Falcons magical 2008 season comes to a dissappointing end

I've gotta say this. I'm disappointed but I'm not discouraged. The Falcons lost to the Arizona Cardinals in the wild card round of the NFL Playoffs 30-24. It was a game where they stared off slow, came back to take the lead in the second half and made too many mistakes at the end. Were the Cardinals the better team? On Saturday yes. But don't get it twisted, the Falcons exceeded expectations because nobody (and I do mean nobody) expected this team to accomplished what they did in 2008.

From Matt Ryan winning Offensive Rookie of the Year to Mike Smith winning NFL Coach of the Year, this team is built to win for many seasons to come. It's not like the 1998 Super Bowl season where the team was built around veterans and their only rookie that got a good amount of playing time is Keith Brooking. Or in 2002 or 2004 where the team would do well depending on how Michael Vick would do. What this team accomplished with so many young players is amazing and could make a run at the big game within the next three years. I think the only problem is that their schedule for next year is a daunting one to say the least. They will of course play Carolina, Tampa Bay and New Orleans at home and on the road, but the will face the NFC East opponents and the AFC opponents as well. That means that they will have to face Philadelphia, Dallas, New York Giants the Jets, New England and Miami. They will also have to face the Chicago Bears again at the Georgia Dome and will be back on the west coast to take on the San Fransisco 49ers.

If they are able to win at least 10 games in 2009, there is no reason that they can't reach the Super Bowl. This will be a busy offseason for Mike Smith and Thomas Dimtroff as they will evaluate the roster and see who they will keep and who they need to let go. Also Michael Vick will get out of Jail in July and if they can trade the rights to him and get a quality player, that would be beneficial to the franchise. But I can't wait for the 2009 season and I know that the players are looking forward to it as well because they want to get that bad taste of Arizona out of their mouths.

Falcons vs. Cardinals Preview

Okay. This is it. The Atlanta Falcons are in the playoffs and are coming into the the tournament winning three consecutive games. The Arizona Cardinals are limping into the postseason, winning only two of their final six games. In fact, six of the nine wins that Arizona produced came from their divisional opponents in which all have losing records. But they do have a high-powered offense where receivers Anquan Boldin, Larry Fitzgerald and Steve Breaston all went over 1,000 yards receiving for the 2008 year. Here's a closer look at the game:

WHEN THE FALCONS ARE ON OFFENSE...

Quarterback Matt Ryan had a great season and was rewarded this week as he won NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year. But he has struggled the latter part of the season as he has thrown five interceptions in the last five games. But still makes plays when the team needs him to. The Falcons are going to try to keep Arizona's offense off the field by grinding it out with Michael Turner who has over 1,600 rushing yards and 17 rushing touchdowns on the year. Both of those numbers were good enough to put him in second place in both categories and ever came in second place for NFL MVP. The Cardinals defense will try to contain Turner as well as spell running back Jerious Norwood with the help of linebacker Carlos Dansby and cornerback Antrel Rolle. Dansby leads the team in tackles with 119 while Rolle is right behind him with 89. Adrian Wilson could also come down from his safety position to help with the run defense as they give up 110 rushing yards-per-game.

If the Cardinals do stop the running attack, no worries because Ryan has a No. 1 receiver in Roddy White who pulled down 88 catches, 1,382 yards and seven touchdowns. Michael Jenkins has developed into a solid No.2 receiver and has come up with big catches all season long. The Cardinals pass defense is not great as they give up around 220 passing yards-per-game and Bertrand Berry leads the team in sacks with only five.

WHEN THE FALCONS ARE ON DEFENSE...

John Abraham is the play maker for the Falcons defense and Lawyer Miloy is the emotional leader. Both of theses players will have to play at a high level on Saturday in order to shut down Boldin, Fitzgerald and Breaston. Abraham leads the team and all NFL defensive lineman in sacks with 16.5 (and yet he didn't make the Pro Bowl), and Miloy isn't the safety he was five years ago, but he did have a good season with 93 tackles and one interception. Kieth Brooking led the team in tackles again with 102 and middle linebacker Curtis Lofton has a stellar rookie campaign with 94 tackles.

Arizona has one of the best passing attacks in the league and will try to attack a small Falcons secondary early and often. Brent Grimes, Chris Houston and Dominique Foxworth are the corners for the Falcons and will have their hands full. But they are aggressive at the point of attack and will be in your face for the entire game. Quarterback Kurt Warner is having his best season and will try to use his playoff experience to carry his team to victory.

THE BOTTOM LINE...

What this game comes down to is ball control and which team can pressure the quarterback. The one thing that the Falcons do better than any team is getting off to a fast start. The led the NFC in first quarter points and were third in first quarter points allowed. They are also coming into this game with a three-game winning and are as confident as they have ever been. The Cardinals are confident because they are hosting a playoff game and are coming of a much needed victory. But they have struggled and have not faced a running attack like the Falcons. The same can be said for the Falcons as they have not faced a passing game like Arizona, but they are able to apply pressure with their defensive line and do not have to blitz. Also, the Falcons are known as being one of the most aggressive teams in the NFL and if they hit the Cardinals hard early it will be hard for the Arizona to hit back. So with that the Falcons win 24-17 and win their first road playoff game since 2002.

Living the High Life

Hey guys. Check out my interview with Windell Middlebrooks who plays the vendor Earl in the Miller High Life commercials. He was in town on Sunday for the Atlanta Falcons vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers game and made sure that fans were living the High Life. He is a really nice guy and seems to have a bright future ahead of him.

Also, I mentioned that I was going to go more into detail about the Falcons-Bucs game in my previous blog, but what I'm going to do is do a little preview on the Falcons-Vikings game in my next blog because it is one of the biggest regular season games in Falcons history. I also want to talk about the Hawks as they are off to one of their best starts in years.

Matt Ryan Blog

Hey guys. Make sure to check out my Matt Ryan blog on the front page on www.scoreatl.com. I will have more in-depth analysis on the game and I hope to have a interview with Windell Middlebrooks who is the Miller High Life guy. I met him at the Falcons game and I was supposed ti interview him there but he was pulled around to different places and I lost him in the shuffle. But I have his number so I will give him a call and it should be on the Score Atlanta website, if not it will be on here ASAP.

Saturday Night Football

Hey Guys. I just wanted to let you know that I will be at the Georgia Dome today. It's day two of the GHSA Football Championships and I will be attending the Cairo vs. Flowery Branch game at 5 p.m. and I will also be covering the Peachtree Ridge vs. Camden County contest which statrs shortly after. I will do live blogging for the Peachtree Ridge-Camden game and you can check it out on www.road-to-the-dome.blogspot.com.

Ryan leading canidate for Rookie of the Year. In the running for MVP?

If you don’t already know, I have been following Matt Ryan’s career with my weekly blog for Score Atlanta (www.scoreatl.com). And based on what I’ve seen since August, he should not only win Offensive Rookie of the Year, he should be looked at as MVP of the NFL. I know he is only a rookie and he is putting up modest numbers. Through 13 games Ryan has thrown for 2,940 yards, 14 touchdowns, seven interceptions with a completion percentage of 62 and a rating of 92. If he finishes the season with 3,500 yards, 17 touchdowns, nine picks and if the Falcons finish with an 11-5 record he has got to be in the running.
If you look at the other NFL quarterbacks this year, there are not many of them that are having the year that Ryan is having. Peyton Manning has 22 touchdowns but has a rating of 88.8 and struggled in the beginning of the year. Drew Brees could finish the year with 5,000 passing yards but the Saints are 7-7 and could miss the playoffs. Philip Rivers has the highest passer rating in the NFL (102), however the Chargers have a 5-8 record and will miss the playoffs. The only quarterback that is having a better year is Arizona Cardinals signal caller Kurt Warner who has thrown for 25 touchdowns and has led the Birds to their first division title in over 30 years.
But look what Ryan has done in a short amount of time. He is making the position look easy when it it’s not supposed to be as rookie. He is getting better each game and he is one of very few quarterbacks to take every snap for his team this year. Joe Flacco for the Baltimore Ravens is having a good year also and has led the Ravens to a 9-4 record which is one better than the Falcons. But he struggled at the beginning of the year has a rating of 81. Ryan has only struggled in two games early in the season and those game were on the road (Tampa Bay and Carolina).
I’m not saying he should win the MVP because I don’t think players will like the fact that a rookie can win rookie of the year and the MVP award. But he should get some votes because he is having the greatest season ever for a rookie QB. The Falcons may just miss the playoffs, but they have their quarterback of the future and will win many games for years to come.
One more thing, make sure to check me out on www.gpb.org/football on Saturday as I will do blogging for the Class 5A High School Football Championship. And on Sunday, I will have a Matt Ryan blog on www.scoreatl.com after the game.

Podcast

Hey guys. Sorry it took me so long to post another update. But here is a new podcast. Enjoy!