There was a clear change in demeanor all over Falconsland this week. Just getting into the playoffs used to seem like a suitable goal. But after impressively dismantling the Chargers in San Diego last week, people aren’t talking about just getting a playoff berth, but also winning an NFC South title. With Tampa and Carolina both one game ahead in the division, and those two teams squaring off Monday night, Sunday afternoon’s game in New Orleans becomes a must-win for Atlanta. Lose this one and the team will be two games behind Monday night’s victor for the division lead. Here are a few of the essentials for earning a victory and keeping hope alive for the second NFC South championship in team history.
MAKE THEM DESPERATE
Sitting at 6-6, the Saints almost assuredly need to win all of their final four games to have any shot at the postseason. The Falcons faced a Chargers team last week that was in a similar quandary. They took advantage of that by jumping out to an early lead to make the Chargers more desperate than ever. The result? San Diego pressing on both sides of the football and essentially allowing the Falcons to do whatever they wanted (although Atlanta shot themselves in the foot with three turnovers to allow SD to hang around). Matt Ryan will have to come out and sling the ball around, and a few third-down conversions (like last week) could also go a long way towards crushing the fragile psyche of New Orleans. Meanwhile, the defense needs to get off to a fast start and contain the dynamic New Orleans offense early on. If the Falcons can jump out to a two-score lead in the first quarter, the Saints could easily fold with their season seemingly going by the wayside. But if Atlanta allows New Orleans to see the light at the end of the tunnel, it could easily be a different story.
WHERE’S REGGIE?
The Falcons’ defense was on point in Week 9’s 34-20 win over New Orleans, but the Saints were missing perhaps their most crucial offensive piece in Reggie Bush. The tailback was a fixture in the weekly highlight reels before hurting his knee in Week 7. He’s back to full speed now, and that’s not good news for the Falcons. While he’s not much of a threat in the run game (just 3.3 yards per carry this year), Bush is a huge threat catching the ball out of the backfield. Everyone must keep an eye on Bush at all times, because with just a little bit of space he can take one the distance. The defense did a fantastic job of handling a similar threat in LaDainian Tomlinson last week, holding him to just 66 total yards. The punt return team will also have its hands full stopping him, as he’s scored three touchdowns on returns this season in just eight games and averages just under 18 yards per return. Special teams coach Keith Armstrong’s kick coverage units have done the job this season, but corralling Bush will be their biggest challenge to date.
FINISH THE JOB
Even though Atlanta completely dominated last week, the Chargers still had the ball with a chance to win at the end of the game. The Falcons always seemed to find a way to let San Diego hang around thanks to poor red-zone execution and three turnovers. That can’t happen this week against a Saints offense that is far better than San Diego’s. If that New Orleans offense, which includes big-time playmakers like Drew Brees, Bush and Marques Colston, gets any help from an opposing team, it is going to put up their share of points. That’s why Atlanta needs to make sure it doesn’t give the Saints any extra chances. The receivers need to make plays inside the 20. Last week we saw Brian Finneran fumble deep in the opponent’s territory, we saw a bullet from Ryan hit a surprised Roddy White in the helmet in the end zone, and we saw Ryan miss a wide-open Michael Jenkins for a touchdown. If the birds continue to leave points on the board like that, New Orleans will assuredly make them pay.
Bagriansky can be reached at jbagriansky@scoreatl.com.
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