Peyton Posted November 25, 2009 Share Posted November 25, 2009 After 5 games, the Falcons were 4-1 and most fans were pretty happy with where things were going, both with the offense and with the defense. Five games later, the Falcons are 5-5 and some folks are looking for where it all went wrong. People want to blame Matt Ryan, people blame Mike Mularkey, people blame injuries, and some people blame the defense.I think that everyone realizes that playing 4 of the last 5 games on the road is key as well, it's just that some people expected the Falcons to win 2 or more of those games. But stricly from an offensive and defensive perspective, I was interested in giving it a look to see if I could figure out exactly where the problem lies.Falcons points scored first 5 weeks - 123Falcons points scored next 5 weeks - 129Falcons points allowed first 5 weeks - 77Falcons points allowed next 5 weeks - 151Falcons offensive yards gained first 5 weeks - 1639Falcons offensive yards gained next 5 weeks - 1798Falcons defensive yards allowed first 5 weeks - 1796Falcons defensive yards allowed next 5 weeks - 1999Falcons offensive TDs scored first 5 weeks - 16Falcons offensive TDs scored next 5 weeks - 14Falcons defensive TDs allowed first 5 weeks - 8Falcons defensive TDs allowed next 5 weeks - 17Falcons turnovers first 5 weeks - 7Falcons turnovers next 5 weeks - 10Falcons turnovers forced first 5 weeks - 12Falcons turnovers forced next 5 weeks - 7So after looking this over, I think I've determined where the Falcons are regressing, and it's not on the offensive side of the ball. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duncja Posted November 25, 2009 Share Posted November 25, 2009 Yep. The defense played about as well as they could I think the first 5 weeks. From the get-go, I thought this was gonna be a season where our offense was going to have to win some shoot-outs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peyton Posted November 25, 2009 Author Share Posted November 25, 2009 Yep. The defense played about as well as they could I think the first 5 weeks. From the get-go, I thought this was gonna be a season where our offense was going to have to win some shoot-outs.Yeah, the first 5 games were a bit of a tease. I will acknowledge that the offense isn't as good as many people thought they would be, but not having HD and Norwood available have hurt a lot. Those guys were the dangerous players that other teams wouldn't be able to account for.Still, the offense is on pace to break the franchise record for offensive TDs and has been consistant all year. It's the defensive effort that has fallen off dramatically as the year has progressed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Top Flight Posted November 25, 2009 Share Posted November 25, 2009 we get early leads on the road then our defense gets "soft" and our offensive playcalling gets "soft" instead of being aggressive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmite Posted November 25, 2009 Share Posted November 25, 2009 Our Bend but don't Break defense is breaking the last 5 games. We're not holding teams to 3 points like we were early in the year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bring It Posted November 25, 2009 Share Posted November 25, 2009 Where are the Falcons coming up short ??Answer :On the scoreboard. :unsure: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gritzblitz 2.0 Posted November 25, 2009 Share Posted November 25, 2009 There's no arguement that the defense isn't holding up their end.Losing Brian Williams was huge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tandy Posted November 25, 2009 Share Posted November 25, 2009 Brian Williams has been out the last 5 games and now our secondary is being torched. He helped a lot with the turnover ratio - from intercepting - fumble recovery - punt blocking and stopping TD's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FalconJim Posted November 25, 2009 Share Posted November 25, 2009 (edited) Peyton, nice post! Stats usually don't lie....but I think we have to take into consideration the quality of teams we've played in the last 5 or 6 games (4 coming off byes), the injuries we've had to deal with, and a kicker who's "gone south" on us (no pun intended), and responsible for at least 2 losses (we'd be 7 and 3, now).And yes, our "D" has had some bad games against some good teams, especially on the road. But they're young, and I must say I like their efforts, for the most part...I see NO lack of hustle! Still, we need to be looking to draft some good corners and safeties during the off-season, that's for sure....not to mention somebody who can put some pressure on a quarterback!!!All in all, I'm rather optimistic about these last 6 games. We'll probably have "The Burner" and Norwood back after the Tampa game for sure, along with some other depth players who've been "nicked up". And with 4 out of the next 6 games at home (where we're 4 and 0), I like our chances to go 4 and 2, or 5 and 1 during that stretch, and finishing the season with 9 or 10 wins. Now, whether that's good enough to make the playoffs, is anybody's guess right now. But, with 10 teams with only 3 wins, the field has been narrowed, considerably.GO, YOU DIRTY BIRDS!!!FalconJim. Edited November 25, 2009 by FalconJim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sdogg Posted November 25, 2009 Share Posted November 25, 2009 Before the season started, I thought the offense would be a very explosive and high scoring offense. I thought it would clearly be in the top echelon of most offensive stats. I thought the defense would struggle big time for the first half, but gradually improve as the season went on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rounz Posted November 25, 2009 Share Posted November 25, 2009 After 5 games, the Falcons were 4-1 and most fans were pretty happy with where things were going, both with the offense and with the defense. Five games later, the Falcons are 5-5 and some folks are looking for where it all went wrong. People want to blame Matt Ryan, people blame Mike Mularkey, people blame injuries, and some people blame the defense.I think that everyone realizes that playing 4 of the last 5 games on the road is key as well, it's just that some people expected the Falcons to win 2 or more of those games. But stricly from an offensive and defensive perspective, I was interested in giving it a look to see if I could figure out exactly where the problem lies.Falcons points scored first 5 weeks - 123Falcons points scored next 5 weeks - 129Falcons points allowed first 5 weeks - 77Falcons points allowed next 5 weeks - 151Falcons offensive yards gained first 5 weeks - 1639Falcons offensive yards gained next 5 weeks - 1798Falcons defensive yards allowed first 5 weeks - 1796Falcons defensive yards allowed next 5 weeks - 1999Falcons offensive TDs scored first 5 weeks - 16Falcons offensive TDs scored next 5 weeks - 14Falcons defensive TDs allowed first 5 weeks - 8Falcons defensive TDs allowed next 5 weeks - 17Falcons turnovers first 5 weeks - 7Falcons turnovers next 5 weeks - 10Falcons turnovers forced first 5 weeks - 12Falcons turnovers forced next 5 weeks - 7So after looking this over, I think I've determined where the Falcons are regressing, and it's not on the offensive side of the ball.Time of possession?And how many 3-and-outs? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peyton Posted November 25, 2009 Author Share Posted November 25, 2009 Time of possession?And how many 3-and-outs?Time of possession would take a while, but I'll get the 3 and outs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rounz Posted November 25, 2009 Share Posted November 25, 2009 Time of possession would take a while, but I'll get the 3 and outs.Thanks, Peyton. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flip Wilson Posted November 25, 2009 Share Posted November 25, 2009 I'm not in disagreement. I think the defense is most of the problem. However, if you look at it on a week by week basis you will get a better picture. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FalconFanSince1970 Posted November 25, 2009 Share Posted November 25, 2009 (edited) After 5 games, the Falcons were 4-1 and most fans were pretty happy with where things were going, both with the offense and with the defense. Five games later, the Falcons are 5-5 and some folks are looking for where it all went wrong. People want to blame Matt Ryan, people blame Mike Mularkey, people blame injuries, and some people blame the defense.I think that everyone realizes that playing 4 of the last 5 games on the road is key as well, it's just that some people expected the Falcons to win 2 or more of those games. But stricly from an offensive and defensive perspective, I was interested in giving it a look to see if I could figure out exactly where the problem lies.Falcons points scored first 5 weeks - 123Falcons points scored next 5 weeks - 129Falcons points allowed first 5 weeks - 77Falcons points allowed next 5 weeks - 151Falcons offensive yards gained first 5 weeks - 1639Falcons offensive yards gained next 5 weeks - 1798Falcons defensive yards allowed first 5 weeks - 1796Falcons defensive yards allowed next 5 weeks - 1999Falcons offensive TDs scored first 5 weeks - 16Falcons offensive TDs scored next 5 weeks - 14Falcons defensive TDs allowed first 5 weeks - 8Falcons defensive TDs allowed next 5 weeks - 17Falcons turnovers first 5 weeks - 7Falcons turnovers next 5 weeks - 10Falcons turnovers forced first 5 weeks - 12Falcons turnovers forced next 5 weeks - 7So after looking this over, I think I've determined where the Falcons are regressing, and it's not on the offensive side of the ball.Time of possession?And how many 3-and-outs?For real. Dude is painting a half baked story and trying to prove that the defense is what cost us. I contend that the offense has been more of a problem. Where are the three and outs, the picks, sniped hooked kicks, fumbles, drops, punt return for TD and turnovers with short fields in the last four or five games? I'm jus askin bro. When we were winning everybody was surprised by the defense and shocked that the offense was so inept. You aren't telling the whole story here. Edited November 25, 2009 by FalconFanSince1970 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peyton Posted November 25, 2009 Author Share Posted November 25, 2009 Thanks, Peyton.offensive 3 and outs first 5 games - 14offensive 3 and outs last 5 games - 11defensive 3 and outs first 5 games - 13defensive 3 and outs last 5 games - 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JKH5785 Posted November 25, 2009 Share Posted November 25, 2009 Other than the obvious on defense. I still say that WR is the problem, not spreading the field, not getting seperation Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rounz Posted November 25, 2009 Share Posted November 25, 2009 offensive 3 and outs first 5 games - 14offensive 3 and outs last 5 games - 11defensive 3 and outs first 5 games - 13defensive 3 and outs last 5 games - 9OK, that helps.I would have thought that the O had more 3-and-outs the last 5 games. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peyton Posted November 25, 2009 Author Share Posted November 25, 2009 For real. Dude is painting a half baked story and trying to prove that the defense is what cost us. I contend that the offense has been more of a problem. Where are the three and outs, the picks, sniped hooked kicks, fumbles, drops, punt return for TD and turnovers with short fields in the last four or five games? I'm jus askin bro. When we were winning everybody was surprised by the defense and shocked that the offense was so inept. You aren't telling the whole story here.Let me ask you something dude about the inept offense. Are you aware that the Falcons are on pace to score 48 offensive TDs and the franchise record is 46? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rounz Posted November 25, 2009 Share Posted November 25, 2009 Now, fumbles/turnovers lost?I'm not putting this all on you Peyton, I can look some stuff up if you want.I just think this is a good thread to look at a true picture of what has really happened to the team. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
norbendon Posted November 25, 2009 Share Posted November 25, 2009 I don't think you can point to just one thing. I agree that the defense has fallen off a good bit and that it's a sure contributor. Our schedule is also a part of the problem. The last five games has been one of the most brutal stretches in scheduling that I've ever seen in my life (all kinds of road games and games against teams coming off a bye). Injuries have played their role (losing Norwood and Turner have certainly hurt). Matt Ryan struggled with turnovers for most of that stretch. We gave up an uncharacteristic punt return for a touchdown against Dallas that sealed that loss for us. Our field goal kicking has been horrible. There are plenty more issues that could be brought up. The point is, that there are several reasons as to why this team has struggled over the past five weeks. The flaw in many people's reasoning is that they look for one answer (or scapegoat) that they hope will fix everything when the truth is that there are several key factors that need to be addressed. This is a TEAM game. You win as a team. You lose as a team. As a team they need to fix a host of issues and I think they will.We have a much more favorable stretch of games coming up for us. We will be getting Norwood and Turner back soon. Matt Ryan looked like he got it together and gained some confidence in the second half last week against the Giants. Let's hope that our coaching staff can use smoke and mirrors with our defense for the remainder of the season like they did last year to help us get by. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peyton Posted November 25, 2009 Author Share Posted November 25, 2009 OK, that helps.I would have thought that the O had more 3-and-outs the last 5 games.I'm not counting the turnovers that happen in the first 3 plays for either the offense or the defense, I've already counted those under turnovers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peyton Posted November 25, 2009 Author Share Posted November 25, 2009 I don't think you can point to just one thing. I agree that the defense has fallen off a good bit and that it's a sure contributor. Our schedule is also a part of the problem. The last five games has been one of the most brutal stretches in scheduling that I've ever seen in my life (all kinds of road games and games against teams coming off a bye). Injuries have played their role (losing Norwood and Turner have certainly hurt). Matt Ryan struggled with turnovers for most of that stretch. We gave up an uncharacteristic punt return for a touchdown against Dallas that sealed that loss for us. Our field goal kicking has been horrible. There are plenty more issues that could be brought up. The point is, that there are several reasons as to why this team has struggled over the past five weeks. The flaw in many people's reasoning is that they look for one answer (or scapegoat) that they hope will fix everything when the truth is that there are several key factors that need to be addressed. This is a TEAM game. You win as a team. You lose as a team. As a team they need to fix a host of issues and I think they will.We have a much more favorable stretch of games coming up for us. We will be getting Norwood and Turner back soon. Matt Ryan looked like he got it together and gained some confidence in the second half last week against the Giants. Let's hope that our coaching staff can use smoke and mirrors with our defense for the remainder of the season like they did last year to help us get by.The schedule has gotten tougher, that is a good point. The offensive performance has remained fairly consistent with the schedule getting tougher though, the defense has dropped off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FalconFanSince1970 Posted November 25, 2009 Share Posted November 25, 2009 Now, fumbles/turnovers lost?I'm not putting this all on you Peyton, I can look some stuff up if you want.I just think this is a good thread to look at a true picture of what has really happened to the team.Dude has my hair standing up on the back my neck. I'm getting ready to check the real story. Give me a couple hours. I'll try to paint the real picture. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peyton Posted November 25, 2009 Author Share Posted November 25, 2009 Now, fumbles/turnovers lost?I'm not putting this all on you Peyton, I can look some stuff up if you want.I just think this is a good thread to look at a true picture of what has really happened to the team.I included the turnovers on the original post, but here it isoffensive first 5 games - 7offensive next 5 games - 10defensive first 5 games - 12defensive next 5 games - 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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