The Colts have a new Offensive Coordinator in Rob Chudzinski, and he coached the offense to a good game in which it took care of the football, not committing a single turnover after having seven the prior two games.
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Nov 22, 2015; Atlanta, GA, US; Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones (11) tries to break a tackle by Indianapolis Colts defensive back Dwight Lowery (33) during the first half at the Georgia Dome. “A great, great team win and we will enjoy it for the next 24 hours and then move on”.
Ryan found fullback Patrick DiMarco on a 15-yard pass to put the Falcons up 7-0 at the end of the first quarter. Hasselbeck completed all four of his attempts on the Colts’ final drive, setting up kicker Adam Vinatieri’s game-winning field goal.
Atlanta Falcons head coach Dan Quinn is facing his toughest test since becoming head coach. As a result, the Colts have won two of their last three games.
“I don’t look at those as, ‘man we’re struggling, ‘” Shanahan said in the days before the Colts game. Since the 1970 NFL-AFL merger, 66 of 72 teams – a staggering 92 percent – have gone on to the postseason after getting off to such a strong start, according to STATS. The Colts have won three of their last four against the Falcons and are 4-1 against the spread in their last five in this series. The Colts will take on Tampa Bay in a home game this week.
At 6-4, the Falcons playoff chances are dwindling with each loss. Matt Ryan doesn’t jump offsides or have holding penalties.
Vinatieri completed the improbable comeback with a 43-yard field goal with 52 seconds remaining. Gore led the way with 34 yards on 14 carries while Bradshaw added 32 yards on nine total rushes. (Yes, we just applied that tag to someone who isn’t white.) But the Falcons needed way more than a slot receiver. But on Sunday, Hasselbeck wasn’t the one keeping the Falcons defense in check or forcing four turnovers ( he did infact have two bad interceptions). Not with Sean Renfree as the top backup. “But there’s a lot of things he’s doing well, too”. He has 24 yards, three catches, no touchdowns.
But that doesn’t excuse some huge blunders.
Ryan tried to throw a short pass to tight end Jacob Tamme in the middle of the field.
Ryan never saw him, Jackson picked off the pass at the 6, and brought it back for a pick-six that happened in the blink of an eye. Some of the problems were tied to bad exchanges, QB-center or QB-running back.
“It’s a throw he just should not have made, one he could’ve easily checked down into the flat”, Quinn said. Throwing to him every down, however, is not a smart decision.
This game had a different feeling to it as it progressed so perhaps it’s best to let Marcus Dungan recap this one.
The loss ruined DiMarco’s career day.
There may not be a team in the division that wins 10 games, but they are peaking at the right time and aside from name brands, what is really the difference between the AFC South and NFC East?
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The Falcons got the ball back with 47 seconds left, but couldn’t drive into field-goal range. But the moment was overshadowed by the bitter defeat. Once you give those players an opportunity to shine, they will.
