Falcons cornerback Robert McClain is a fighter.
McClain talks about how none of the football powers ever wanted him coming out of high school.
He was too small or not fast enough. He went onto star at Connecticut.
He’ll tell you about how he had to fight to get a shot in the NFL and how he had to fight to earn a position after bouncing around with two other teams.
But McClain, 26, appears to have found a home with the Falcons after repeatedly beating back challenge after challenge.
So, with the NFC title elimination game on the line, and the New Orleans Saints trying to mount a rally and retake the lead, McClain did what he does best.
He kept fighting.
He won this time, too.
McClain came up with a game-changing interception with 2:28 left in the game on a Drew Brees pass that was intended for Nick Toon.
“I just (saw) the receiver’s hips dropping,” McClain said. “I thought I could break early enough to cut underneath it. I’m just thankful Brees threw in my direction on that play.”
McClain was around the ball all game. He got his hands on two other passes.
“I was inches away (from an earlier interception),” McClain said. “I got my hands on it. I was hoping to get my hands on it again. I was able to get two hands on that one and pick it.”
The Falcons turned McClain’s interception into a field goal and made it a two-score game. The Falcons went on to win and set up the NFC South championship game against Carolina on Sunday at the Georgia Dome.
“It was a big-time play,” Falcons coach Mike Smith said. “He got a great jump on the ball.”
Ironically, McClain was drafted by the Panthers in the seventh-round of the 2010 draft to start his NFL journey. He played in 16 games as a rookie and made two starts.
He was released by the Panthers on Sept. 3, 2011. He signed with Jacksonville on Dec. 12, 2011, but was cut 27 days later.
The Falcons took a flyer on McClain, signing him as a future-reserve free agent on Jan. 10, 2012. He made the team and played in 15 games and made two starts.
Last season, he played in 16 games and made six starts.
But the Falcons tried to upgrade the nickel back position over the offseason and signed Javier Arenas and Josh Wilson to compete for the important spot. Wilson ran with the first team for much of the offseason, but McClain wouldn’t give up. He kept fighting and eventually won the position.
The interception against Brees was his second of the season.
“He does hold the ball a long time sometimes; he does pump fake a lot,” McClain said. “I saw the ball come in my direction at that time. I undercut it and was able to pick it.”
When starting cornerback Robert Alford went down with fractured wrist against Carolina on Nov. 16, McClain moved outside to his spot.
“Robert has good confidence to play the game,” defensive coordinator Mike Nolan said. “Robert had good confidence on the outside. I think he has more confidence outside than he does inside. At least he plays the position a little bit better.”
Before making his plays against the Saints, McClain was rated as the 58th rated cornerback in the league who’s played at least 50 percent of his team’s snaps. Teams opposing quarterbacks have an 85.3 passer rating while throwing into his coverage area.
McClain has also blitzed seven times. He has a sack and two quarterback hurries.
“Robert has continued to improve all season long,” Smith said. “I know that some people had talked about him not making plays. He made the play when we needed the play made.”
McClain believes he’ll be ready for the Panthers.
“We just have to stay together,” McClain said. “Whatever the game plan is going to be, we have to execute the game plan. We’re going to go out there and fight as a unit.”
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