THURSDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL WEEK 12 RECAP 2013

Rob Ryan's Defense Keeps Brees Off the Field

Falcons Avg Time Of Possession 24:57 (Ranked 27th). Tonight 33:46
Saint Ranked #1 in AVG Time Of Possession 34:34. Tonight 26:14.

Playing Prevent Defense at the end of a game - is usually a stupid move. Playing Prevent Defense the Entire Game - almost cost New Orleans the win. Rob Ryan allowed Matt Ryan all the 10 yard pass completions he wanted. He accepted, and drove the ball down the field with short pass completions, drive after drive. Sacking the QB is nice, But if he throws for a first down the next play - kind of ineffective.

The All You can Eat - First Down Buffet - kept Drew Brees Off the field most of the game. When he did play - he was on point and accurate. The Saints receivers on the other hand - dropped balls like clumsy waiters. 

Matt Ryan 30 of 39.  Long 17 yds. O TDs.
Drew Brees 23 of 33. Long 44.  2 TDs. Ten More Passes?
Yeah...they cover easy.

The Falcons have one of the weakest pass defenses in the league. The prevent defense took that advantage away from the Saints. Rob Ryan's defensive ineptitude forced the The Saints defense to endure a marathon instead of a sprint. Dumb move, one game before a trip to Seattle with playoff implications. 

This article is not about losing 50 bucks tonight. It's about what could keep one of the greatest Quarterback to ever play - from a winning 2nd Superbowl. 
Video - Bullsyes - 10 for 10!  Most Accurate QB on the Planet!
The Saints have the Seahawks next,  then the Panthers Twice. Give those teams an inch for 4 quarters - like Rob Ryan did tonight, and they will take a mile.

Brees deserved a big night, after what happened last year (see below). Too bad he was robbed of that opportunity. No pun intended. You could see it in his face on the last drive. He wanted to win decisively.  If not for a penalty  - they score and cover. Glad to see he has regained his place as one of the top Quarterbacks in the league though. Too bad he was denied a suitable coronation. A 4 point win had to leave him kind of empty.  It did me.

Sorry for steering everyone wrong on this one. Once again - you can't handicap stupid.

- From Blog - Nov 30th 2012 -

Week 13 Falcons vs Saints.

What Could have Been. 

As the egg yoke and whites dripped down the windows of the Saints team bus the day before, it must have stirred vengeance in the hearts of the New Orleans players. Local fans in Atlanta had in essence – stoned their unwelcome rivals.  They had started the season 0-4,  without a coach and somehow still had a chance to make the playoffs with a win last night. Who would have egg on their face when this one was over – they must have thought.

Even the oddsmakers knew going in.  The outcome of this game could not be predicted with mere statistics. They set the line low at -3.5 for a 10-1 home team hosting a 5-6 division rival - with what Deon Sanders described in the pre-game as “The worst defense in NFL history.” That seemed overstated. 

Like a rematch between Sea Biscuit and Man-O-War, there were intangibles here that could not be measured; Heart and Pride. The heart, mainly that of Drew Brees. A quarterback more accurate than an archer, with the game presence of a president and the heart of a teenager. He had lost the game for his team the week before with a forced pass that was intercepted. We all knew that would not happen again. The pride, an Atlanta team at home - that in their own words, should have won the last match up easily. 

As the opening shot was fired, Matt Ryan threw a short pass to the right that could have and should have been taken to the house by Saints CB Jenkins for 6 Saints points – if tight end Gonzales had not wrestled the ball back for an eight yard gain. 

The Saints rush defense then allowed Michael Turner to run on them at will. Before you knew it, the Falcons were up 14 nothing and Deon Sanders looked more like Nostradamus than MC Hammer. Anyone hoping for a close fought cliffhanger - was surfing the channel guide for alternative programming. Then the saints found a spark and drove down for a running touchdown. 

At 17 – 7 there was hope. 

Near the end of the first half - the Saints caught fire again and drove inside the Atlanta 10 yard line. Touchdown Saints! The pass was called back by a penalty. With 35 seconds left, Brees ran two plays down to the 2 yard line. As he rallied the team to line with 7 seconds left – you watched the clock tick down to zero. 

Falcon 17 Saints 7.

Not 17-14

Not 17-10

17-7 

Only God and coaches know what really happens in a locker room at halftime. As the second half began, something was different. We watched the Saints come onto the field and there was an energy. Highlights of Brees rallying his troupes before the game resonated like an acid flashback. “This is our division, we know and they know it.” He had us too, climbing on an irresistible emotional bandwagon.

As the second half began - suddenly, the worst defense in NFL history was shutting down the 10-1 Falcons offense. Three and out. Three and out. The New Orleans offense was on fire again as well. Then it happened.  Brees about to score - forces a throw and is picked off. The Saints defense holds and there is still hope. He’s only human. Then it happens again. Brees throws a pick, Saints defense holds. Time and time again - they drove the ball down the field only to have their field general hand the ball back to the enemy. The number one scoring offense in the NFL - couldn’t score.

With about 4 minutes left in the game, down by 10, the Saints have one last chance. They mount a drive that reminded us all of all those great last minute comebacks. Then, to our dismay, it happens again. Brees, under pressure, lobs a ball over the heads of the oncoming pass rushers and completes a pass to an Atlanta defensive linemen. Falcons ball on the Saints 30. Game over. 

But like any great Odyssey - it wasn’t. With just a couple minutes left in the game - the saints defense holds up the Falcons running back and strips the ball. Saints run it in for a touchdown. We can’t believe it happened, but it did, and the Cinderella story isn’t over. The touchdown is called back, but the Saints have the ball and one more, one more last chance. And then, it happened again. His childlike enthusiasm that we love so much, had caused him to force passes - instead of taking what the defense gave him and winning a game they should have won. 

Final Score - Falcons 23. Saints 13. 

The Falcons claimed the Saints didn’t beat them in the last game – they beat themselves. Now the Saints can claim the same. 

Something ended last night. It was not the career of Drew Brees. And it was not the end of his record for consecutive TD passes that left us empty. It was the chance to witness something amazing that we lost. To quote Sea Biscuit; "Sometimes the little guy just needs a second chance"  They got one, and it would have been fun to see the the underdog beat the odds. If there is a lesson to be learned in all of this – it falls somewhere between the power of the human spirit and the value of self control. 

Sometimes we can want something so bad, we lose our patience in pursuit of it. Drew Brees, like Moses,  will not see the promised land this year. But, at the end of the day, all we can do if is be grateful for the ride.

-Rick Jansen: