At the end of the half, teams must be very careful about giving away points. Monday night was a prime example. The Falcons allowed the Saints to score right before the half to make it 21-14. Then they get the ball back with three timeouts and the ball at their own 33-yard line. The No. 1 objective here is to score points but also to make sure you don’t give the ball back to the Saints so they have a chance to extend their lead. The fact the Falcons had three timeouts left allowed them to run or pass, which would help them reduce the game and keep the Saints off balance. If the Falcons could score a touchdown or even kick a field goal with no time left, that would be great. But they do not want the Saints to get the ball back or make a mistake to make it a 10-to-14 point halftime lead. Here’s what happened:
ATL 14 NO 21, 6 plays, 80 yards, 1:41 drive, 13:55 elapsed
T.Morstead kicks 70 yards from NO 30 to ATL 0. E.Weems to ATL 33 for 33 yards (P.Prioleau).
Atlanta Falcons at 1:05, (1st play from scrimmage 1:00)
1-10-ATL 33 (1:00) (Shotgun) M.Ryan pass short left to V.Haynes to ATL 39 for 6 yards (T.Porter). Pass -3, Catch 9
Timeout #1 by ATL at 00:52.
2-4-ATL 39 (:52) (Shotgun) M.Ryan pass short right intended for R.White INTERCEPTED by J.Greer at ATL 48. J.Greer for 48 yards, TOUCHDOWN.
New Orleans Saints at 0:42
J.Carney extra point is GOOD, Center-J.Kyle, Holder-M.Brunell.
ATL 14 NO 28, 0 plays, 48 yards, 0:00 drive , 14:18 elapsed
Clearly, the Falcons didn’t want to make a mistake, but the reality here was that they needed to be more patient. Being careful is not being conservative — it’s just being smart. The Falcons should have gotten one first down, then started being aggressive. Get the clock to work in your favor before you become overly aggressive. The second-down call is not the problem; the first-down call is what concerns me. Have a run called to start the two-minute drill and have another played called right away so you don’t burn a timeout. This allows you to keep the clock moving in your favor. Getting the clock working in your favor is a huge requirement for the two-minute end of the half situation.
I understand the Saints have the ball to start the second half and the Falcons are trying to keep pace. However, they cannot fall into the trap of trying to keep up with the Saints offensively. No one can. Play your game, manage it the right way and go into halftime down seven at the most. Then make the right adjustments.
Giving up that score forced the Falcons to have to gain two possessions to stay even, and had they just gone into the half with a more conservative approach, they might have been in better shape to start the half. It’s not the second-down call or the interception I’m second guessing -- that stuff happens in the NFL. But the approach in the two-minute really bothers me. Know your opponent, know the game is a four-quarter game and do not give away points.
Rex Ryan: experience needed
I love Rex Ryan’s cocky attitude and his leadership ability, but he really needs to have someone in his ear on game day to advise him with game management issues. He is one step late and too often does nothing when he should be proactive -- which is ironic because he’s very proactive on defense but passive with his approach to game management.
Someone once told me that they don’t expect a new coach to have the experience of managing a game because it takes game experience to really understand what needs to be done. So if I were Ryan, I would assign someone in the building to go over every play-by-play each week and quiz me on what I would do in each instance. He needs reps, but getting reps on Sunday is not the best time or place to become prepared. Preparing for game management situations is no different than preparing for third-down calls. It takes time and emphasis.
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Blame the QB who threw it, or just credit Vilma's amazing leap and his teammate's getting it and going the distance.
Atlanta's protection broke down some key times, Sam Baker had a night of it and when he was hurt last year the same kind of issues emerged on their scheme. Protection issues ended up changing some of their progressions and reads when help was kept in. Tony G was bracketed and it limited his presence off the line, other times he faced two defenders in space as well, Williams took away Ryan's comfort zone to their best player.
Atlanta got all over them early but inopportune moments had flags or momentum swings occur in ways that combined to keep the Saints in it when they were on the ropes.
The Falcons run game was scorching them early, and you must run well against the Saints because their line has vaunted pass rush ability. Credit New Orleans in staying with their running by committee, and making great use of Shockey and other ends in their plans. The Falcons sometimes let their guard down when Shockey went out and found out that the Saints worked others into the plan there so the playbook doesn't shrink when the star is out at times. They did the same thing for Reggie Bush and have made it where anyone coming in can challenge your team at the time their number is called. That is the result of reps.
Sounds like Ryan is a chip off the old block. Buddy knew defense and how to motivate, but was completely clueless when it came to game management. He always exposed when it came playoff time.
What Lombardi said about Rex Ryan is exactly why NFL coaches should regularly be playing the Madden videogame. That sounds silly but you can gain lots of reps in game management situations by playing the game
Mike, I wonder if you have archive access that would allow you to check on this reference another fan made from another web site. It would explain a lot about Rex Ryan's psychology:
"Buddy was reminiscing about a childhood ritual where his father would take his young sons out to the backyard and fight them one by one until, bruised and bloody, they said "uncle." And the saddest day of Buddy's life was when he was finally big enough that he ended up beating his dad to a pulp instead. Mind you, these were happy reminiscences of the father who taught him to be tough. Anyway, that's the dad Rex grew up with."
Lombardi, I am surprised you did not discuss Ryan's bizarre logic in going for extra points, three times in a ROW. If he had settled for kicks in lieu, he would have had three extra points and need only a FG to tie for overtime.
@ Murder
you're mixing up the two non-Hail-Mary picks. Vilma did NOT tip the one before the half; he tipped the one in the red zone when the falcons were down 28-24 and had 2nd and 9 at the NO 10 yard line in the 2nd half. Vilma DID have illegal contact (full two-arm push on Roddy pushing him off his route and allowing Greer to jump in front) on the pick-six Lombardi is talking about. But after the no-call last week against Jenkins of the 'Boys against Roddy (clear pass interference on a slant, next play Ryan throws a pick), us Falcons fans are getting used to no-calls on our only viable wideout.
you are correct that Baker had a bad night. but the real culprit was Mularkey's play calling. Gonzalez going out from the left end in a max protect on Porter's INT was 100% predictable (I was on the phone with another fan and called the play), especially as Turner had just ripped off a run right before that and their D-line was gassed. Even a naked bootleg by Ryan to his right (common call by Mularkey) would have been better, because there's no chance he can't see the underneath defender in the flat (as Vilma was). Kudos to Gregg Williams for his use of Vilma on both Gonzalez and the underneath routes--that was the best I've ever seen Vilma look in coverage, period.
Mike,
One comment. I really try to enjoy these columns but they are hard for a non-expert to follow. Even a fairly knowledgable one as I consider myself.
It would make it much easier if you would highlight what you consider mistakes in red. This would make the whole thing much easier to follow IMO>
Falcon's fan's complaining about non-calls, that's pretty funny. Bet you were pretty quiet when Roddy White got away with that two handed shove of the CB for his TD bomb.
Stop whining, your team played well, your young QB just made a couple of critical mistakes that were the difference.
Blame Smith and Mularkey? The Falcons are 4-3 with all three losses coming on the road, Smith and Mularkey are going to give the Falcons their first back to back winning season since forever.
I like Ryan (who wouldn't after The Secret) but I am concerned about his game management skills, and the fact he acts like too much of a DC instead of HC.
I'd lilke to see him turn over the defensive play calling to Pettine and pay more attention the entire team.
Actually, Sean Payton deserves some criticism for the near debacle at the end of the game. All he had to do was have Brees take a knee, instead he tried to run the ball giving the Falcons a chance of forcing a fumble. I realize that Brees could not have ran the clock out, but he could have ran it down to about 20-30 seconds remaining with an 11 point lead. Instead he chose to run the ball- it wasn't as though there were good odds that the runner would have gotten a first down- so you may as well have the QB take a knee. Is a one yard gain worth the risk of exposing a back to a possible fumble ?
Vilma did NOT tip the one before the half; he tipped the one in the red zone when the falcons were down 28-24 and had 2nd and 9 at the NO 10 yard line in the 2nd half.
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Nov 03, 2009
05:41 PM
Thanks, Mike.
Who do you blame for the Falcon's situation? Mularkey or Smith.