OK Homers - How Good Are the Falcons? - Fess Up (1 Viewer)

Why should a discussion of the quality of our strongest divisional opponent go BTL? This seems like a more sensible topic than most on the SSF. And we don't get to say that about Swimmer's threads very often.

No offense, Swimmer.

Well, I've noticed that every Falcons thread over the past week has made it BTL, so I made the assumption that this one is sure to follow. I could be wrong, though. :shrug:
 
How many legitimate pro bowlers can you pick out of that team? Not many.

More important than pro bowlers are "threats," for lack of a better term. The Falcons have consistent threats at every position. Roddy White is a deep threat who will run a 5 and out for 2 quarters and then hit a double move and house it (with a little offensive PI....).

Gonzalez is a threat on short yardage situations. He is 6'5". If you single cover him on 3rd and 5, they will go to him every time.

Turner is a threat to get 5-10 yards every time he touches the ball. He can run over people, and because of Roddy White and Tony G, you can't just put 8 guys in the box against him.

Matt Ryan is a smart QB. He will take the short stuff, and he will not beat himself. In that sense, he is like the rest of that team through 11 games - they do not make costly mistakes; teams make costly mistakes against them. Half of winning a game is not shooting yourself in the foot. If you want proof, look no further than the 3 games the Saints have lost. 4 defensive TDs between AZ and CLE, and a missed chip shot FG in overtime against ATL - that is shooting yourself in the foot.

On top of all that, their defense is playing well. They don't miss tackles. They are not a top unit, but you do not see them making huge mistakes. They make you take the ball down the field one play at a time, and seem to avoid the big play well.

All that being said, the Falcons are not flashy. Aaron Rodgers is a better QB, than Ryan. There are better TE's thn Gonzalez, and a lot of elite WRs probably would not want to play the role of glorified possession receiver that White often plays. But Flash does NOT win games, solid team effort does, and that is what they have been bringing. In that sense, they are like the Saints of 2009 who had a group of mostly unknown WRs, a hard charging UDFA RB, and a QB who had never been considered top 3 until last season.

It pains me to admit all of that, but being delusional about it is not going to help anything. Not to mention, as good as the Falcons are, the Saints can obviously beat them, they just need to avoid the mistakes they have made thus far.
 
Why should a discussion of the quality of our strongest divisional opponent go BTL? This seems like a more sensible topic than most on the SSF. And we don't get to say that about Swimmer's threads very often.

No offense, Swimmer.

Probably because the title is antagonizing. It reeks of a false dichotomy since either you 'admit' that the Falcons are a good team or you are a homer. It's almost as if he's trolling for controversy.

Perhaps I'm wrong about Swimmer. He could be a soul whose intentions are good, but oh Lord I don't think I've misunderstood.

No offense, Swimmer. :hihi:
 
You don't have to answer, just think about it.

Honestly. If this was the Saints we were talking about, is there no chance you would respond with something to the effect of "No matter what, this team just finds a way to win"?

Because if the Falcons are so overrated, when do they start losing? We're running out of weeks here.

It doesn't make anyone on this board less of a Saints fan to admit that the Falcons are not just good, they're damn good.

Swimmer, I take exception to your idea that we should somehow sympathize with Falcons fans. That is an incorrect statement. All the rest, yes. Not that.

It's not the Saints, so that's irrelevant.

Nothing I said is untrue. Whether they've found a way to win in close games up to this point or not, if you keep playing close games history says you will get bit.
 
People said the same thing about the Saints last year and we did. Just saying....

But that was just stupidity. We were dominant most of the year.

If the Falcons continue to play like they are, letting bad and good teams stay within striking distance well into fourth quarter, and still somehow make it to the superbowl I will be in awe.
 
The problem I have with them, is that they don't appear to have a single aspect of their game that they're dominant in.

i'd say they are dominant in third down conversion % (2nd in the league) and, coupled with their emphasis on running the football, causing them to dominate time of possession (3rd in the league). Their strength lies in that they are extremely well balanced on offense, between the running game (turner+snelling are both huge threats) and the passing game (even if it is essentially two dimensional with roddy/tony gonzalez). I also respect Mike Smith as a coach; he seems to really understand his team and knows when to take risks (going for it on 4th down) similar to payton. The running game is certainly the foundation, it is an everpresent threat for the defense to account for and keeps them out of third and long situations, making ryan's job relatively easy and allowing him to essentially play game manager the majority of the time (although he has proved to be capable of more in the clutch this year). Their defense is very strong in the running game, enhancing their TOP dominance. However, they can be had in the air, and as a result are dependant on controlling the clock and keeping the game short. Saints homerism aside, they are unfortunately a very good team, having recently beat (at least on the scoreboard) the packers and the ravens and are very tough to stop at home. For a pro bowler count, id have to say Abraham, Lofton, White, Gonzalez, and Turner are the obvious ones, and I consider Babineaux, Mugheli (altho sort of irrelevant as he is a fullback) and Ryan to be pro bowl caliber players, and certainly Matt Bryant this year. Unfortunately their schedule is very easy the rest of the way and they havent shown any tendancy to shoot themselves in the foot and, as a resultm they are likely to gain home field. It will certainly be a challenge to knock them out on thier own turf and one our players should embrace. The rivalry is the best it has been in years, altho i certainly prefered it when we were 5+ games ahead of them the entire time like last year
 
I think they're a very good team, but 'great' or 'elite'.

Them, Tampa, and us are all benefiting from a relatively easy schedule, with Carolina being so bad, and playing the NFC West. I think that has padded their record a bit, but wins are wins.

Why don't I think they're 'great'? They're not spectacular in any one aspect of the game. Their offense isn't explosive. They live on the short 2nd and 3rd downs. They're very efficient and keep opposing offenses off the field. But if someone can get them in a shootout, can they keep up? Who knows.

Defensively, they're sound, but not dominating. They don't take away an aspect of an opponent's gameplan and force them to play the kind of game they want. Very Gary Gibbs-ish, but with better results.
 
Garret makes the chipshot, 49ers don't fumble game ending INT, Refs don't rig baltimore game, and Aaron Rodgers doesn't fumble in the endzone and McCarthy figures out how to challenge...They are 6 and 5 which they should be.
 
I really think they are weaker then their record.

Nothing about them screams dominant to me. They look like a team who plays everyone to the wire who hasn't had the bad breaks go against them yet. That'll catch up to them. Noway do they win out. Even really good teams who continually let other teams hang around get bit eventually.

You know your football. I sure hope you are right. This Saints team was not designed to play in the snow.
 
Living in Savannah, Ga. I can tell you this: "Adult" Falcs are perinoid.
Most know that half of their wins could have/should have been loses,
The Falcons have the pressure on them to keep winning but 19-1 won't(at home)
last forever(this isn't the NCAA).

I just tell'em "THE SAINTS ARE COMING".
 
Take out the Cardinals victory and their margin of victory at home is less than 6 points...actually I think it is less than 5. They have ONE impressive win...And survived probably 6 out of the other 8 by some duct tape, bubble gum...and a considerable amount of good fortune. All that being said they are a very good team and might be able to win a playoff game in this mediocre NFC year...I still think we own them though...the question will soon be answered of How a Healthy Saints team matches up.
 
They are good. We match up well/evenly with them and the monday night game should be a great one. Here's to hoping we pull it out.
 
You don't have to answer, just think about it.

Honestly. If this was the Saints we were talking about, is there no chance you would respond with something to the effect of "No matter what, this team just finds a way to win"?

Because if the Falcons are so overrated, when do they start losing? We're running out of weeks here.

It doesn't make anyone on this board less of a Saints fan to admit that the Falcons are not just good, they're damn good.

Swimmer, I take exception to your idea that we should somehow sympathize with Falcons fans. That is an incorrect statement. All the rest, yes. Not that.

Perfect - LMAO. My apology is rendered
 

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