milloy but he cant do it himself TB- Looked rough in the NO game but still talent wise are much better than ATL - TB here

Special Teams) ATL- vet kicker and overall solid unit TB- Jackson adds a spark and solid kicking game...Tie here

Totals: ATL= 2 TB= 3 Tie= 3

Bosanac01 · 09-10-2008, 09:26 PM

I expect a much lower scoring game then week 1 obiously. Their defense is much better then ours but our offense is better. Our defense suck but their offense is not much better.

d34ng3l021 · 09-10-2008, 10:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dunagan15

Well at least the days leading up to the game we are winning...1) Didn't lose our starting QB and 2) We still have our stud linebacker 100% and 3) The big MO

I honestly think and not just because Im a fan, but we a a great shot to win this game.

Lets compare: Offense-
QB) Atl-rookie w/ tatlent TB- Journeyman w/ experience - I say both teams are equal

Running Game)- Turner and Norwood vs. Graham and Dunn - edge Falcons

O line) ATL, game one looked promising but Tampa has the edge here

Receivers) ATL w/ Roddy, Jenkins, Harry, Robinson= young athletic bunch w/ Roddy as our star TB- Vet in Joey, and a burst in Jackson, Bryant eh well hes our Finneran..Overall Ill have to the edge to ATL
Defense:

D-line) ATL-Abraham will be a force, Grady will stuff run other will take up space TB- Adams, Carter and White will get pressure and are going up a new and young line - Tie

LB) Lofton looked good, Boley good as well, Brooking(vet leader) sucked big donkey n*ts TB- June, Ruud and even though Brooks is Q...TB wins this category

DB) Falcons CB looked a little shakey, lone bright spot was Milloy but he cant do it himself TB- Looked rough in the NO game but still talent wise are much better than ATL - TB here

Special Teams) ATL- vet kicker and overall solid unit TB- Jackson adds a spark and solid kicking game...Tie here

Totals: ATL= 2 TB= 3 Tie= 3

I have always found that a silly way to compare 2 teams. How about this?

ATL QB + Receivers vs TB Pass Defense
-TB had the best pass defense last year (they got lit up by one of the best QBs in the league. Whatever). We have a rookie QB. TB wins this by a lot and definitely dictates how the game might go. Sam Baker vs Gaines Adams (they line up against each other, yeah?) should be fun to watch.

ATB RBs vs TB Run Defense
-We have this one. Turner and Norwood are very talented and I had thought that the the OL might hold them back, but the way the dominated against the Lions, I am sure they can hold their own against the Bucs. Lets just hope that we do not become too one dimensional, thus enabling them to stop us.

TB QB + Receivers vs ATL Pass Defense
-I would call this one even, but I am a Falcons fan...I think Abraham should have another field day against the Donald Penn (lol). Greise is a journeyman at QB and should be rusty and Abe might be too much to handle. TB's secondary is nothing extra ordinary so our DBs should not have their hands too full. They should watch out for Galloway though.

TB RBs vs ATL Run Defense
-TB gets this. As good as Grady Jackson and our LB corp may be, they are going to have their hands full with Aaron Sears and Davin Joseph (i think). After watching the Saints-Bucs game, I saw their OGs pretty much nullify Ellis and whoever the other DT was. They were dominant in the run game but iffy against the pass. Graham and Dunn are good RBs and should have no trouble finding holes.

ATL ST vs TB ST
-Who cares?

Overall: I want to see their pass defense against Ryan. If Ryan is completely ineffective, which he could easily be, they could easily shut down the run and harass Ryan. Very scary situation indeed. On the other side of the ball, theres not much to talk about. If we can limit their run game, we will be able to win a lot more easier.

Bruce Banner · 09-10-2008, 10:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by d34ng3l021

I have always found that a silly way to compare 2 teams. How about this?

ATL QB + Receivers vs TB Pass Defense
-TB had the best pass defense last year (they got lit up by one of the best QBs in the league. Whatever). We have a rookie QB. TB wins this by a lot and definitely dictates how the game might go. Sam Baker vs Gaines Adams (they line up against each other, yeah?) should be fun to watch.

ATB RBs vs TB Run Defense
-We have this one. Turner and Norwood are very talented and I had thought that the the OL might hold them back, but the way the dominated against the Lions, I am sure they can hold their own against the Bucs. Lets just hope that we do not become too one dimensional, thus enabling them to stop us.

TB QB + Receivers vs ATL Pass Defense
-I would call this one even, but I am a Falcons fan...I think Abraham should have another field day against the Donald Penn (lol). Greise is a journeyman at QB and should be rusty and Abe might be too much to handle. TB's secondary is nothing extra ordinary so our DBs should not have their hands too full. They should watch out for Galloway though.

TB RBs vs ATL Run Defense
-TB gets this. As good as Grady Jackson and our LB corp may be, they are going to have their hands full with Aaron Sears and Davin Joseph (i think). After watching the Saints-Bucs game, I saw their OGs pretty much nullify Ellis and whoever the other DT was. They were dominant in the run game but iffy against the pass. Graham and Dunn are good RBs and should have no trouble finding holes.

ATL ST vs TB ST
-Who cares?

Overall: I want to see their pass defense against Ryan. If Ryan is completely ineffective, which he could easily be, they could easily shut down the run and harass Ryan. Very scary situation indeed. On the other side of the ball, theres not much to talk about. If we can limit their run game, we will be able to win a lot more easier.

^^^^
++, nice breakdown. I never did understand roster breakdowns like that guy's.

A few things to point out. (bolded at top)

When you said Tampa's secondary did you mean their receivers?

ST is HUGE! D-Jax can take any punt return to the house on grass.

Bosanac01 · 09-10-2008, 10:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by d34ng3l021

I have always found that a silly way to compare 2 teams. How about this?

ATL QB + Receivers vs TB Pass Defense
-TB had the best pass defense last year (they got lit up by one of the best QBs in the league. Whatever). We have a rookie QB. TB wins this by a lot and definitely dictates how the game might go. Sam Baker vs Gaines Adams (they line up against each other, yeah?) should be fun to watch.

ATB RBs vs TB Run Defense
-We have this one. Turner and Norwood are very talented and I had thought that the the OL might hold them back, but the way the dominated against the Lions, I am sure they can hold their own against the Bucs. Lets just hope that we do not become too one dimensional, thus enabling them to stop us.

TB QB + Receivers vs ATL Pass Defense
-I would call this one even, but I am a Falcons fan...I think Abraham should have another field day against the Donald Penn (lol). Greise is a journeyman at QB and should be rusty and Abe might be too much to handle. TB's secondary is nothing extra ordinary so our DBs should not have their hands too full. They should watch out for Galloway though.

TB RBs vs ATL Run Defense
-TB gets this. As good as Grady Jackson and our LB corp may be, they are going to have their hands full with Aaron Sears and Davin Joseph (i think). After watching the Saints-Bucs game, I saw their OGs pretty much nullify Ellis and whoever the other DT was. They were dominant in the run game but iffy against the pass. Graham and Dunn are good RBs and should have no trouble finding holes.

ATL ST vs TB ST
-Who cares?

Overall: I want to see their pass defense against Ryan. If Ryan is completely ineffective, which he could easily be, they could easily shut down the run and harass Ryan. Very scary situation indeed. On the other side of the ball, theres not much to talk about. If we can limit their run game, we will be able to win a lot more easier.

Dude that's a sweet way to go about it. I think the main thing will be if we can get some rushing yard because that opens everything up. Ryan will have a great day if Turner and Norwood do a good job rushing.
Another thing, our DBs will do a great job like they did preseason. Jon Kitna aint no jurney man, he's a good QB working with one of the best WR duos in the league, so we should look much better this week on pass defense.
Im a little worried on the run defense, our DL and LBers need to get the tackles on RBs. Last week, we saw way too many plays where DBs had to come up and tackle the runner because the LBers were eliminated from the play, giving up more yardage.

Bosanac01 · 09-10-2008, 10:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bruce Banner

^^^^
++, nice breakdown. I never did understand roster breakdowns like that guy's.

A few things to point out. (bolded at top)

When you said Tampa's secondary did you mean their receivers?

ST is HUGE! D-Jax can take any punt return to the house on grass.

Pretty sure he ment receivers on that one.

We have one of the best ST coverage in the league. Our punt return man, Adam Jennings, is much improved this year. Jerious Norwood will give us good field position all the time with his kick returns and is great on coverage. We did give up the only kickoff return for TD in TB history last year, but i think we're much improved with the new guys and new coach.

d34ng3l021 · 09-10-2008, 10:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bruce Banner

^^^^
++, nice breakdown. I never did understand roster breakdowns like that guy's.

A few things to point out. (bolded at top)

When you said Tampa's secondary did you mean their receivers?

ST is HUGE! D-Jax can take any punt return to the house on grass.

Yeah I meant receivers.

Dexter Jackson is aite. Definitely have to see him on grass though. He fell every like 5 steps he took against the Saints. It was pretty comical.

Bruce Banner · 09-10-2008, 10:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by d34ng3l021

Yeah I meant receivers.

Dexter Jackson is aite. Definitely have to see him on grass though. He fell every like 5 steps he took against the Saints. It was pretty comical.

Yeah, we'll see.

iloxygenil · 09-10-2008, 11:02 PM

I think overall the Bucs SHOULD be favored in this game. But I think that if the Falcons are going to take one from the Bucs at home, this is the time we're going to be able to.

Bruce Banner · 09-10-2008, 11:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by iloxygenil

I think overall the Bucs SHOULD be favored in this game. But I think that if the Falcons are going to take one from the Bucs at home, this is the time we're going to be able to.

Are you sober?