It can’t be called the worst playcall in playoff history, but it’s in the Top 50. Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan had four receiving options on the play and one was a fullback (???) split out wide to the left. Julio Jones and Mohamed Sanu were both on the right and the primary targets on the play.
What you think when you see that formation is a pick play, one that teams like the New England Patriots and Los Angeles Rams have run to perfection this season from that close to the line. There’s really no way to stop it if the QB gets the ball out of his hands quick and you have a big, strong receiver with flypaper hands to snatch it. There is no bigger and stronger receiver in the NFL than Julio Jones. This should have been a touchdown.
Thank you for all of your support this entire season. We will continue to work this offseason with the goal of not only returning to the playoffs next season, but capturing the 🏆.
We felt your energy, your passion, and your enthusiasm. Keep riding with us!#InBrotherhood pic.twitter.com/lljufnswgP
— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) January 15, 2018
Instead, Ryan rolls right. Jones and Sanu ran non complimentary routes that got neither man open and Ryan eventually, under pressure, threw up a prayer that God refused to answer. The ball squirted through Jones’ hands (he would have been out of bounds anyway) and the Philadelphia Eagles won 15-10.
Because the play was so poorly designed, the Eagles later admitted they knew exactly what was going to happen when Atlanta lined up.
“It was right hash. That’s a lot of teams’ tendencies for a sprint out. As soon as I saw the tight end come over, I was like, ‘There it is!'” Eagles safety Rodney McLeod said. “This is everything you dream of as a player.”
People keep bringing up that the Falcons ran shovel passes with Shanahan too, to defend Sark. Here's the difference pic.twitter.com/UdZF3QGjJm
— social cancer (@SlopingGiraffe) January 16, 2018
This was the best offensive team in football in 2016 and had first and goal with plenty of time on the clock and a chance to win the game. And they blew it. Completely.
You’d think that would mean some serious changes would be in order, especially on offense.
STEVE SARKISIAN
You would be wrong. According to the NFL Network, Sarkisian will be back as offensive coordinator in 2018 for the Falcons. This was after he called an offensive attack that saw Matt Ryan’s passer rating drop from 117.1 to 91.4 and average 51 fewer yards per game. They went from the No. 1 offense to the No. 8 offense and were just 50 percent scoring touchdowns in the red zone.
Clearing up one lingering question post-2017 (if it's even a question): #Falcons OC Steve Sarkisian is expected to return for 2018 with full confidence of coach Dan Quinn and his staff.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 16, 2018
After Saturday’s loss, head coach Dan Quinn mouthed some support for Sarkisian when asked about his moronic playcalling. Evidently, it wasn’t just hot air. Quinn meant it. That’s as much an indictment on him as a head coach as anything that happened in the game.
“There’s a lot of things that Sark has brought to our team that we really like in terms of, that could take a long time to go through the different spots,” Quinn said. “So it’s easy to place blame all onto one person. That’s a shared responsibility when we don’t achieve at the level that we would like to.”
It’s easy to place blame on Sarkisian because it’s all his fault. He’s terrible.
PENDING FREE AGENTS
As they enter the off-season, the Falcons have just $16.929 million in available cap space. That means there’s no significant upgrades coming to the team in free agency. They can’t even free up any real space by trading No. 2 running back Tevin Coleman, who they will have plenty of offers for, since he’s still on his rookie contract. It’s possible he could land them a second (more likely third) round pick, but I’d just keep him on the team if I was Atlanta. You’ll never get that kind of production from a cheap free agent and probably not from a second or third rounder.
I asked Dontari Poe if this was one of the most enjoyable years of his career, he said “most definitely.” And then when asked if he wants to come back to Atlanta next season he said, “hopefully, we’ll see how it goes, it’s a business.” #Falcons
— Kelsey Conway (@KelseyLConway) January 14, 2018
Atlanta is going to lose some good players, especially on defense in free agency. Dontari Poe, Adrian Clayborn and Courtney Upshaw might all be gone. Certainly Poe and Clayborn will be too expensive to re-sign. Upshaw was playing on a $1.5 million deal last season and, if he’d do so again, he can come back.
Their best back ups like Sean Weatherspoon, Jordan Trip and Blidi Wreh-Wilson will all probably be in the wind too. The biggest re-sign priority has to be kicker Matt Bryant. He didn’t have the dominant year he had in 2016, but he was still good, hitting 87.2 percent of his field goals and 100 percent of his extra points.
Slot and gadget receiver Taylor Gabriel is just a luxury the team can’t afford.
2018 NFL DRAFT
Atlanta will have its full compliment of picks, starting at No. 26 in the first round. They have to focus on defensive line if anyone is there at that spot worth taking, especially defensive tackle. That could be a guy like Marcus Davenport from UTSA, Da’Ron Payne from Alabama or Arden Key from LSU.
The Falcons need to shore up the offensive line and add depth at corner and wide receiver. They could be looking at a guy like Tyrell Crosby from Oregon or Martinas Rankin from Mississippi State in the second round at No. 58 overall.
POTENTIAL FREE AGENT TARGETS
While the Falcons don’t have a ton of free cap space, it doesn’t mean they can’t toss out a scraper net and pull up some key guys from the bottom of the ocean here. With Jones and Sanu under contract and solidly Nos. 1 and 2, they need to add another wideout on the cheap. For the money, a guy like Ryan Grant from the Washington Redskins could be ideal for that spot. Danny Amendola still has a few good years as a possession receiver and punt returner. Either guy would cost around $1 million to bring in.
Shining bright under the postseason lights. @DannyAmendola:
1⃣0⃣ catches.
1⃣0⃣0⃣ yards. pic.twitter.com/OaJJscARS9— New England Patriots (@Patriots) January 14, 2018
On the defensive line, cheaper options should be Frostee Rucker from the Arizona Cardinals. He’s older, but that only works in Atlanta’s favor. Ricky Jean Francios is a free agent after spending a season with the Patriots and who knows what Kony Ealy might be capable of with a coach that can get into his head and psychoanalyze him. Either way, none of these guys will cost much and could all be key contributors.
Here’s the last little bit of good news for the Falcons. They had every reason to completely succumb to the Super Bowl hangover this season. And while it did hit them, they battled their way out of it not only to make it to the postseason, but to the second round. That’s something to hang a hat on heading into 2018.
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