1. This was the worst loss in five-plus seasons under Mike Smith. Green Bay beat the Falcons by more points (48-21) in the infamous playoff game of January 2011, but this was a more comprehensive thrashing. Seattle was physically dominant from the first minute to the last, crossing midfield on all nine of its possessions. "We did not win the line of scrimmage," coach Mike Smith said. The Seahawks had nearly as many yards rushing (211) as the Falcons had total (226). If not for three Seattle penalties on the Falcons' touchdown drive, the final score might well have been 33-3.
2. Not that it much mattered, but Smith aided and abetted Seattle. With the Falcons trailing 16-3, he called timeout with 1:21 remaining in the first half. The Falcons were facing third-and-4 at their 36. After Matt Ryan threw incomplete for Tony Gonzalez, the Falcons had to punt. The Seahawks took the ball at their 40 with 1:03 left; Golden Tate caught Russell Wilson's pass for a touchdown with one second remaining. Smith should have waited to see if his team converted on third down to stop the clock. With three timeouts remaining, the Falcons still would have had enough time. As it was, he left too much for the opponent.
3. That said, Smith got away with a more grievous error. With the Falcons down 33-10 inside the final two minutes, he sent his first-string offense on the field. "It would have sent a very negative message to not use the guys who gave us the best chance to win," he said, but really? To win? From 23 points behind? What if Matt Ryan had gotten hurt? Or Tony Gonzalez? Or Roddy White? They didn't, but still: Has the lesson of John Abraham — who was hurt in January in the second half of the meaningless final regular-season game and who did nothing in the playoffs — been lost so soon?
Mark Bradley
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