Since we’re all watching football today, I have some thoughts on the Giants and the Falcons.
First, the Falcons.
They need a new quarterback and a new coaching staff.
Matt Ryan is like Alex Smith without any of the good qualities. His arm strength is nothing special, he never makes a play and he chokes. He won’t win a playoff game – he’ll probably lose it. So it’s time for the Falcons to find somebody else.
They need to find new coaches, too. The ones they have always seem to call the wrong play. They can’t convert third downs or fourth downs, and that’s partly because they run the obvious play. They run on third and one when the whole world expects it. Like Ryan, they’ve reached their level, and it’s not a playoff level. It’s a level that loses big games. They’ve got to go.
The Giants looked good, though. They’ve got a good chance to beat the Packers next weekend in Green Bay. Their defensive line will push around the Packers offensive line and hit Aaron Rodgers. They might be able to recreate the type of pressure the Chiefs got on the Packers.
The Giants could definitely hold the Packers offense to fewer than 30 points, but could the Packers defense slow down the Giants offense at all?
Tail back Ahmad Bradshaw is back and healthy. Wide receivers Victor Cruz, Hakeem Nicks and Mario Manningham are all playing very well. Yes, the Giants could certainly beat the Packers next weekend.
That would be fortunate for the Niners if they make it past the Saints, because they’d be able to play the NFC Championship game at Candlestick Park.
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I would be shocked if the G Men beat the Packers but I would rather hear your thoughts on the Saints. Do the Niner’s have a good chance? Yea I know the Saints are not as good playing outside but usually the better QB wins the games and that worries me because well we know who our QB is.
I would not be surprised at all if the niners duke it out with the giants for SB representation for NFC.
Totally agree with you Grant. Great analysis.
The problem with that team isn’t Matt Ryan, it’s the coaching. You took ONE game against a hot defense and are using that as an example for his entire career?
You’re right about him being nothing like Alex Smith though. Matt has talent, and can throw an accurate deep ball. If Alex was the QB for the Falcons instead of MR, they wouldn’t win more than 4 games.
I was thinking the Giants would be a good matchup for the Packers but I never took it to the next step – NFC Championship at the Dump on Hunter’s Point? That could be awesome. More blackouts!
Mike Mularkey will be the sacrificial goat for the Falcons this year. He’ll get canned and that will save Mike Smith’s job for another year. Matty Ice Cold will get another year because teams cling to their #1 picks too long, especially at the QB position.
Arthur Blank continues to say that the Falcons have won the most games of any team since 2008. I don’t think he’ll be pushing for radical changes but Dimitroff is from the Belichick tree where losing = change.
Why would the Falcons go out and get another QB when Ryan is so young and has so much potential. Its funny how reporters who have never played the game and don’t even travel with the team make comments like this.
Your a hack and should stick to posting transcripts.
Falcons need a new qb PERIOD. not enough velocity in his throws, and a poor completion percentage for passes over 30 yards. I love Matt, but he is not the guy to get us to the superbowl. I feel like we need to get a Matt Flynn while we have the chance.
Matt Ryan is not a young qb
@Grant
I would not get rid of MR yet. You better have a better option, or what did you do to improve the team?
The HC makes a handful of decisions in a game that are critical. Should I challenge that? Do I go for it on 4th down? Those are the things I judge a HC by. He may have no talent at the moment, but he can make choices which either help your team, or hurt them.
Good HC’s end up being right more often than not when it comes to making such decisions.
And, I would like to add that I have been saying all year that GB may not make it to the NFC Championship game to face us.
Sorry. Just tooting my own horn. : – )
DS, the Falcons have been one and down three years counting with Ryan. The situation is not the same as AS’s career where he was underperforming on a crappy team. The Falcons have been at the top of the conference and cannot get it done in the postseason with him. When do you pull the plug?
@ribico
I am not arguing your points at all. I brought a few of them up in the last blog.
My only point is not to act irrationally. Mr. York did after the Niners lost in TB and the franchise took a stumble for 9 years.
I was not trying to compare MR’s situation as being comparable to AS’s. If I did, that was not my intent.
If you give Smith 7 years and hes playing like crap, how come you cant give Ryan 5 when you’re winning and going to the playoffs every year. Ryan isn’t the problem. The coach is. Bonehead and the Julio jones trade was dumb.
Jordo, why not take Bay’s perspective this week? Be positive and then complain/blame AS when the season is over. Jeez..
MR is NOT THE GUY! After watching all of his games this season, the first thing that came to my mind was — cannoy make big throws, not enough velocity on his throws, is innacurate too often (underthrows / overthrows), poor completion percentage on passes over 30 yards. I’m not detecting intangible leadership traits either. I also don’t get the vibe that he motivates or fires up his team like almost all championship quarterbacks.
MR is NOT THE GUY! After watching all of his games this season, the first thing that came to my mind was — cannot make big throws, not enough velocity on his throws, is innacurate too often (underthrows / overthrows), poor completion percentage on passes over 30 yards. I’m not detecting intangible leadership traits either. I also don’t get the vibe that he motivates or fires up his team like almost all championship quarterbacks.
@Carey
Are you a Falcon fan?
How have you been able to see all of his games? NFL Network?
I’ll take Matt ryan over Alex smith any day
I hope the Niners give AS as many chances to “prove” himself in the playoffs as the Falcons have given Ryan.
Smith has a Harbaugh. Enough said.
I’m with you HOV – I’d take Matty Ice over AS any day.
Amen to that.
Meh, I think it’s too early to dump Ryan. So what if he doesn’t have an arm. There are lots of decent QBs’ out there that didn’t have an arm. Having an arm only gets you in trouble because when a Defense is giving you fits you rely on it to get you out of a jam. Defenses love guys with an arm. They want the takeaway. Especially when they know they can get to the QB all day long.
Ryan has good Receivers but they gave our Receivers some stiff competition in the Drops category this season.
I fully agree on Coaching however. Some guys just can’t get the job done on the sidelines.
Just one, roddy white led the league in drops. However, he also cUght a 100 balls too.
Based on targets, catches, and drops, his drop ratio was quite a bit lower than the 9ers receivers. FG even had a poor season catching the ball when he is normally money.
A big issue with the Falcons going forward is the fact they sold the farm this past draft year to get Jones to get them over the hump. Gonna be tough to fill holes with few draft picks.
@Sean
That is why I thought it to be a horrible trade. They bet everything on winning the Super Bowl this year, and like the Raiders, failed to do so.
It might be hard finding a HC who wants to take the job due to that. Not impossible, but not something which helps your cause.
I think you’re way, way, way over-reacting on Ryan. His first year, he was a rookie. I can’t really remember that game. Last year, they lost to the Pack, as did everyone else. Should every other QB be canned except Rodgers, based on that logic. This year, yeah, he didn’t play well, but he didn’t have much help out there. And…..there’s nothing wrong with his arm. He was drafted 3rd overall. That’s ridiculous.
I will agree with you on the coaching, for the most part. I didn’t think the running game, in particular, was very creative at all. I’ve never been a Mularkey fan (saw a lot of him in Buffalo). Funny, he’s being talked about for HQ jobs again… I do like the aggressive 4th down decisions, just not the particular plays called. How is Turner on the sideline on 4th and 1????
Matt Ryan is fine. They need a new offensive coordinator, a half-back with some speed, a slot WR better than Harry Douglas, and help at MLB.
I will say that the Julio Jones draft-day trade looks like a poor decision at this point. Can’t give up that much and not get a true game changer. The dude is good, but you can find gems like Julio later in the draft (i.e., Baltimore’s Torrey Smith, SF’s Kyle Williams, even New York UFA Victor Cruz). Still early in Julio’s career, but that’s a LOT of picks to give up for a WR that isn’t the next Calvin Johnson.
Also, a beastly TE. Tony Gonzalez is probably done.
Jones was hurt for a chunk of games this year. He is a beast. Trade was still too much, though
I agree that the falcons would be better served to keep Ryan in the fold. The falcons have played poorly going into the playoffs and have had the misfortune of going up against ‘rising’ teams in the playoffs. The giants are suddenly one of the strongest looking teams in the playoffs at the moment. Their combination of an offense and defense peaking as they go into the playoffs will make them the dark-horse. Ryan and coach Smith will be back. But there will be changes on defense and throughout the assistant and second tier coaching staff.
AES,
The mistake the falcons made was the trade for Julio jones. They gave up too much. Brent grimes being hurt put their best corner out as well.
Matt Ryan, under Harbaugh, will be twice as good as AS, that’s the brutal truth.
I disagree , Matt Ryan would be three times better then AS.
It is just meaningless smack, the problem with this blog, people take you so literally and seriously, my opinions are based on sarcasm and humor at times. But it appears that someone hear believes in AS, sorry I don’t.
Neal, I agree, 3 times better, sorry.
You all realize it means diddly-squat what we think JH can do with MR.
It only matters what JH working with TB think (and perhaps the Niner players).
Somehow I don’t think JH consults the fans for roster decisions. Even though at least 1 person here does not acknowledge that JH knows more than they themselves do about AS and football.
Perhaps the Niners would be undefeated if JH had come to this fan regarding all things related to football.
I agree. Harbaugh is not human. He’ll take whatever QB you give him and just win all the time.
Once again, I agree fully.
What a bunch of wimps you all are.
1,000, 000 times better!
If you want to make ridiculous statements, then don’t half-bleep it. Yes MR under JH will throw for 51 TD’s and 2 Int’s (3 times better) on a team whose game plan is to throw it no more than 27 times virtually every week.
the game plan is dictated by the qb fella, if Ryan was under H, he’ll be so much better, fact.
30-50 years ago the QB called a lot more plays.
If AS were calling the plays this whole time, why would he call plays where he only had 1 option,and if that were covered, he is toast? How come AS has been pretty good in the 2 minute offense since year 2? Because that is one of the few times the QB does call his plays more often.
That is actually what has happened his whole career. Except his 2nd year with Turner where he went 8-8 and everybody felt good about him.
The HC and OC along with the position coaches all get together and discuss the game plan. The HC chooses a QB who he wants to lead his team and who has the skill set he is looking for in a QB, and makes the game plan work around that. JH choose AS guys. He was not stuck with him. They drafted a guy (CK), had a guy (Carr) and could have traded for another guy (Kolb) or go and get one of several FA. Since those FA did not want to have to compete for a job (see Hasselbeck) they signed up their own FA in AS. AS is a JH guy. Deal with it and move on.
Coaches call plays. Coaches develop game plans. Players simply do what the coaches say. How can you have watched last year and this year and come to any different conclusion? Coaching matters.
DS, have you ever IGNORED a negative comment on this blog that relates to AS? Just checking…
Hofer you’ve been testy this week. I love it!!
@hof
I do a lot more than that.
I ignore entire bloggers. I have no idea what they write, but mostly because I already know what they write about. I only know exactly what they write if somebody else quotes them who I do read.
Then I may comment.
And, like I have stated before. I am here to support my team. My team consists of players. If I see somebody taking shots at any players, then I will uphold my position of supporting and defending my team.
You (not personally you hof, but as a general comment) may not like/agree with it. I don’t really care. But, I am consistent and I don’t change direction according to the wind. I am loyal to my team (that means its players who all other players have been loyal to as well).
And, I stopped being just an idle reader and an actual participant because I just got tired of all the AS bashing. I have said that I will be more critical of AS when the hating of AS ends. Just as I am to every other player. But, I will not add onto the negative stuff said about AS. I was not brought up that way to just keep bashing a guy when he is down.
Ninerz,
I wouldn’t lend a percentage how much better Ryan would be, but he would be better than Smith. For starters he has more fire and a stronger arm.
bayarea, you’re right, simply, Ryan is better than Smith in any category, proven with time and etc. and under H, that will be way more visible.
ds49er, Coaching matter yes, but you’re telling me, Smith is better than Ryan, is that it? :)
and more importantly, down the road.
Based on the fact he’s been in the SAME system for 4 years??! Brilliant!
Grant, check this clowns IP!
Steve Young says in the NFL perception becomes reality. The NFL goes to the bank with the glamour QB. If there is a hint that he’s the next One they roll out the publicity and advertising machines. What better way to forget the whole Michael Vick saga than by bringing in a Golden Boy. The NFL has done this with Sam Bradford, Matt Ryan, Cam Newton, Kevin Kolb (he made it over the rainbow and found the pot of gold). But to get validated you have to win when you get your shot. Matt Ryan has proved so far he can’t get there.
Matt Ryan isn’t the star the NFL wants him to be, but he’s still a pretty good QB. The only Coach the Falcons need to fire is their HC Mike Smith. The guy is an idiot. He makes decisions based on emotion and stubborness instead of common sense. He cost his team a game against the Saints by going for it on 4th down at his own 30 in OT, and he cost his team with dumb decisions again today. The guy is a poor HC. If they were smart they’d promote Mularkey who is a really good Coach and figures to be hired away by somebody if they don’t promote him.
I would agree on Matt Ryan. He’s had better weapons than Alex: Tony Gonzales, Roddy White, Julio Jones and Michael Turner. It’s weird to think we really don’t know what Alex can do because of the horrible coaching. I do think he lacks a killer instinct, and while he may not have obvious leadership skills, the team does believe in him and respect him as a person.
Playoffs are all about match-ups and coaching. No way Pitt loses to Tebow but the Steelers ran the worse defensive game plan. If you score 20 on the Denver D then you should win. Likewise, The Giants already played the Packers tough and barely lose. That was in NY but now the Packers have a gimpy Jennings. They can get to Packers with the Front 4.
Which leaves the Niners and Saints. The Niners barely lost to the Saints last year. They are a better team this year. The Niners have the LB to keep up with Sproles and Graham. And a front 4 to get to Brees. They have a good running game in Gore. If the Niners play to their potential, they have the personnel to win, much like the Steelers game. Something like 24-14.
You heard it here first!
The idea that to be a top tier QB, a QB has to have a career arc that just goes up from day one really started in the early 80s with the rise of Montana and Marino, as they had great success right from the start of their careers. Before that it was usual for QBs to have ups and downs for years and even sit on the bench for 3 – 5 years before doing real well (yes, there were some exceptions like Unitas and Namath who were great from the start and Tarkenton too, but they were NOT the way it usually went). The more usual career for a star was one like Bradshaw’s, very tough at the start and then he finally got it together by year 5 or so. Most good QBs like John Brodie took a while and ALWAYS had to have great coaching (Brodie finally when YA Title came to coach the 49ers offense). Now….jeez!!!!! Mark Sanchez QB’s FOUR road playoff games in his first two years in the league, has a number of 300 yard/3 TD games and is now a BUM!!!!! (and he DOESN’T have a good offensive coah). Last week Tebow was just a play or two from being replaced by Brady Quinn (and Tebow hasn’t even had a full year starting yet!!!) – guess he’s a miracle worker again now, huh? Wasn’t Ryan the golden boy just a couple of years ago? I hear talk about Romo not being good enough now. So there’s absolutely NO patience re: coaches and now there’s non with QB’s either. Yeah, Tom Brady hit it big from the start, but not all great ones do (do you remember a QB named……what was it again?….oh yeah, Steve Young…bad passing technique, runs around like a wild man with no direction….uhm, think he’s in the Hall of Fame now, turned out pretty good once he got hooked up with a guy who many thought couldn’t be a HC in the NFL, name of Walsh). I haven’t watched Ryan enough to have an opinion (I live in Thailand most of year so limited to games I can watch), but get him some better coaching and have some patience. Tebow’s passing will only get better and better as he gains more experience – watch out with this guy. Did get to see Stafford yesterday – wow, a hell of a passer, only 23? Alex? Well, credit given for his best year and a number of big plays this year. Also he’s a good leader/team man. Will he be a great one that this team can hang its hat on for the next few years? We’ll know more by late Saturday afternoon.
Matt Ryan doesnt even have Alex Smiths arm…one across the field pass was so slow it just highlighted he has no arm. Add the hail mary from midfield that died at the six yard line…couldn’t even get it into the endzone. He ‘s more lke the 14 year old PP&K Winner. They still have that for kids?
Coaching..wow,that guy is self destructive.Picks the worst times to go for fourth down. Worst gambler ever…should avoid Vegas.