What Falcons Fans Are Saying Before The Game

[Merlin]

 

[jrry32]

And Chris Thompson killed them on RB screens. I have a feeling that's gonna be huge in this game. Gotta get Free and Coleman out in space isolated on their LBs. I think that will be the key to victory. That's pretty much been the tried and true strategy to beat a Wade Phillips defense. New England had success with it. We had success with it playing Denver last year.

Now granted, Wade isn't an idiot and he's probably preparing for such a gameplan, which means we could get favorable matchups with Julio and Gabe if the defense commits to stopping Free and Teco.

3 catches for 29 yards?

 

[Merlin]

 

[Merlin]

 

[Legatron4]

3 catches for 29 yards?

For real. The dumbest thing you can do when gameplanning in the playoffs is taking games in the beginning of the year with anything other then a grain of salt. We are a completely different team from week 2.

I have a friend who’s a Falcons fan. He’s terrified of the Rams. Says they were the last team besides Minnesota he wanted to play. Mostly because of Gurley. But knows Goff has been great this year. I can’t understand how fans always think their team is invincible.

 

[dolphinlover123]

Refs for #1

 

[Mackeyser]

Does the experience that Wade Phillips brings count for anything? I guess not....

Color me tired of hearing about "experience".
- The 1999 Rams had no experience
- Tom Brady had no experience in 2001 (man that hurts to type!)
- Buffalo had a LOT of experience yet lost 4 Super Bowls in a row!
- The Vikings in years gone by had "experience" yet lost Super Bowls and playoff games
- etc
- etc
What an "easy button" narrative of lazy journalism

I think having 'tree able to tackle with both arms (assuming he's recovered from the hyper extension) will be significant. Having Barron able to play would be huge as well.

Having an OL healed up should pay dividends. Gotta like seeing big Whit as well as Saffold and Brown downfield blocking.

As the Falcons creep up to support the run, it feels like this game is asking for the seam routes to be pulled out of retirement. Don't recall many of those over the last 3-4 games.

The minute they're content to keep that safety in the box, I fully expect Goff to connect on a long pass to Watkins. And to keep doing it until they move that safety.

I really think we're going to see something special for Sammy and maybe... something for Tavon.

Just a hunch.

Last time I felt this way, we handled the Saints. And this team has improved every week.

 

[Memphis Ram]

View: https://twitter.com/WatchStadium/status/949315254801977345

 

[Prime Time]

https://www.thefalcoholic.com/2018/...imes-rams-falcons-playoffs-todd-gurley-gurley

Interrogating the enemy: Five questions with Turf Show Times
We talk with the enemy to get the skinny on the new look Los Angeles Rams ahead of tonight’s playoff game against the Atlanta Falcons.
By Matthew Chambers

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Do you smell that in the air? It’s the sweet, sweet smell of playoffs. For Atlanta Falcons fans, it’s been 12 long months since they’ve seen a playoff berth. (For the Saints, it was 2013, but who is counting?) The Falcons battle the St. Louis Los Angeles Rams later today, and we need the expert info. Like, how is Jeff Fisher orchestrating this impressive season with Nick Foles at quarterback? :eek:

We talked to Joseph McAtee of Turf Show Times, SB Nation’s awesome Rams blog. He gave us the lowdown on his Rams, and what he expects to see later today.

1) How much does the lack of experience worry you? It feels like one of those things that’s easy to blow out of proportion, but I know there’s only six Rams who have been here before, and that feels like it might be a factor. Any players in particular you worry about under the bright lights (cough, Sam Ficken, cough)?

On scale of 1 to 10...more than 1. I think it’s situational though. If the Rams get off to a good start on offense, it may be one of those soft spots that doesn’t get pressured. If, on the other hand, we get mired in a back-and-forth with bright spots on both sides of the ball for both teams and we get well into the 3rd quarter or the 4th and it’s a really close game? That’s where it would get closer to 7 or 8 on that scale for me.

Cause whether it’s K Sam Ficken joining the roster in Week 16 or HC Sean McVay coaching his first playoff game or QB Jared Goff who’s yet to marshal a major game-winning drive of the kind of late game heroics we ascribe to the transcendent QBs, there’s a ton of Rams involved in what could be game-deciding moments that haven’t been involved in many of them.

2) So, how would you stop Todd Gurley? Assume you have a solid but unspectacular run defense and absolutely no barbed wire will be allowed. Asking for, well, me.

The real key is to negate his effect in the passing game.

As good as he’s been on the ground this year surpassing 1,300 rushing yards in just 15 starts, it was his passing game viability that really had the bigger impact. Gurley racked up 788 yards on 64 catches through 87 targets and many of those were just backbreaking plays of two kinds. One, there’s the screen game for the Rams which has been devastating for teams to defend against. It’s not just Gurley’s athleticism and top-end speed both of which are very impressive. It’s that a well-timed screen negates a blitz.

If you throw five or six defenders into the pass rush and the screen just goes right over their heads, that’s the kind of play that defensive coordinators have to adjust to. It affirms the risk level of calling a blitz. And if the DC gets away from blitzing often, well now you’ve made it easier for the Rams to protect Goff in standard passing plays.

The other aspect of Gurley’s impact in the passing game has been downfield work, either up the seam or on wheel routes. He’s just an incredible athlete with acceptable hands as a receiver. Getting him in space never ends up badly for the Rams.

So it’s not that he’s easy to stop. But if you’re going to stop the bleeding on one of these wounds, it’s his impact in the passing game where has cut the deepest.

3) I think we’re all focused on Gurley, but I’m plenty nervous about the passing attack. What’s behind the resurgence for Los Angeles, and who do the Falcons have to worry about most on Sunday?

It’s a couple of things: system, application and diversity.

The system that HC Sean McVay has brought in has made it much easier for Goff to have success by getting most of the work done pre-snap. While much was made of the communication between the two to diagnose defenses and how that somehow lightens the load on Goff, it really has required the two to understand the offensive system and apply it consistently against differing defensive looks.

The key is to isolate the flashpoint of the playcall so that Goff doesn’t really have to make difficult reads. It lessens the need for him to diagnose things pre-snap, and that’s why he’s been able to avoid bad decisions so regularly and limit turnovers.

And yes, Goff deserves credit for running that system appropriately. It’s worth remembering how we all were thinking of Goff a year ago this time. After waiting out more than half the season to start 7 games and go winless throwing just 155 yards a game while tossing just a handful of touchdowns to seven interceptions, many had already thrown Goff into the dustbin of failed top QB draft picks.

But McVay was able to come in and put a system in place for him to flourish and the front office put a TON of new pieces in place on the starting offense that have all clicked. This year, he’s thrown the same number of interceptions, but he’s thrown 23 more touchdowns and about 100 more yards per game.

But lastly, it’s all the weapons around Goff that the Rams use frequently. There is no go-to guy. There’s no target that the Rams force it to in close conditions. And that’s kind of what makes it work. You have to cover WR Sammy Watkins. And WR Robert Woods. And WR Cooper Kupp. And TE Tyler Higbee. And TE Gerald Everett. And RB Todd Gurley. There’s just so much quantity-wise to cover because the Rams are sincere about employing all of them.

So between those three factors, the Rams have turned the worst scoring offense to the best scoring offense in the span of a single season for the first time in the modern NFL era. It’s just not supposed to be possible, but they’ve pulled it off.

4) If you were building an offensive gameplan to attack the Rams, what would it look like? How do you keep Aaron Donald out of the backfield, specifically?

So I think you start with the latter and accept that you don’t keep him out of the backfield. That means you have to do two things. Run at him to keep him from overpursuing and work your quarterback to the outside unless you have a mobile QB who can escape pressure up the middle. That’s a good start.

The real holes for the Rams are the natural pass rush from the edge and Alec Ogletree’s run defense. The Rams’ starting OLBs in Robert Quinn and Connor Barwin just haven’t been individually good enough to live up to the billing of the great pass rushers in the defenses coached by Defensive Coordinator Wade Phillips.

And while the Rams as a whole have gotten pressure and piled up sacks, it’s been the collective design and coverage sacks more than a constant, haranguing rush from the OLBs on their own. So if you can force the Rams to bring extra defenders to support the pass rush, you can at least create more space downfield.

And as good as Ogletree is sideline-to-sideline and as athletic as he is as a pass defender and as valuable as he is as a leader and the defense’s quarterback in calling out assignments, he does have a major flaw in his run defense. He isn’t great at shedding blocks, he’s not overly physical and he’s not a great tackler. But he does so many other things well and paired with Mark Barron, they form a strong ILB pair who can work off of each other’s strengths.

5) This is your first playoff berth in years (congrats, by the way), but I can’t imagine a one and done is what you’re hoping for.

No. No it is not. You never know when you’re going to be back here again. Whether it’s a Super Bowl or the wild card round of the playoffs, there’s no certainty to return. In fact...you guys are the only team to make the playoffs last year in the NFC and make it this year.

So while I’m ecstatic at how quickly the Rams made good on the potential so many of us have felt they were sitting on for years, there are going to be plenty of teams who put a target on the Rams’ back in 2018. As great as this year’s been, if we bow out in this round, it’ll feel a bit incomplete.

And while that kind of unfinished business can be the primary factor for motivating a team to get back into the mix and close out that gap, it’s also something many teams fail every single year. So let’s just have the Rams win the Super Bowl and then we won’t have to worry about it.

BONUS: Do the Rams win this game? If so, what’s the score, and why?

I’m gonna run with my inner bias and say that the Rams’ offense really comes out clicking in the first half and puts enough points on the board to let them glide through a contentious second half, somewhat like our win over the Saints though I think the Rams get another scoring drive in. So I’ll go with a final score of 30-23, but I could see the 4th quarter getting very nail-bitey.
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They can imagine all they want
but a one and done is what they’re getting for the new year. But be proud of that one and done, very few thought you’d have this kind of success.
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The Rams will be tough
But my number one defensive counter is to put one of our great linebackers on Todd Gurley man-to-man all day. He can’t get to the secondary and he can’t be a screen guru. Once he gets in space he is dangerous. I’m hoping we will see a lot of man coverage all over the field tonight. Our secondary has been covering top receivers like a blanket and that is real nice.

So glad they are peaking at the right time. Meanwhile, the key to our offense is to focus and play with professionalism on EVERY play. Stupid mistakes have negated most big plays all season. They are getting better each week but now is the time to start looking as good as they ARE.

https://www.thefalcoholic.com/2018/...or-the-falcons-rams-wild-card-weekend-matchup

Final score predictions for the Falcons - Rams Wild Card weekend matchup
We’re cautiously optimistic that the Falcons will keep their season alive today.
By Dave Choate

Matt Chambers
Falcons 36 - Rams 34

This may be wishful thinking, as I’m clearly expecting the offense to produce more points than they have in any game this season. The Rams offense seems to score at ease, and can easily toss up 30 points on a good defense.

I think Atlanta has the better roster, but it’s tough to give them the edge on playcallers with Wade Phillips and Sean McVay helping the Rams to a dominant season. Even while being optimistic, I think the score remains close. The Rams are a very good team, but Atlanta’s roster and playoff experience should give them a small edge.

Caleb Rutherford
Falcons 30 - Rams 29

IF the Falcons were going to win a playoff game at all, it was going to be this one. You don’t have to go back far to remember a complete dismantling of the Rams at the hands of the Falcons, though both these teams have seen their fortunes changed in the months since their last matchup. The Rams defense is scary, but it has one notable flaw: run defense.

It’s probably too late to expect a transformation from the Falcons passing game, but if we can stay ahead of schedule on early downs and grind out this game, we can absolutely win this one. Of course, that’s easier said than done. The “Rule of 20” (10-0) will likely go by the wayside for this matchup.

We’ll need at least 25, maybe 30 points to stand a chance, but in the end I think the Falcons’ valuable playoff experience prevents them from folding against a team that probably isn’t quite as good as it looks.

Cory Woodroof
Falcons 28 - Rams 27

I’ll concur with the good gentleman above me and keep this one within a point. The playoffs are a weird place where weird things happen, and it’s just hard to really gauge where the pendulum will swing with how your team will do (unless you’re the Patriots, which bleh). The Falcons haven’t been as good as the Rams have been this season, but the Falcons have a plethora of playoff experience, and the Rams barely have any.

Not to mention, since 2013, teams with a green playoff QB are 1-10 (the only winner was former Texans QB Brock Lobster, who played a bad team that shouldn’t have been in the playoffs, so that doesn’t count). So, age comes before beauty, perhaps?

The Rams’ killer regular season evens itself out with the Falcons’ postseason experience, and we get a real schoolyard brawl. In the end, the Falcons sneak out with a win, and live to see the Eagles in a game that could, somehow, propel them to the NFC Championship. How’s that for weird?

Eric Robinson
Falcons 30 - Rams 26

Let me say first and foremost that the Rams are a team on the rise and while likely be a repeat playoff team for the next several seasons. Just like in the Carolina game, the run game on both sides will be under the microscope. Rams running back Todd Gurley is a force and led all running backs in total touchdowns with 19. His success (or lack of) will dictate a lot for the Falcons.

The Rams are 28th in rushing defense and 30th in yards allowed per carry so Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman must be an ultra-important part of the game plan. In this one, I think the Falcons playoff experience plays a huge part and the defense rises up and makes a few extra plays against a Rams offense that is hot. A possible deep playoff run starts here.

Dave Choate
Falcons 24 - Rams 21

Such is my belief in this defense’s recent resurgence that I’m willing to predict that they’ll hold the Rams to just three touchdowns (and maybe a missed field goal or two). It will be the offense’s job to manage 20+ points, something they haven’t always managed in recent weeks.

If the defense plays well and the offense doesn’t shoot itself in the foot, this is an eminently winnable game, albeit one that’s likely to be hard-fought and come down to the wire. I believe, though.
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TurnOvers and Defense
If we don’t turn the ball over and our D limits explosive plays we win the game.
INTs or fumbles will kill us if not.
This game has shades of LDs Chargers who were so good during the regular season but could not win in the playoffs.
ATL 24 – LA 23
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Falcons 31 - LA 17
I do not believe this will be as close as people think. I can see Atlanta easily moving the ball on Rams defense, and holding LA at bay with their ever improving D
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Falcons 38 – Rams 17
They finally get their rhythm going, avoid mistakes, and have the refs and lady luck on their side.
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Falcons: 20+ Rams: very little
Maybe I’m just fooling myself but I have felt confident all week long. That genuine gut feeling hasn’t diminished at all.

I agree with everyone that this is an imperfect team but on this day…on this day we will be perfect.
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Falcons 26-24
The Rams will have to go for it on 4th down more often in long FG range. So I see their drives being more boom or bust with a chip shot thrown in somewhere. The Falcons will end up settling for more FGs in the red zone, but will maintain the lead. The Rams will have one last attempt, but a long FG try will come up short or wide. Falcons survive and move on!
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Falcons 27, Rams 17
I think the Falcons will handle the Rams from beginning to end. The game will be a blowout until a garbage time touchdown. Our team speed on defense will rattle LAR. Everybody’s picking the Rams because they are cute and up and coming but Damn It we’re here Right Now. We’re hungry and ready to punch them right in the mouth. Turn em’ loose Quinn and leave no doubt.
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I Love the Optimism
But I wouldn’t bet on us if I were a gambling man. If the offense shows up then I think we win. I’ve been waiting too long for that to think it’s gonna happen in the playoffs.
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Rams are at home, basically just had a bye, and have best offense. They match up well at our weakness. Donald on wes and Ben!?!?
Gurley on our run defense and tackling?!?!
Pharaoh returning kicks against our special teams?!?!
Their offensive line has no injuries and their secondary ain’t bad.

Sorry, we don’t look "super" this year.

One touchdown per half , and in a field goal right before half, after a turnover, and late in the game.
Falcons 23 , Rams 28
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i'm pretty negative about this game and I was going to write up some comments but nobody is going to like what I really think. I’ll just simply say that I think the Rams will win. I hope I’m wrong. And I’ll say that if the Falcons prove me wrong I’m willing to get on the bandwagon again because nobody in the NFC other than Rams looks to me like a team that the Falcons can’t beat, but I just don’t think they can beat the Rams. Bad luck to get them first in the playoffs.
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This is the 6th time in Ryan's career we have made the playoffs
The first three we were 1 and done. The last 2 we won at least 1 game. I think we keep things symmetrical and follow the three 0-1 appearances with three at least 1-0… I feel like Ryan has figured out how to win in the playoffs, and that’s worth something. He puts the team on his back and gets it done tonight.

After a string of bad games to start out, he’s been pretty dang good in January… Hopefully we finally have a defense to back him up, because I feel this will be the offenses most efficient day of the season. I think we get up around 27. Rams are super explosive, but we’ve only given up more than that once and the defense is very good at keeping teams out of the endzone.
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20-10 Falcons at half
42-19 Final whistle b/c why the f not.
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Old Timers like me hate the Rams. Even through all their trials and tribulations, moves, and their relegation to obscurity, they are still hated divisional rivals who used to destroy any faint playoff hopes we might have had. Payback is hell.

Key is YAC for Gurley. I am looking at you linebacking corps. You can not be dragged Worrilow-like, yards down the field.
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I think we will need to revive the Legend of 32 to win this one.
I don’t see us holding the Rams to significantly less points than they score on average. I could see us winning it if we put up points into the high 20s, but I won’t sweat so much in the 4th quarter if we manage to break 30 points.

 

[Ram65]

Bad matchup for Rams
Our defense is built to stop teams like the Rams. Plus our wide receivers are going to play well against their secondary. Also rams run defense is not good. Look for Freeman and Coleman to be the ones to take us to victory
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That's some nice optimism.
Todd Gurley played 15 games this year. He had over 2,000 all purpose yards and 19 touchdowns. He’s Tevin Coleman and Devonta Freeman if the two of them were one guy. And if we’re honestly, he’s actually a little better than that. He should probably be the league MVP.

In what world is this Falcons defense built to stop an offense built around such a dominant back? This Falcons defense struggles with strong and versatile backs, and Gurley is the best back in the league by a wide margin.

Yes, it’s possible the Falcons can load the box and keep Gurley to 80-85 yards rushing, but we shouldn’t fool ourselves into thinking they’re built to do that. Because they’re not. They’re undersized and they get pushed around a fair amount. And even if they keep Gurley more or less contained, Goff made major strides this season—28 touchdowns to 7 interceptions in 15 games.

The Falcons defense is not untalented. But the Rams are a team that runs the ball extraordinarily well, throws the ball well (very effectively using the running back in the passing game) and that protects the ball extremely well. This is the antithesis of the offense this Falcons defense was built to stop.

he Falcons do have trouble with mobile quarterbacks.
They also have trouble tackling in space and have been abused by several different running backs, particularly in the second half of close games. They also struggle covering running backs in the passing game (according to Football Outsiders, they’re 21st in the league). It’s not a great matchup for the Falcons defense.

You’re right that the Falcons offense has had trouble taking advantage of a couple favorable bits of field position that they were finally gifted by the defense in the last couple weeks. Sark’s red zone playcalling has been a problem for a lot of the year, and it was never so on display as in the New Orleans game.

I'm trying to figure out just how good this Falcons defense is. I sure don't believe they will put 8-9 men in the box to start. That will play into the Rams hand. Rams throw more and that's what Goff wants to see so he can throw the ball. This isn't last years Rams. The Rams mix in some runs to keep them honest. Rams have to keep them off balance and use their size topen holes for Gurley. You read the Falcon fan saying put 8-9 guys in the box but, that won't work.

I know there are fans out there that have been down on Matt Ryan and Steve Sarkisian, but I read something that surprised me. Everybody is saying Ryan is having a bad year, but Sark has generally put them in position to make plays.

Here’s something – the Falcons led the league in drops this season with 28. Only 11 last season. Just something I thought I’d throw out there. You probably knew this but maybe not all the masses. It’s not on Matt or Sark. I’m not sure how many of these turned into interceptions but these are plays the receivers generally made last year. Anyway, we are in and the defense has totally stepped up this year.

I wondered how many drops this year. Is it because they went to the SB and teams are hitting harder while playing tighter defense. Rams hit hard and all fly to the ball. I hope they keep dropping passes.

 

[den-the-coach]

Wade Phillips has beaten every team he used to coach for this year, time for him to add another.

 

[Loyal]

So after we win tonight, can they use the lack of experience BS to say we won't win in Minneapolis?

Cuz then 53 guys will have had it.

 

[Merlin]

I have a friend who’s a Falcons fan. He’s terrified of the Rams. Says they were the last team besides Minnesota he wanted to play. Mostly because of Gurley.

Recall seeing a stat that the Falcons have sucked balls vs pass catching RBs all season. Some are saying they will put Jones (their speedy ILB) on shadow duties. I say bring it on and look forward to wide open TEs and other routes across the middle.

Rams gonna spank that @$$.

 

[T-REX]

Rams are at home, basically just had a bye, and have best offense. They match up well at our weakness. Donald on wes and Ben!?!?
Gurley on our run defense and tackling?!?!
Pharaoh returning kicks against our special teams?!?!
Their offensive line has no injuries and their secondary ain’t bad.

Sorry, we don’t look "super" this year.