Falcons' no huddle attack unstoppable

By D. Orlando Ledbetter

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

FLOWERY BRANCH –- The Falcons' regular base offense had trouble moving the ball against the Chicago Bears Sunday night.

It wasn't until they went to the "no huddle" that the offense came to life. The team doesn't like to run it full-time and picks the spots when to run it.

"It's something we discuss each week," Falcons coach Mike Smith said Monday. "We tell our guys on Saturday evening our plans."

It helped the Falcons take a 14-7 halftime lead, generating two touchdowns drives.

"We had plans to get to it, based on the situation of the game," Smith said. "It came at the right time for us. Matt (Ryan) and the offense did a very good job."

Red zone stops

In four trips inside the Falcons' 20-yard line, the Bears came away with only one touchdown.

"Turnovers down in the red zone are huge," Smith said. "They probably had a field goal in hand on those three occasions and we were able to stop them."

Thomas DeCoud came up with an interception to stop one drive. Jonathan Babineaux caused a fumble in the fourth quarter that was recovered by Coy Wire.

The Bears' last drive stalled at the 6-yard line on downs.

Snelling steps up

With Ovie Mughelli (calf) out and Jerious Norwood (right hip flexor) sidelined in the first half, Jason Snelling had to both start at fullback and backup Michael Turner at running back Sunday.

"Jason is a very integral part of our special teams, as well as Ovie Mughelli," Smith said. "It puts stress on the rest of the roster. We'll have to continue to make adjustments in regards to the rest of the roster."

No sacks allowed

The Falcons just recorded their fourth straight game without allowing a sack. During the streak, Ryan has dropped back 123 times without being tackled.

Ryan was last sacked by Jason Ferguson with 9:06 left in the third quarter in the season-opener against Miami.

"(Offensive coordinator Mike) Mularkey and his staff have done a wonderful job of keeping our quarterback clean," Smith said.

Stopping the QB

In each of the last two games, the Falcons have been hurt by scrambling quarterbacks. Jay Cutler led the Bears in rushing with 34 yards on three carries. San Francisco's Shaun Hill led the 49ers with 53 yards on four runs.

"The thing that we have to work on in improving is our rush lane integrity," Smith said. "We don’t want to give those quarterbacks the opportunity to gain those cheap yards."

Dallas quarterback Tony Romo likes to move around the pocket but has run only 10 times for 53 yards and one touchdown.

Pink shoes

Ryan wore pink shoes against the Bears in support of the American Cancer Society’s Breast Cancer awareness program.

“They felt pretty light,” Ryan said. “Nike did a great job of creating some light pink shoes. It’s for a great cause. I think it’s a great initiative. ... I was happy to be a part of it."