bossFALCON™ Posted December 25, 2016 Share Posted December 25, 2016 It’s time to take Matt Ryan and the Falcons seriously as Super Bowl contenders Dieter KurtenbachDec 24, 2016 at 9:21p ET They’ve been here all season. No surges, no real lulls, just solid play for 16 straight weeks. You might not have noticed that the Atlanta Falcons are one of the best teams in football — they’re not playing in prime time and they’re not talked about all that frequently amid the constant discussion of Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers and the Dallas Cowboys, but the Falcons are right there, with 10 wins, an NFC South division title, and a great shot at a first-round bye. In an NFC where the Cowboys have looked shaky as of late, and no one knows what to make of the Seahawks or Giants (or Lions or Packers), the Falcons have been one of the most consistent teams in football, and they’ve become more well-rounded as the season has progressed. Atlanta has now won its past three games and four out of its past five. The Falcons are currently the No. 2 seed in the NFC playoffs with one game against New Orleans remaining. The Falcons have been Super Bowl contenders all season, for those who cared to look, but now the entire nation has to look their way. While they’re looking that way, they might notice that Matt Ryan is having one of the best quarterbacking seasons in NFL history. Yes, you read that right. There are hundreds of different ways to measure a quarterback’s effectiveness, but in a league where dink-and-dunk is not seen as a negative characteristic, Ryan has been throwing the ball downfield with some of the best the league has ever seen. Going into Saturday’s game against the Panthers, Ryan was averaging 9.32 yards per pass attempt this season, the fourth-best mark in the post-merger NFL. It helps to have Julio Jones and a strong corps of receivers, an excellent (and underrated) offensive line, and a solid run game, but Ryan has taken his game to the next level this year and he’s deserving of every MVP vote he’ll get, and more. He’s not the only Falcon to take his game to the next level this year — Vic Beasley, the Falcons first-round draft pick in 2015, has been strong in his sophomore campaign after what some believed was a bust of a rookie year. Beasley has 14.5 sacks on the year — best in the NFL. His ability to get to the quarterback this year has been critical to the Falcons’ defensive success. Atlanta has one of the best secondaries in the NFL and might have the best 1-2 punch at safety in the league in Ricardo Allen and Keanu Neal, and the pressure that Beasley has created has freed them up to terrorize opposing quarterbacks and disrupt the run game. You can ask Cam Newton how much he enjoys playing the Falcons’ defense. Saturday he completed only 18 of 43 passes, throwing for 4.1 yards per attempt and throwing two interceptions. The Falcons’ defense has been better in recent weeks — Saturday was a high-water mark for the season — but it doesn’t need to be a top-half unit. Atlanta is the only team in the NFL that is averaging more than 30 points per game and it has been held under 24 points only twice this season. One of those games was against the Eagles — every team is entitled to a week off, even if the bye was looming — and the other was when the Falcons went to Mile High and beat the Broncos and arguably the league’s best D. They’re not just feasting on bad defenses, either. They put up 43 on the Buccaneers in Week 9, 39 on the Cardinals in Week 12, and 42 on the Rams in Week 14. The Falcons are going to score, and now they’re starting to stop teams, too. The signs have been there all along — Atlanta isn’t a perfect team, but it’s a good one. And in an NFL that’s lacking a true juggernaut, that’s good enough to consider the Falcons serious Super Bowl contenders. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Factz Posted December 25, 2016 Share Posted December 25, 2016 Quote Atlanta has one of the best secondaries in the NFL and might have the best 1-2 punch at safety in the league in Ricardo Allen and Keanu Neal Based on what people say on this board, you'd think the opposite, especially regarding Rico Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rise Posted December 25, 2016 Share Posted December 25, 2016 Yes. It is... Just as good as anyone else Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A Dog Named Brian Posted December 25, 2016 Share Posted December 25, 2016 One game at a time. Let's make some noise in the post season Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nomak Posted December 25, 2016 Share Posted December 25, 2016 3 minutes ago, A Dog Named Brian said: One game at a time. Let's make some noise in the post season It's ok to have a little fun...we all know it's one game at a time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Borat Posted December 25, 2016 Share Posted December 25, 2016 17 minutes ago, Factz said: Based on what people say on this board, you'd think the opposite, especially regarding Rico Neal makes some big hits, but as a duo, they're average at best. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChickenBiscuit Posted December 25, 2016 Share Posted December 25, 2016 3 minutes ago, Borat said: Neal makes some big hits, but as a duo, they're average at best. Yeah, he was really reaching with that one. Neal is one of the best in run-support, he's an average cover safety and Rico is just average across the board. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
youngbloodz Posted December 25, 2016 Share Posted December 25, 2016 Atl doesn't have the best safety combo in the league. That is just silly IMO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Mazetti Posted December 25, 2016 Share Posted December 25, 2016 43 minutes ago, bossFALCON™ said: The Falcons have been Super Bowl contenders all season, for those who cared to look, but now the entire nation has to look their way. Dieter Kurtenbach 43 minutes ago, bossFALCON™ said: There are hundreds of different ways to measure a quarterback’s effectiveness, but in a league where dink-and-dunk is not seen as a negative characteristic, Ryan has been throwing the ball downfield with some of the best the league has ever seen. Dieter Kurtenbach 44 minutes ago, bossFALCON™ said: Dieter Kurtenbach said it. While they’re looking that way, they might notice that Matt Ryan is having one of the best quarterbacking seasons in NFL history. Yes, you read that right. Dieter Kurtenbach 46 minutes ago, bossFALCON™ said: The Falcons are going to score, and now they’re starting to stop teams, too. Wow. Where can I read more from this German, who knows football? ESPN, FOX. NFL Network? Naw. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndrewsFrancisBart Posted December 25, 2016 Share Posted December 25, 2016 Ok, ok, let's not get caught up in the one questionable claim in the article...he acknowledged us as Super Bowl contenders, and Matt Ryan's HISTORICALLY great season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faithful Falcon Posted December 25, 2016 Share Posted December 25, 2016 It gets me when people say that the Cowboys have not looked great as of late. The Cowboys have struggled most of the season. No signs of domination at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Francis York Morgan Posted December 25, 2016 Share Posted December 25, 2016 Lol that safety comment was wayyyyy off. Best defensive rookie tandem of Debo and Neal, up with Bosa and Jatavis Brown? Sure. Best safety tandem? HelI no. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Osiruz Posted December 25, 2016 Share Posted December 25, 2016 41 minutes ago, ChickenBiscuit said: Yeah, he was really reaching with that one. Neal is one of the best in run-support, he's an average cover safety and Rico is just average across the board. Rico is below average imo. Neal is very good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChickenBiscuit Posted December 25, 2016 Share Posted December 25, 2016 2 minutes ago, osiruz said: Rico is below average imo. Neal is very good. Yeah I said average to save face, I can't recall Rico ever making a single impact play unless it was a pick that was tipped into his hands. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drew4719 Posted December 25, 2016 Share Posted December 25, 2016 Wait, I thought this guy was in the category of "Falcon hater" just a few weeks ago? What changed? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raysnill1 Posted December 25, 2016 Share Posted December 25, 2016 1 hour ago, Factz said: Based on what people say on this board, you'd think the opposite, especially regarding Rico that's simply not because of Rico, if anything it means Neal is double bad a$$ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Osiruz Posted December 25, 2016 Share Posted December 25, 2016 18 minutes ago, ChickenBiscuit said: Yeah I said average to save face, I can't recall Rico ever making a single impact play unless it was a pick that was tipped into his hands. Dropped one today, hit him in the numbers. He's kind of smallish too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gazoo Posted December 25, 2016 Share Posted December 25, 2016 1 hour ago, ChickenBiscuit said: Yeah, he was really reaching with that one. Neal is one of the best in run-support, he's an average cover safety and Rico is just average across the board. Neal did a heck of a job covering Olsen today. 6 Catches and no TDs is not a good game for Olsen. i think Neal has dramatically improved in coverage as of late Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.