The Atlanta Falcons had a business-like approach in the days leading up to the wild card game against the Arizona Cardinals and the average Falcons fan thought that they would have a good shot against the high-powered Cardinals offense. Well, things did not go according to plan as Matt Ryan and the rest of the offense struggled to get anything going and ended up with a 30-24 loss to close the 2008 season.
The first quarter was a rough one to say the least as Ryan threw an interception by Ralph Brown on the opening drive, which led to a Kurt Warner 42-yard touchdown pass to Larry Fitzgerald. The second quarter was better as Matt Ryan was able to find his groove with a 14-play, 77-yard drive which ended with a Michael Turner 7-yard touchdown run and struck back again with a 2-yard pass to Justin Peelle to take the 17-14 lead at halftime. The third quarter is what did the Falcons in as Michael Turner fumbled on the first drive and Antrel Rolle returned it for a 27-yard touchdown. Then the Falcons went three-and-out on their next drive and Ryan did not see the field again until the beginning of the fourth quarter. It was in the final quarter that the Falcons showed they had some fight left, as Ryan tried to make a comeback with a touchdown pass to Roddy White to pull within six points. But the defense could not hold the Cardinals offense for one last time and the Falcons never got the ball back.
For Ryan, he had a solid performance, going 26-of-40 with 199 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. He did have his “rookie moments” as he was sacked in the end zone for a safety early in the fourth and overthrew wide open receivers early in the game. But he worked hard to get the Falcons in position to win the game. The Falcons, however, made too many mistakes and committed too many penalties and that was one of the main reasons they came up short on Saturday.
Even though Ryan and the rest of the Falcons are disappointed with the outcome, it was a great season and they should take this as a learning experience. He is one of only two rookies to throw over 3,000 yards in a season, with the other being Peyton Manning. He led the team to 11 wins, which is the fifth time in history that the Falcons had double-digit wins in a season. He deserved his Rookie of the Year selection and should only get better year after year. If the Falcons are able to build the team around Ryan like they have this season, there is no reason why the Falcons can’t win a Super Bowl in the next three years.
Jones can be reached at bjones@scoreatl.com.
Loading ...
