Sunday, September 7, 2014

Quick Hits: Falcons 37, Saints 34

By Andrew Hard

The "other" Matty Ice came through twice from distance to lead the Falcons to a rare win over archrival New Orleans.

Who Dat? We Dat.

The first week of the season might have many national pundits rethinking their New Orleans Saints championship prediction. In a game where both defenses were as listless as Rob Ryan after a 13-hurricane bender on Bourbon Street, Matt Bryant came through with two clutch 50+ yard kicks, one at the gun of regulation and one in overtime, as the Falcons upset their longtime rivals 37-34. Falcons fans are feeling good after watching their offense click on all cylinders, with Matt Ryan throwing for a career-high 448 yards and three touchdowns.

We knew going into this game that the Falcons' defense was going to struggle mightily to contain Drew Brees and the Saints offense, and that Matt Ryan and his offense would need to play a near-perfect game to make up for it. What did we learn from this thrilling win after one week of play?

1. Matt Ryan has enough weapons, even without Tony Gonzalez.

Julio Jones and Roddy White, when healthy, are the second-best wide receiver tandem in football in terms of talent. With Matt Ryan getting enough protection and moving in the pocket like he did today, they are capable of being the best in terms of production, even ahead of Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffrey in Chicago. Going into this season, I was afraid that the Falcons would be a three-man team -- Ryan, Julio, and Roddy, with nothing else in terms of offense now that Tony Gonzalez retired.

I can't believe I'm saying this, but -- enter Devin Hester.

Time and time again, Hester proved that his off-season signing wasn't just Thomas Dimitroff thinking that it's still 2009 (see Steven Jackson, Osi Umenyiora, Asante Samuel...). Sure, his value in the return game has been completely diminished since they moved kickoffs up to the 35-yard line, but Hester had his most productive game as a wide receiver in years. Hester outgained Roddy White, hauling in 5 passes for 99 yards, including a crucial 35-yard catch at the sideline on a third-and-8 with the Falcons down 13-0 and looking like they were going to get blown out of their own Dome. Another deep sideline catch near the end of the half set up a much-needed field goal to bring Atlanta within 10.

Levine Toilolo will never have Tony Gonzalez's hands in the middle of the field (hell, no tight end save Jimmy Graham ever will), but he proved useful on the goalline, hauling in a 1-yard touchdown to open the second half. With the Falcons struggling to pound the ball in jumbo packages, Toilolo will have to continue getting open in the end zone if the Falcons are to keep improving on last year's red zone struggles.

2. Steven Jackson's days in Atlanta are numbered.

Jackson finished the day with 52 yards rushing, better than his average from last year but not prolific enough to justify his astronomical price tag. The "other" Steven Jackson in Atlanta has been nothing short of disappointing since he was signed last offseason. In a league where running backs are nothing if not replaceable, I don't care that he's the active leader in career rushing yards. What can you do for me right now?

Luckily, the Falcons have three young running back options that can collectively shoulder the load. Rookie Devonta Freeman earned his reps early in the first half, catching a check-down on the sideline and then barreling for a first down on third-and-long, setting the Falcons up for their first touchdown. Antone Smith and Jacquizz Rodgers each scored on long plays. With Freeman proving to be a decent option in the power run game and the offense already leaning away from the ground-and-pound approach on the goalline, Jackson's skill set is duplicated by younger, cheaper options. If healthy, he will be a nice asset as one of four options in the running back rotation, but to call him the long-term answer as a starter would be misguided.

3. The Falcons won't win this year unless they outscore their opponents.

Thanks, John Madden.

But seriously, if the Falcons have any shot at posting a winning record this year and getting back to the playoffs, they are going to have to win shootouts like this one. To ask this defense to get a crucial stop under any circumstances against an above-average offense right now looks like a long shot. With Sean Weatherspoon out indefinitely, the Falcons have only one player on defense -- Desmond Trufant -- that has any shot of sniffing the Pro Bowl this year.

In a pass-happy league, in a division where you have to play the Saints and Panthers twice a year, the Falcons focused their off-season on improving ... their rush defense. And even that didn't pay off today, as the Saints ran over Tyson Jackson, Paul Soliaiaiaiaiai and company to the tune of 139 yards on the ground. The Falcons had zero pressure on Drew Brees, recording zero sacks and failing to even record a hit on the quarterback.

If there's any sign of life on defense, it's in the secondary. Robert Alford and Desmond Trufant each had crucial deflections on well-placed deep balls, plays that the Falcons have seen Drew Brees beat them on time and again. Robert McClain recorded an interception on a forced throw by Brees that shouldn't have been made. The way the Falcons' offense is playing, the key in the secondary might be just to avoid the long ball and force field goals, something which Atlanta was able to do enough in the first half to prevent the game from getting out of hand.

Next up: Sunday at Cincinnati

A.J. Green could be doing a lot of this next Sunday against Desmond Trufant and the rest of the Falcons' secondary.

The Falcons make their first trip to Paul Brown Stadium in eight years next Sunday to take on the Bengals. The last time Atlanta went to Cincinnati in 2006, Michael Vick threw (!) for three touchdowns in a 29-27 comeback win, which would be promptly followed by a four-game losing streak to put another disappointing Jim Mora-led squad out of contention. This time, Atlanta gets to try its luck against the Junior Ginger Hammer, as Andy Dalton comes off a 301-yard performance in a 23-16 comeback win in Baltimore in Week 1. UGA product A.J. Green had the winning score in that contest, hauling in a 77-yard bomb with just under 5 minutes remaining. It should be fun watching Green and Julio Jones go at it -- perhaps the #2 and #3 receivers in the league in some order.

Falcons' Record: 1-0!

--The Road to 592 is a pipe dream started by a diehard Atlanta fan trying his best to keep up with all the new stadiums (being Atlanta and all). Read up on my unending pursuit here and check out the full list of venues here. For those sick of conference realignment, you can also relish in another pipe dream of mine -- the 28-team SECFollow me on Twitter @andrewhard592.