AJC > Sports > Falcons > Blog > Archives > 2008 > December > 08
Monday, December 8, 2008
Should Smitty have gone for it?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
NEW ORLEANS - Up early, about to board the plane back to the ATL.
Ran into one of my frat brothers in the security line. Frat had been up playing “tonk” all night with his family. He said, “Make sure I get to the gate, team.”
“No problem,” I said.
Then he said, “Why in the hell didn’t the Falcons go for it on fourth down?”
Couldn’t give him an answer. That was the game right there. Smitty didn’t feel the Falcons fans’ pain. They would have been OK rolling the dice right there. Smitty said he went with the odds.
That made me think of something former Ohio State coach John Cooper used to say. “Woody” Cooper would say, “Y’all want to always gamble. But you want to gamble with MY money.”
Heck, yeah. OPM! It’s always good when you gamble with Other People’s Money.
Don’t know how Smitty feels about that. But that fourth down-and-5 from their 35, was the game. The defense hadn’t stopped the Saints for most of the day. He had to remember the 294-yard torching in the fourth quarter of the last game. Pierre Thomas looked like Samkon Gado, another undrafted free agent to shred the Falcons defense a few years back.
Maybe Smitty should have gone against the odds. Maybe he saved the season by not going for it. Maybe it’s time to learn how to stop the draw play.
I don’t know, but we sure can talk about it here all day. Should Smitty have rolled the dice? What’s up with the run defense? Did Saints coach Sean Payton out-scheme defensive coordinator Brian VanGorder with a nice screen and draw game? Matty Ice was on fire! You voting for Roddy White for the Pro Bowl?
It’s time to board. Frat’s on the plane and there goes Jeff Schultz, too. Will jump back in when I get to Branch.
