DEL.ICIO.USFinneran hauls in big catch in end zone
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Sunday, December 07, 2008
New Orleans — Falcons wide receiver Brian Finneran made his first trip to the end zone in quite some time.
Finneran hauled down a 2-yard fade route and got both of his feet down to briefly put the Falcons ahead in the second quarter of Sunday’s loss to New Orleans.
Bob Andres/bandres@ajc.com
Saints defense held Falcons running back Michael Turner to just 61 yards rushing on 18 carries. Atlanta was held to 99 yards rushing as a team.
Finneran, who missed the last two seasons with knee surgeries, had not scored a touchdown since Nov. 6, 2006 when he hauled in an 11-yard pass from Michael Vick.
“It felt good to get back in the end zone,” said Finneran, who caught two passes for 8 yards. “I had one-on-one coverage. Matt [Ryan] did a great job of allowing me to be able to go up and catch it.”
Ryan didn’t hesitate on the throw to Finneran.
“He’s worked so hard to come back from everything he’s had to come back from over the last two years in terms of rehabbing his knees,” Ryan said. “It was big for him to score today.”
Finneran’s other catch converted a third down.
After watching the last two seasons, Finneran is elated to be contributing to the Falcons playoff push.
“We are still in the hunt for the playoffs, we realize it,” Finnneran said. “To put this in perspective, we have to win our next few games. These guys will bounce back. We’ve done it before, we’ll do it again.”
No fast start
The Falcons entered the game leading the league with 94 points scored in the first quarter. The Falcons also were 6-0 when they scored on their opening drive.
The Falcons had a promising first drive against the Saints stopped by an interception.
The Falcons drove down to New Orleans’ 26-yard line before Saints cornerback Jason David intercepted a Ryan pass intended for Roddy White.
New Orleans went on to take a 7-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.
“It’s something that we’ve prided ourselves on, fast starts and we did not start as fast as we have throughout the season,” Falcons coach Mike Smith said.
Abraham sackless
Defensive end John Abraham did not get any sacks, but keep the heat on Saints quarterback Drew Brees.
He did draw a penalty on Saints left tackle Jammal Brown.
“We had to play from behind and then when we got up, what we needed to do was get the offense back on the field, which we didn’t do,” Abraham said.
Abraham expects he’ll have to work to get the young defense re-focused for the stretch run.
“We have to stay confident and stay on pace,” Abraham said. “We can’t get this game back. We still have three games. We still have to try to fight our way to the playoffs. It’s still within our reach if we win out.”
Roster adjustments
Defensive ends Rob Ninkovich and Terrius George, both signed by the Saints this week to take the place of their suspended players, were giving roster exemptions to stay with the team through Monday but were not considered part of the active roster.
Defensive end Will Smith and running back Deuce McAllister, the players who were re-instated for the game, were not major factors. Smith did have a big tackle for a loss.
Jenkins makes grabs
Wide receiver Michael Jenkins had a couple of spectacular catches on the day.
On one slant pattern, he appeared to catch the back on the ball on a throw from Ryan.
Jenkins finished with five catches for 69 yards, his second-highest total of the season.
“Michael Jenkins had a big game again,” Ryan said.
Turner stopped
Running back Michael Turner, who’s injured right thumb appeared to affect him on an early dropped pass, was held to 61 yards rushing on 18 carries.
He had carried the ball at least 24 times in each of the last five games.
For the second game in a row, all four running backs — Turner, Ovie Mughelli, Jason Snelling and Jerious Norwood — ran the ball from scrimmage.
Turner did add his team-record tying 14th rushing touchdown of the season. He’s now tied season with Jamal Anderson, who set the mark in 1998.
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