What made this game so frustrating was that, in the past few weeks, i felt like we were winning despite Ryan’s performances. This was the first time i felt that he actually single handedly cost us the game.

Yes, Elam has turned into a joke, i know… he shouldn’t be allowed to kick again this year and SURELY he won’t be on the team next year… but i don’t think he cost us the game and the numbers would bear that out. The defense wasn’t amazing, but they tightened up, and if you told me our D at the beginning of the year would give up 28 points in Carolina (some of which wasn’t their fault but rather due to the offense putting them in terrible positions), i’d have said that sounds about right. Our D is a rebuilding unit and they have done exactly what we needed them to do all year long, including this game.

The offense has been an overwhelming disappointment all year (with the exception of vs. SF) and is the reason we are 5-4 instead of 6-3 or 7-2. I’ve said it numerous times on this board and it showed itself again today – they are supposed to be the strength of this team as they are LOADED with talent and depth….and the strength of this team shouldn’t be putting up only 19 points, leaving their D on the field half the game, and making turnovers that set their D up in horrible field position where any D in the league would give up points. It is inexcusable and they are killing us.

And that poor offensive play starts with a QB who has lost his sense of accuracy, developed a habit of terrible decision making, and seems to be an automatic 2 interceptions a week now, usually at the worst imaginable time.

No, i’m not going to be one of these crazy guys who says “Bench Ryan!!!”, but he has been horrible this year and it’s becoming more and more apparent with each game. He needs to pull his head out of his @$$ and start acting like a quarterback or else this year is going to turn into a nightmare fast.

Despite our record, this really has been a season to forget (so far). Harry Douglas out for season before season even starts, Norwood out for most of year so far, now our star tailback is down. Our promising DT in Jerry is out for the year. Elam playing like…..well…..someone not named Elam. Matt Ryan playing inconsistently. Jenkins playing bad at times.

I didn’t get to watch the game, but my dad said one of Elam’s missed kicks was because him and Koenen weren’t on the same page and it threw him off. He said Elam and Koenen were jawing it out on the sidelines for a good while even after that was over.

My dad also said we choked pretty hard. From what I understand, we were in position to win the game but decided to take a 40 yard pass downfield instead of doing what we do best (dink and dunk) and the long pass was picked off. Whoever chose that play chose the wrong one.

but it is appropriate to evaluate technique and fundamentals when there is consistently poor play.
-we aren’t making throws downfield nearly like we did last season

-on most passing plays ryan checks down to TG or a running back, and short passes are the vast majority of his completions

-he is continuing to flee the pocket before it has collapsed

-for five consecutive weeks he has thrown into double, triple, and quadruple coverage

i’m not saying he isn’t the future or we should ditch him, but this is my point:
we always hear everyone praise his work ethic and film watching, but after more than a month of fleeing the pocket and getting happy feet before the pocket has even collapsed, why is he still running to the sideline and throwing it away on a three man rush that hadn’t yet reached him? he looks terrified back there…
at what point does this get critiqued publically, and when will he begin to stand in there and throw in the pocket like an nfl qb? it only happens a few times per game.
there have been multiple times each week where he could have had all day in the pocket, just stand in there and let someone come open, but he runs off after just a few seconds, or sprints towards the line of scrimmage and gets tackled by a lineman for no gain, with no time for things to develop and no apparent rush.
that’s a legitimate problem.

for the love of god, will someone on this site agknowledge that he looks scared out of his mind, because i feel like i’m taking crazy pills.
it’s not just that he is making ‘mistakes’, but that his general play is suspect for the majority of the season. come on.
he is the future but he is not beyond criticism.

Sophomore Slump or not, his play is killing us. The first few games of the season I just chalked up to knocking the rust off. He is making so many ridiculous errors that I can’t believe my eyes. How do you continuously throw into double and triple coverage when you have open men down field or underneath? We have a QB problem if you want to admit it or not. There is no way we can hope this guy at this point in his career could carry the team if one of our stars go down.

We need to take the play to Jenkins out of the playbook. Both picks were on high passes to Jenkins and I’m pretty sure that same play has cost us a turnover in another game this year. Just kill it because obviously Matt Ryan doesn’t have it down.

matty is our starting qb now and in the future, but for those interested, here is a breakdown of his numbers for the past 5 weeks:

96/175 54%
1031 Yds 206.2 Ypg 5.89 Ypa
7 TD 10 Int
61.8 QB Rating

i know he’ll improve, but it would be tough to win games for ANY team getting that kind of production out of the QB spot

Ryan has regressed this year, no two ways about it. Yes, it is year 2, and no, this doesn’t mean he’s doomed to be Ryan Leaf. It just means that he is not playing as well this year as he did last year.

As others have said, he is flushing from the pocket early, and making poor decisions, throwing into coverage. He is also keying on TG too much. What is worse is that he is fading on his throws when he anticipates contact, which is never a good thing. It also suggests he is either hurt or a little intimidated. For now, I’m going with hurt, as Ryan has not given me a reason to think he’s a wimp.

I’m not sure that Elam can still kick at an NFL level. His range is down to no more than 52 yards, which is not good enough for the NFL, and we all know about his accuracy issues this year. Yes, it looked like the timing was off between he and Koenan on the miss, but hey, an NFL kicker is supposed to be able to overcome a false half-step. The snap was perfect and the hold was good too. Elam simply gacked. An NFL kicker should be able to make a 35 yarder from the middle of the field in perfect weather, even if the ball is snapped slightly later than anticipated.

As for the schedule, only Buffalo and TB at home seem to be clear wins, the way the team is playing now, especially if Turner is out any length of time. We still have to go to the Giants and Jets, and get Philly and the Saints at home. I’m sorry to say it, but I could see the Falcons possibly losing all four of those games. That’s 8 losses right there. On the optimistic side, there’s no one left on the schedule that appears absolutely unbeatable (even the Saints at home can be done).

I’ve not given up hope yet, but today’s loss has shaken my faith.

I was baffled by that play calling when he threw his 2nd interception. You need to eat some clock and get either a touchdown or a field goal so you don’t have to worry about giving the Panthers the ball back with the final possession. So what do we do? BOMB IT DOWNFIELD!!! As soon as he let that ball go i was screaming “Nooo!”, because whether he completes it or not, it didn’t make any sense. If it’s completed, we’re right next to the goal line and we’re gonna give the Panthers a few minutes to hold the ball for a final score.

The play calling gets all the more senseless when the person you are asking to throw it has been having accuracy problems all day and has already thrown one horrible interception (and seems to be averaging a couple a game now). No matter what angle you view it from, it didn’t make any sense.

Yes, he had a bad game today, and yes he’s been struggling lately. But let’s have some perspective on the situation he found hmself in today. First the defense allows a 2-score lead early in the game; then the player who should form the crux of the offensive attack in that game goes out with an injury. Now the Falcons are basically down to a single running back and are forced to rely on the passing game to orchestrate a comeback against one of the best pass defense in the league. If you are aware of a second-year quarterback who wouldn’t look shaky in that situation, then by all means let’s trade Ryan for that guy.

Again, I’m not saying that Ryan didn’t have a bad game. I’m just saying that the amount of heat he seems to be taking is unfair; the Falcons had a weak game all around against a Carolina team that played at full capacity and made virtually no mistakes. Even with all that, Ryan was able to theoretically get us back in the lead, barring a ridiculous missed FG. I get as frustrated as anyone when we aren’t winnning, but making Ryan a scapegoat is just not right, to say nothing of the absurd notion that he “single-handedly” lost the game.

And in any case, we Falcons fans must be the most bipolar fans in the world! When we win a game, we’re unstoppable; when we lose a game, we’re hopeless. Today’s game was a tough game that could have gone either way, and this time the Panthers got the better of us, but we’re still sitting on a 5-4 record with an easier schedule ahead than the one that got us here. If those of us who claimed that we would consider a 9-7 record or better a successful season were being honest, we have no reason to be down on the team or on individual players like this right now. I still feel good about the Falcons and the direction they’re headed, and I look forward to having everyone agree with me again next week after we crush the Giants :-)

First question the Falcons awful play calling than question the QB. The Falcons make every opponent’s pass defense look like the best in the history of the NFL. Sorry to say but I’d prefer a new offensive coordinator, been saying it all season.

I’m not the only person on here who feels like they are taking “crazy pills” with no one being willing to call a spade a spade and put some light on Matty Ice’s regression this year. Happy feet, abandoning the pocket due to the phantom rush, multiple egregious overthrows and interceptions every game – yikes!

I am the biggest Matty Ice fan but I am seriously concerned now. Not saying he’s headed for but territory or anything but I wonder if the hype has him trying to do to much. Just saying that I can’t open up GQ Mag or go to cnnsi.com without seing a baby-faced Matty Ice plastered all over the place in those Gillette ads.

Maybe we should let him lead us to back-to-back winning seasons and (pretty, pretty please) a return visit to the postseason before we let the league office annoint him the next coming of Brady and Manning.

Next week at the Giants is now essentially an elimination game for one of the two wild-card spots.

if turner didn’t have a breakout year. I really think that the playbook hasn’t opened up for ryan because it always seems he’s playing safe….or playing scared. I knew that being without douglas was going to be a problem because there’s no speed guy in the slot. And now that norwood is out there is no real speed out there except maybe roddy white. And I guess Eric Weems is just a special teams guy and not a receiver to count on.

I honestly don’t think Ryan is as comfortable in the pocket as he used to be and that is something he has to get over. If the falcons are going anywhere his play and leadership has to mature.

But, i also think the play calling on the drive that caused the interception was crazy. You’re on the 50 with 5 minutes left and you want to throw it down field? Snelling was doing great i thought. Which brings me to this question…..Why do the falcons decide to throw the ball when the occasion calls for running the ball? This happened in the saints game. What happened to the no huddle? Why do they tease us with this powerful offense that makes mediocre defenses look good?

So, I think as Falcons fans, we’re a very tired bunch. We’ve had to put up with more b.s. than just about any fan base in the league, and it’s made worse by the fact that we have repeatedly been handed these apparent “lights at the end of the tunnel” that have turned into false promises. Jeff George, Jamal Anderson, Michael Vick, etc. Every time we think we have a leader or a franchise player, that player ends up a bust who breaks our hearts. It’s a much worse situation than, say, a Cleveland Browns fan, because as bad as they are, they don’t have to deal with false hope year after year…. they know they’re gonna suck and that’s just how it goes. it is insane, unfair, and wrong that we’ve had to wait 43 years for a SB championship, and the manner in which we’ve had to wait has been quite cruel.

So, having said that, everyone is now terrified that Matt Ryan is just going to be another situation of having the rug pulled out from under us. And some of us even expect it to happen because, hey, we’re Falcons fans… that’s just what happens to us. If you believe in “sports curses”, the Falcons are undeniably a cursed team. (I would argue that all Atlanta teams are, but that’s a topic for another post). But I think that fear is skewing the way a lot of us are approaching this situation.

On the one hand, some of us are overreacting based on our “less than encouraging” experience as fans of this team. We’re tempted to throw our hands in the air and declare him a bust because based on history, we think we’re just predestined to fail. But just because the franchise has a horrible history, that doesn’t mean it applies to Ryan. So for all of us who are saying “oh, here we go again” (and i’m among those tempted to do that), let’s have a little patience and not let the past ruin the future before it’s even written. He’s young and he’s very gifted.

On the other hand, I think there are some of us who are so afraid of things going south for the 100th time that we’re in denial. We’re terrified that this is going to turn into yet another cruel twist of fate, so we’re trying to find ANYTHING to blame other than the cornerstone of the franchise… and I get that. But let’s not pretend the guy isn’t totally sucking right now. He is. He lost the game today, and it’s just that simple. There were other elements of the game that didn’t work they way they should, but RYAN LOST THIS GAME. That doesn’t mean he’s a bust, it doesn’t mean he’s not gonna be a great QB in this league, and it doesn’t mean the Falcons don’t have a bright future. But let’s not deny reality based on what we’re afraid of happening or what we want to be true.

I think the bottom line is that we all have to remember (a.) we have a winning record and (b.) we have 7 games left. So let’s wait and see how the season unfolds before we start either exempting or condemning Ryan. I’m saying this as much to myself as anyone since i’m a very scarred fan and tend to want to condemn him, which I think would be unwise.

I want to be the one guy who actually defends the play calling on that second interception. There’s a difference between a poorly-executed play (which this was) and a poorly-conceived play (which I believe this was not). The Falcons hadn’t really gone deep all game and if they catch them off guard on the first play of that drive, they can rely on the run to try and bang in the touchdown without having to face a do-or-die offensive situation (i.e., having to go for it on 4th down again), and if they can’t do that then they’re still in field goal range. Yeah they’d probably have left some time on the clock and would have had to come back and play defense for one more possession (gasp!), but getting a stop isn’t any more challenging than converting a series of first downs for a long, slow drive. It was a bold call that didn’t work out but it wasn’t the terrible idea that it’s being made out to be.

Heck, as long as I’m running my credibility into the ground I’ll even defend Ryan’s decision-making right there. Sure Gonzo is double covered, but it was Ryan’s overthrow that caused the interception, not the coverage—Gonzo was in good position to make the catch and the defenders had no chance of deflecting the pass had it been on target. It was a bad throw, not a bad look, and bad throws are much easier to correct for the future. A year or two down the road he’ll be hitting that pass with regularity.

Okay, play calling has sucked. Quarterback play has sucked. Michael Jenkins has sucked.

We need a new OC. Changes are good.

Turner didn’t start running with intensity until they started looking seriously for another back.

I was doing a little bit of thinking on Ryan. The first 5 games, he was sacked twice and played awesome. I can’t tell you off the top of my head how many times he was sacked in the previous 3 (before today). But I am thinking that has something to do with it. He’s taken a few too many hits over the past few weeks and it’s gotten to his head. I think a no sack game today, and keep him off the ground next week and we should start seeing something better soon. A little more maturity would probably fix it as well, but you can’t get a few years experience in a few weeks.

Turner, I hope to god that is not a high ankle sprain. This team needs him and the way he was playing today to make a playoff (or finish above .500). He was possessed today before that happened. Outran 2 of the best backs in the league. I hope atleast norwood is back next week. Him and snelling could fill turner’s hole.

I really don’t understand the play calling on that first drive either. Turner just ran for almost 60 yards in 2 plays and you throw three straight. And I am starting to wonder why we cleaned house on defense over the off season. I could see letting a few of the older guys go, Brooking, Miloy. But some of the other guys should have been kept around til lthe younger guys were really ready to play.

Matt Ryan has played one awesome game this season, and that was against the 49ers. Other than that he’s been mediocre at best. Maybe after possible losses to the Giants, Eagles, and Saints at home will people be ready to openly discuss Matt Ryan as our problem on offense. I see us finishing 9-7.

Given the talent thats around him its kind of hard to explain why he’s performing so badly.

Only thing that came to mind is that maybe were asking too much of him in the gameplan. The most notable change philosophy wise is that were putting the ball in his hands. The biggest change position wise is that we’ve surrounded him with a all-pro TE.

To blame anything on Ryan alone is ridiculous. You certainly can’t say Ryan “lost” the game for us until he plays every position on the field. Anybody who says that has never played a team sport, or had a crappy coach (all good coaches remind players of the team concept — you win as a team, you lose as a team).

Let’s look at his numbers: his TD rate is up this year. His yardage rate is close to last year, but it’s a little lower. His sack rate is up. His completion percentage is slightly less than last year. The most glaring stat, the one everyone talks about, is the interception rate — way up.

So even though he’s throwing fewer completions for fewer yards, he’s throwing for more TDs (he threw 16 all of last year and is at 14 right now). What this means to me is that the team has come to rely on him more to provide scoring.

If you look carefully at the way Falcons games have been played this year, Ryan is effective and dangerous when in a ball-control game. Think about the first drive against the Saints — it was brutally effective.

What happens is that the defense has been putting pressure on the offense to produce — nobody expects the D to win the game for us. So we get in a shootout, or we get behind, and I think Ryan feels the need to come up with a big play. And he will throw more TDs this year than last, by a long shot. He’s just going to throw more interceptions as well.

For me, this is not a question at all of whether or not Matt Ryan will be a great QB, or if there is something “wrong” with him. It’s a question of what minor tweaks need to be made to get things back on track. Regardless, every game will be a struggle — after all, it’s the NFL and there’s a lot of parity (outside of New Orleans and Indy). Sometimes the breaks will go our way and sometimes they won’t — last year, we wouldn’t have made the playoffs without that great, lucky throw against the Bears. Yes, it takes skill, but things also have to fall your way, and when we’re putting more pressure on a 2nd-year QB, he’s going to make some mistakes.

Sure, I’m frustrated, especially by all the injuries. But I guarantee that Ryan is still going to light some defenses up this year. One of these games, everything will go right again, and everyone will forget all about this “bench Matt Ryan” crap.