Falcons Week In Review
October 21, 2008 by Dan Rakusan
Filed under Falcons, NFL Football
Well, it didn’t take long for the Dirty Birds to get knocked off the divisional perch, as the Carolina Panthers chewed up the New Orleans Saints while the Tampa Bay Buccaneers raised the Jolly Roger (skull and crossbones) in victory over the Seattle Seahawks. But, there are a few positives to take from this past weekend.
1 - Matt Ryan didn’t throw a single incompletion!
2 - Not a single missed tackle by anyone!
3 - No injuries sustained!
4 - A penalty-free weekend!
5 - No missed field goals!
Okay, so it was a bye week, and those things were fairly automatic, but let’s try to stay positive heading into a huge week 8 matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles…
Anyway, the team gets back on the practice field after a few days off, and will have to quickly re-focus if they want to keep pace in the NFC South. A big key will be keeping Matt Ryan protected from the exotic blitz packages the Eagles are known for.
Asked about his offensive line and the great protection they have provided thus far, Falcons’ head coach Mike Smith told AtlantaFalcons.com:
“We feel that this was a good solid group. I know some people have talked differently about them, but this is a group that works very hard together. They have gelled together as a unit. Not only are they run blocking well, but they have done an outstanding job protecting the quarterback in the last two games against two pretty good pass rushing units. They have kept him clean and kept him off the ground.â€
With such good pass protection, Matt Ryan has had enough time to make Roddy White into one of the NFL’s leading receivers in terms of yards.
Other Falcons Notes:
- Matt Ryan won NFL Rookie of the Week honours for games played on Oct 12-13th. He completed 22 of 30 passes for 301 yards and one touchdown against a tough Bears defense in the Falcons’ 22 – 20 win over Chicago.
- The Falcons will get WR Laurent Robinson back for next week’s game against the Eagles. Robinson had been out with a knee injury.
- Also returning to the lineup is DT Jason Jefferson, who had been out with an ankle injury.
- Corner Brent Grimes suffered a mild injury against the Bears, but should be available to play against Philly.
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October 21st, 2008 at 8:06 am
Look forward to seeing how the hometown boy does back in philly. No doubt will be welcomed with open arms (maybe some sarcasm there).
October 21st, 2008 at 8:08 am
I’m sure the Eagles defence will do their best to welcome him with open arms… But that’s hardly a welcome Ryan will be happy with (or used to)…
October 21st, 2008 at 8:15 am
I have yet to see the Falcons this year so it will be interesting to see how they approach this weeks game.
October 21st, 2008 at 8:27 am
I think the Falcons will continue on with the same gameplan that has brought them success. Establish the passing game via the run, early on. Allow Ryan a few deep passes early in the game, to see if he can get some “cheap” points and possibly a lead. They’ll play off the receivers defensively, so McNabb will have plenty of short passing options open, but hopefully nothing deep. Lots of pressure from Abraham and company to create a solid pass-rush. The key will be our anemic red-zone conversion rate, which almost cost us the Chicago game. We need 7’s not 3’s…