Give them this: The Chicago Bears know how to keep a football game close.
Our beloved Falcons managed to win a game with a mix of an opportunistic defense, an offense that did just enough to win and the continuing revelation that is Eric Weems as a returner. It wasn't pretty from the get-go, but it hardly matters. We're 4-1 and in great shape in a very tough NFC.
This is your post-game thread for all things Falcons and the game in particular. The full recap follows tomorrow, but for now I hope you'll chat about what just happened while I take shock paddles to my chest.
A few things to consider:
- We are watching Thomas DeCoud transform into an excellent safety in front of our eyes. He isn't consistently there yet—there wasn't much to recommend him in the second half—but he had a huge first half with his two picks. Taking this guy off the field would be a mistake.
- This wasn't Matt Ryan's finest hour, but it's a credit to him that his worst performance of the season was still enough to get us the win. He definitely needs to work on his finesse on the deep ball, though.
- After a couple of ho-hum weeks, Tony Gonzalez showed up once more and was invaluable all game long. We just have too many ways to hurt opposing defenses, Gonzo #1A or 2 among them, behind one Roddy White.
- Couldn't be happier with the end result, but I gotta say that emotional roller coaster is exhausting.