Finally, the Falcons are over their Super Bowl hangover.
Quarterback Matt Ryan is finding his receivers. The running game is giving him just enough and the defense is making plays and scoring touchdowns.
They needed all of those things working to beat Seattle, 34-31, on Monday night at CenturyLink Field.
The Falcons were not in the clear until Blair Walsh’s 52-yard field came up short about two yards (press box view) short.
The Falcons needed the win because the New Orleans Saints (8-2) are trying to run away and hide before the teams have to play twice over the final four games of the season.
“If we want to go where we want to go, we have got to start stringing some wins together,” defensive end Derrick Shelby said. “This was definitely a good step in the right direction getting two in a row. We just have to come back next week with the same hunger to fight.”
The Falcons are 6-4 and trailing the Saints by two games with six to play. The Falcons also are behind Carolina, which is 7-3 and had a bye.
If the playoffs started today, the Falcons would be the sixth seed.
The Falcons needed the win over the Seahawks in order to gain the all important head-to-head tiebreaker for possible wildcard scenarios.
“It was big,” cornerback Desmond Trufant said. “They are a great team. They are very resilient. They never give up.”
The Falcons jumped out to a 21-7 lead, but never let up. They knew the Seahawks would get off the mat and start throwing some haymakers of their own.
“We knew they were going to keep fighting,” Trufant said. “We knew what caliber of team they are and we know what caliber of team we are. So, we just have to keep pushing and keep riding this momentum.”
The Falcons, who are set to host Tampa Bay (4-6) on Sunday, know the race in the NFC South is heating up.
“All the games are important, but these divisions games are big,” said Trufant, who had a big first quarter interception against the Seahawks. “We just have to keep preparing, keep working and we’ll be good.”
The Falcons wanted to build on their 27-7 win over a Dallas team that was playing without running back Ezekiel Elliott and left tackle Tyron Smith.
The Seahawks were without cornerback Richard Sherman and strong safety Kam Chancellor, but nobody is going to remember that come playoff time.
“We just came in here and did our job,” Trufant said. “Made some plays and played with great energy and with some confidence. We put it all together.”
Trufant set up a touchdown and rookie defensive end Takkarist McKinley, defensive tackle Courtney Upshaw and defensive end Adrian Clayborn combined on a big play.
McKinley had the sack of Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson. Upshaw forced fumble and Clayborn had the scoop and score to put the Falcons up 21-7 early in the second quarter.
“Those guys did a good job of getting after him,” Clayborn said. “I was just around the ball. I picked it up and scored. There wasn’t (anything) special that I did.”
Clayborn had a touchdown last season, too. Is he turning into a regular touchdown machine?
“I would not said that,” Clayborn said. “I was just lucky to be in the right spot at the right time.”
The Falcons knew Wilson was going to make his share of plays. He rushed seven times for 86 yards and put some open field moves on Vic Beasley and Devondre Campbell among others.
“That guy is kind of a magician back there,” Shelby said. “But for the most part, we held him under wraps. He still had his plays, but for the most part we executed the game plan.”
The Falcons sent defensive linemen in waves. They had three sacks and eight quarterback hits on the elusive Wilson.
“He’s pretty darn good,” Clayborn said. “We were trying to chase him all over the field. He was able to get loose and complete some passes. We held them off.”
The Falcons, the defending NFC Champs, believe they have indeed turned the corner and are set to move on to bigger and better things with three straight home games.
After the Bucs, they host the Minnesota Vikings followed by their first meeting with the Saints on Thursday, Dec. 7.
But the win over Seattle served notice to the rest of the NFC South that they don’t plan to give up their title without a major rumble.
“That we can play with anybody,” Clayborn said the win of Seattle shows to the rest of the division. “We can stop guys. We can get stops and we can hold our own.”
