Falcons Rapid Reports: Jan. 1

[theProf]

Latest Falcons RapidReports

Jan. 01, 2012 9:11 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - Gonzalez content with signing extension

TE Tony Gonzalez on signing a contract extension with Atlanta before Sunday’s game: “It’s not about winning games, it’s about my relationship to the city. It’s just a really comfortable situation. This is a really comfortable match for me. I’m able to be productive in this offense, I love the quarterback and the coaching staff.” Falcons RapidReports

Jan. 01, 2012 9:08 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - Jones makes TD catch running new route

WR Julio Jones on his second touchdown catch: “That was my first time running that route. We talked about it a lot at practice, but I never had an opportunity to run it. [QB] Matt [Ryan] threw a great ball and allowed me to be an athlete to make a play on the ball.” Falcons RapidReports

Jan. 01, 2012 9:06 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - Ryan plans to follow Cowboys-Giants

QB Matt Ryan on whether he’ll be watching the Dallas-New York game Sunday night. The winner of that game will host the Falcons next weekend in the first round of the playoffs: “I’ll be watching, that’s for sure.” Falcons RapidReports

Jan. 01, 2012 9:00 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - Ryan mentions importance of run game establishment

QB Matt Ryan on getting the run game going Sunday against Tampa Bay: “It’s very important. We’re at our best when we can run the football effectively, so it was good for us today. I thought our offensive line did a great job opening up some holes and our backs ran really, really hard.” Falcons RapidReports

Jan. 01, 2012 8:55 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - Falcons considered playing Grimes but passed

Coach Mike Smith on CB Brent Grimes and why he was inactive. Grimes had knee surgery on Dec. 1, missed three games, then played against New Orleans last week: “We made the decision in terms of our inactives and we felt it was in our best interest [for Grimes] not to play in this ballgame.” Falcons RapidReports

Jan. 01, 2012 8:54 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - Smith breaks down what worked for Falcons' running game

Coach Mike Smith on what worked Sunday in the running game against Tampa Bay: “Our offensive line did a very good job. Michael [Turner] was very aggressive, he was downhill. He was decisive and there were some good blocks downfield by our receivers.” Falcons RapidReports

Jan. 01, 2012 8:50 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - Smith learned about No. 5 seed just before halftime

Coach Mike Smith said he learned that Atlanta would secure the No. 5 seed with a win with about three minutes left in the first half: “That was about the time I became aware of it. We made some adjustments in terms of who was going to play and got some different guys in there.” Falcons RapidReports

Jan. 01, 2012 8:49 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - Abraham says Falcons let up in second half

DE John Abraham said Atlanta slowed down in the second half against Tampa Bay: “We let off the gas pedal a little bit in the second half but we made sure to finish the game and get the win. We are confident we have good momentum going into next weekend, regardless of the opponent.” Falcons RapidReports

Jan. 01, 2012 8:43 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - Falcons enter playoffs as NFC's No. 5 seed

Atlanta will begin the playoffs as the No. 5 seed. RB Michael Turner puts zero faith in playoff seeding, especially after Green Bay won the Super Bowl last year as the No. 6 seed: “Seeds don’t matter. It’s been proven over time, seeds do not matter. Everybody is 0-0; win or go home.” Falcons RapidReports

Jan. 01, 2012 8:40 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - RB Turner says Falcons had some swagger

RB Michael Turner said he, the rest of the Falcons running backs and the offensive line had a chip on their shoulders this week in preparations for Tampa Bay: “That was the talk all week, ‘Let’s get some production out of the run game.’ We’d been lagging a little bit.” Falcons RapidReports

Jan. 01, 2012 7:20 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - Walls gets first career interception

CB Darrin Walls, an undrafted rookie that signed as a free agent before training camp, intercepted the first pass of his professional career Sunday against Tampa Bay. Falcons RapidReports

Jan. 01, 2012 6:31 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - White makes it to 100 catches for the season

With his 100th reception of the season Sunday WR Roddy White became the first Falcon in history to catch 100 passes in two different seasons. White did it in back-to-back years. Falcons RapidReports

Jan. 01, 2012 6:14 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - White moves past Mathis as Falcons' all-time leading WR

WR Roddy White became the Falcons all-time leading receiver in the third quarter Sunday. He passed Terance Mathis, who has had the record with 7,349 receiving yards since 2001. Falcons RapidReports

Jan. 01, 2012 5:43 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - Redman in at QB for Ryan, among other subs

QB Chris Redman took over under center for Atlanta late in the second quarter, spelling QB Matt Ryan. TE Tony Gonzalez, RB Michael Turner and WR Roddy White came out one play later to keep them all safe for the playoffs. Falcons RapidReports

Jan. 01, 2012 5:00 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - Turner breaks Riggs' rushing TDs record

RB Michael Turner just broke Gerald Riggs 23-year-old record for rushing touchdowns with the Falcons. Turner now has 49 rushing touchdowns in his time with Atlanta. Falcons RapidReports

Jan. 01, 2012 4:48 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - Ryan breaks Jeff George's passing yards record

QB Matt Ryan set a new franchise record for passing yards in a season Sunday. He broke Jeff George’s 16-year-old record of 4,143 passing yards. Falcons RapidReports

Jan. 01, 2012 4:43 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - Jones sets Falcons rookie TD catch record

With two touchdown catches in the first quarter, rookie WR Julio Jones set a Falcons rookie record (formerly seven touchdown catches) and now has eight receiving touchdowns. Falcons RapidReports

Jan. 01, 2012 4:33 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - Rodgers records first career rushing TD

Rookie RB Jacquizz Rodgers scored the first rushing touchdown of his career Sunday against Tampa Bay. Falcons RapidReports

Jan. 01, 2012 3:28 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - Turner, Jones approach records

RB Michael Turner needs one touchdown to become Atlanta’s all-time leader in rushing touchdowns. RB Gerald Riggs currently holds the record with 48 touchdowns. WR Julio Jones needs one touchdown catch and nine receptions to set Falcons’ franchise records for a rookie. Falcons RapidReports

Jan. 01, 2012 3:25 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - Ryan, White approach records

QB Matt Ryan needs 73 passing yards to break the Falcons single-season passing yards record of 4,143, set by QB Jeff George in 1995. WR Roddy White needs 45 receiving yards to become Atlanta’s all-time leading receiver, breaking the record of 7,349 set by WR Terance Mathis. Falcons RapidReports

Jan. 01, 2012 3:12 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - Adkins making first start at OLB

With LB Stephen Nicholas inactive and LB Mike Peterson on injured reserve, LB Spencer Adkins will start at weakside linebacker. This will be the first start of Adkins’ career. Falcons RapidReports

Jan. 01, 2012 3:10 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - Franks at LCB for Grimes

CB Dominique Franks will start at left cornerback for CB Brent Grimes who’s inactive. Grimes missed Friday’s practice but didn’t speak to the media, and it’s unknown if he had a setback with his surgically-repaired knee. In the nickel package CB Chris Owens will play on the outside and Franks will slide inside to the slot. Falcons RapidReports

Jan. 01, 2012 2:51 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - Falcons inactives

Falcons inactives: CB Brent Grimes, QB John Parker Wilson, LB Stephen Nicholas, C Brett Romberg, OL Kirk Chambers, WR Kerry Meier, and DE Cliff Matthews. Falcons RapidReports

Jan. 01, 2012 1:08 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - Gonzalez signs one-year contract extension

TE Tony Gonzalez signed a one-year contract extension Sunday that will keep him playing football in Atlanta through the 2012 season. Gonzalez has been in the league since 1997 and has been selected to the Pro Bowl 12 times. Falcons RapidReports

[theProf]

Jan. 01, 2012 4:48 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - Ryan breaks Jeff George's passing yards record

QB Matt Ryan set a new franchise record for passing yards in a season Sunday. He broke Jeff George’s 16-year-old record of 4,143 passing yards. Falcons RapidReports

• QB Matt Ryan broke the franchise record for passing yards in a single season when he hit WR Julio Jones for a 48-yard touchdown in the first quarter. Ryan eclipsed QB Jeff George’s club record of 4,143 yards set in 1995. Ryan finished the 2011 season with 4,177 passing yards and is just the second quarterback in franchise history to throw for 4,000 yards in a season.
  

Ryan got off to a quick start completing six of nine pass attempts for 106 yards and two touchdowns in the first quarter. His two touchdown passes also established a new career high of 29 scoring strikes. The fourth-year signal caller threw 28 touchdown passes in 2010.

• Ryan finished the game completing six of nine pass attempts for 106 yards and two touchdowns with a passer rating of 146.3, marking the highest quarterback rating of his career. Ryan’s previous best was 138.4 set on 11/2/08 at Oakland. Earlier this season, he recorded a 137.3 passer rating in the Falcons’ Week 15 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Falcons own a 23-0 record when Ryan has a QB rating of 100-or-better.
  

• Ryan ended the season with a streak of 166 straight pass attempts and 16 quarters without throwing an interception. Last season, he threw a career-best 185 straight passes without an interception, which tied Chris Miller and ranked second in team history. In the final four games of the regular season, he completed 81 of 125 passes (65 percent) for 1,023 yards with 10 touchdowns and no interceptions with a passer rating of 116.9.
  

• This season, Ryan completed 347 of 566 pass attempts (61.3 percent) with a franchise record 4,177 yards and a career-high 29 touchdown passes against 12 interceptions. Ryan’s 92.2 passer rating this season is also a career best.
  

[theProf]

Jan. 01, 2012 6:31 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - White makes it to 100 catches for the season

With his 100th reception of the season Sunday WR Roddy White became the first Falcon in history to catch 100 passes in two different seasons. White did it in back-to-back years. Falcons RapidReports

Jan. 01, 2012 6:14 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - White moves past Mathis as Falcons' all-time leading WR

WR Roddy White became the Falcons all-time leading receiver in the third quarter Sunday. He passed Terance Mathis, who has had the record with 7,349 receiving yards since 2001. Falcons RapidReports

• WR Roddy White became the Falcons all-time leading receiver when he hauled in a 16-yard pass from QB Chris Redman in the second half. White, who now has 7,374 career receiving yards, broke WR Terance Mathis’ franchise record of 7,349 receiving yards set between 1994 and 2001.
  
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• White finished the game with four receptions for 69 yards. This season, he totaled 100 receptions for 1,296 yards and eight touchdowns. He recorded his 100th catch of the season in the third quarter when he caught an 18-yard pass from Redman and became the first receiver in team history to post two seasons with 100-or-more catches. White totaled a franchise record 115 receptions in 2010.
  
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• White kicked off the record setting day when he hauled in a 22-yard catch on a third-down play on the Falcons opening drive. The catch marked White’s 74th first down reception of the season, topping his previous club record of 73 first down catches set in 2010.
  

[theProf]

Jan. 01, 2012 4:43 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - Jones sets Falcons rookie TD catch record

With two touchdown catches in the first quarter, rookie WR Julio Jones set a Falcons rookie record (formerly seven touchdown catches) and now has eight receiving touchdowns. Falcons RapidReports

• Jones caught a pair of touchdowns in the first quarter, giving him eight touchdowns in his first season in the NFL. He set a Falcons rookie record with his 17-yard score on Atlanta’s second offensive possession, breaking the previous high of six touchdown catches shared by WR Alfred Jenkins and WR Ken Mitchell.
  

• Jones finished the game with four catches for a game-high 76 yards. In his last four games, the rookie out of Alabama broke out with 20 catches for 393 yards and six touchdowns. Jones caught a touchdown in each of the last four games, including two scores in Sunday’s win over the Buccaneers and in Atlanta’s Week 14 win over the Panthers.
  

• Despite missing three games because of injury, Jones posted the best season by a Falcons rookie receiver after notching 54 receptions for 959 yards and eight touchdowns. He recorded more yards and touchdowns than any Falcons rookie before him and only Shawn Collins caught more passes in his first season when he pulled down 58 balls in 1989.
  

[dmite]

Thanks for the info, Prof.

[theProf]

Jan. 01, 2012 8:40 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - RB Turner says Falcons had some swagger

RB Michael Turner said he, the rest of the Falcons running backs and the offensive line had a chip on their shoulders this week in preparations for Tampa Bay: “That was the talk all week, ‘Let’s get some production out of the run game.’ We’d been lagging a little bit.” Falcons RapidReports

Jan. 01, 2012 5:00 p.m. - by Knox Bardeen - Turner breaks Riggs' rushing TDs record

RB Michael Turner just broke Gerald Riggs 23-year-old record for rushing touchdowns with the Falcons. Turner now has 49 rushing touchdowns in his time with Atlanta. Falcons RapidReports

• RB Michael Turner punched in a one-yard touchdown on fourth and goal for his 49th touchdown as a Falcon, breaking RB Gerald Riggs franchise record of 48 touchdowns set between 1982 and 1988. The record stood for 23 years and took Turner just four seasons to break.
  

• The one-yard score was Turner’s 10th touchdown of the season. He became the first running back in franchise history to post four consecutive seasons with 10-or-more touchdowns.
  

• Turner broke an 81-yard touchdown run in the second quarter for his second score, giving him 50 career touchdowns as a Falcon. He is the third player in Falcons history to record 50-or-more touchdowns in a career. He joins WR Terance Mathis (57) and WR Andre Rison (56) as the only players to accomplish that feat.
  

• Turner’s 50 touchdowns since 2008 are the second most in the NFL during that time span. Only Minnesota’s Adrian Peterson has found the endzone more times, notching 52 rushing TDs.
  

• Turner finished the game with a season-high 172 yards on 17 carries with two touchdown and averaged 10.1 yards per carry. His 172-yard performance was the ninth-best in team history and his fifth game with 150-or-more rushing yards. He ends the season with 1,340 yards and 10 touchdowns, marking his second consecutive 1,300-yard campaign and the fourth straight year he’s scored 10-or-more touchdowns.
  

• Turner’s 172 yards on the ground marked his 25th 100-yard game as a Falcon, tying Gerald Riggs franchise record for 100-yard games. Riggs notched 25 100-yard games between 1982 and 1988. Turner posted six 100-yard games this season.
  

[dmo_dlo]

Jones makes TD catch running new route WR Julio Jones on his second touchdown catch: “That was my first time running that route. We talked about it a lot at practice, but I never had an opportunity to run it. [QB] Matt [Ryan] threw a great ball and allowed me to be an athlete to make a play on the ball.”

This is weird! So we threw a high risk pass that we had never practiced?

[theProf]

One more performance to note: Curtis Lofton had a pro-bowl type season. Luckily for the Falcons he was not voted to the pro-bowl, or Atlanta might have to pay a lot more to resign him.

• Lofton finished game with 14 tackles (eight solo), one tackle for loss and one interception. The fourth-year middle linebacker from Oklahoma finished the season with 167 total tackles (101 solo).