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Monday, September 29, 2008
Quarterly Report: The Big Fix
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
At the end of his opening statement after the Carolina game, head coach Mike Smith said the Falcons woes are “fixable” and that the Falcons are 2-2.
“We’ve got to feel good about that,” Smith said.
Let’s look at the Falcons’ Quarterly Report by position group:
QUARTERBACKS: Matt Ryan has taken all of the snaps and completed 52.5 percent of his passes. He’s functioning well and looks good running the no huddle attack.
RUNNNING BACKS: Michael Turner and Jerious Norwood are off to good starts. Both have flashed big-play ability. Good to see the hard-running Jason Snelling get a catch against Carolina. Ovie Mughelli’s lead blocking is good when he’s in the lineup.
TIGHT ENDS: They are doing their job, blocking in the run game.
WIDE RECEIVERS: Roddy White leads the team with 18 catches for 322 yards, but just one touchdown. He needs to get in the endzone more. The group dropped too many passes against Carolina, but position coach Terry Robiskie will get that cleaned up. (He might have them doing some up-downs at practice on Wednesday!!!)
OFFENSIVE LINE: The big question was could they protect Ryan. He’s been sacked just seven times. That projects to 28 sacks. Last season the line gave up 47 sacks, so that would be a major improvement. They’ve got to handle eight and nine man fronts better. Baker’s injury (concussion/illness) is a major concern. He was off to a good start.
DEFENSIVE LINE: John Abraham has turned in a monster first quarter with six sacks and one blocked punt. Grady Jackson has three tackles for losses in three games. Abraham and Jackson need some more help from Jonathan Babineaux, Jamaal Anderson, Chauncey Davis, Kindal Moorehead and Kroy Biermann.
LINEBACKERS: Curtis Lofton is the real deal. He ran about 20 yards from the middle of the field to the sideline to stop Larry Johnson on the goal line in the Kansas City game. Michael Boley hasn’t made any big plays. Keith Brooking’s move back to weakside is off to a slow start. He has 22 tackles (off gameday stats, not coaches film review stats.) That projects out to 88, well below his average of 167.43 tackles from 2001 to 2007.
SECONDARY: The group needs to tighten things up. Detroit, Tampa Bay and Carolina had receivers roaming free through the secondary. The big lead against Detroit saved them and Milloy’s interception helped. Brian Griese was rusty in the Tampa Bay game and missed a lot of receivers. Jake Delhomme was on target and passed for 294 yards as Muhsin Muhammad and Steve Smith put on pass catching clinic.
SPECILIASTS: Kicker Jason Elam has made all nine of field goal tries. Michael Koenen is averaging a respectable 40.5 yards on his punts. The Falcons need to find ways to bust returners Adam Jennings and Jerious Norwood loose for some big returns.
How does your quarterly report look for the Falcons? Do you feel good about the 2-2 record after last season’s 4-12 debacle? How’s Matt Ryan doing? How’s Mike Smith doing? How can the secondary improve its coverage?
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