Dreams of an undefeated Atlanta Falcons 2012 regular season ended with a sudden thud Sunday afternoon as the New Orleans Saints emerged victorious, eeking out a 31-27 win. The win pushed the Saints to a game under .500 and closer to entering NFC Wild Card discussion. Progression from multiple areas of the team, especially one in particular, have the Saints heading into the latter part of their schedule with a renewed sense of confidence.
PASS OFFENSE: A-
Drew Brees was once again masterful in operating the New Orleans Saint passing attack, connecting on 21 of 32 attempts for 298 yards and 3 touchdown scores. He was able to overcome an early interception, one that could have permanently swayed momentum in Atlanta’s favor.
Instead, Brees remained calm and threw passes to six different receivers, favoring TE Jimmy Graham, who ended up with 7 catches for 146 yards and 2 touchdowns. Graham was simply unguardable for much of the afternoon, often finding open space against an overmatched Falcon secondary.
Much of Brees’ success against Atlanta can be attributed to strong offensive line play. He was only sacked once all afternoon, finding gobs of time available to locate the open receiver. Second string RT Charles Brown, a legitimate question mark heading into the contest, played wonderfully; after re-watching the game, I only found two instances where he was physically overmatched. RB Mark Ingram did an excellent job picking up blitzes all afternoon, especially in shotgun formations on 3rd down, leading to a 50% conversion rate.
The reason for an A- rating over an A or A+? The turnover in the first half could have absolutely killed momentum. The Falcons, already up 7-0 at that point, could have extended their lead to 14. Thankfully, the New Orleans defense was able to hold Atlanta to a field goal. Nonetheless, that early interception could have changed the outcome if Atlanta scored an additional touchdown.
RUN OFFENSE: A+
For the second straight week, the Saints were able to establish a power running game, much to the delight of everyone in the building, sans the Falcons and their supporters. Chris Ivory led the charge, finishing the afternoon with 72 yards on 7 carries and a touchdown. The majority of those 72 yards came on a 56 yard touchdown scamper, which really changed the tone and momentum of the contest. After that run, the Saints gained confidence on both ends of the field, appearing as the more physical team.
Lost in the Ivory highlight show was the game that Mark Ingram provided. He ended up being the team’s bell-cow out of the backfield, carrying the ball 16 times for 67 yards. Ingram ran extremely hard the entire game, bowling over Falcon defenders and tiring out the opposing defense.
Ingram’s great production allowed for the coaching staff to let Pierre Thomas rest; he only had a total of 5 carries on the afternoon. Keeping Thomas healthy has to be a top priority for New Orleans moving forward, especially with Darren Sproles out with a broken hand. Thomas is the team’s best pass catching option out of the backfield, and his availability on passing downs gives the offense another added dimension that will certainly be needed if this team wants to make a late charge in the standings.
Overall, the team finished the afternoon with 148 yards on 29 carries, good for over 5 yards per attempt. Atlanta had to account for both Ivory and Ingram whenever either player was on the field. The result? A re-infused play action game, a slower opposing pass rush, and, ultimately, a Saints victory. When the Saint running game is this effective, watch out.
The reintroduction of Ivory back into the lineup has been one of the 3 most important moments for the Saints this season. The ongoing battle between Ivory and Ingram will be one to watch throughout this year. Ultimately, the real winner will be the entire team.
PASS DEFENSE: C-
The Achilles’ heel of this team continues to be the pass defense. I think both the Saints’ coaches and those of the opposition know that yards will be given up by this unit. Sunday proved to be yet another example of the New Orleans “bend and continue to keep bending until you drive everyone absolutely and totally insane, but not break” defense.
Matt Ryan had his way between the two red-zones, carving the Saints’ secondary for 411 yards on 34 of 52 passing. He was able to connect for 3 touchdowns, 2 of which went to TE Tony Gonzales, who himself had a monster game, amassing 122 yards on 11 catches. WR Roddy White, who knows his way around a microphone, had a solid outing, hauling in 7 balls for 114 yards. WR Julio Jones, despite missing time with a leg injury, was a constant threat throughout the afternoon.
Nonetheless, the Saints’ pass defense was able to make stops when needed. CB Corey White had an excellent game, coming up with a key pass deflection and interception on back-to-back plays. FS Malcolm Jenkins, matched up against White on one particular red-zone stance, had a strong day. CB Jabari Greer, who was burned by the aforementioned White early in the game, had the last laugh after deflected what would be a game winning touchdown.
RUN DEFENSE: A+
Well, hello there Saints’ run defense! Nice of you to drop by! The ineffectiveness of the Atlanta running game was the biggest takeaway from this week’s game. The dominance of the Saints’ defensive line on running plays was truly a sight to behold. Interior gap integrity was consistent throughout, allowing for the linebacking corps, featuring the newly returned David Hawthorne, to quickly get to the ballcarrier. Missed tackles, which have plagued this defense all season long, were less of an issue this week.
Atlanta finished the game running the ball 18 times for only 46 yards, good for a paltry 2.6 yards per attempt. Michael Turner, a long-time nemesis of this Saints’ defense, was a non-factor, rushing for only 15 yards on 13 carries. He simply failed to get anything going. The Saints’ run defense should hold their heads high after this week’s performance, and with good reason: it was the most dominate performance from any Saint unit this season.
SPECIAL TEAMS: B+
P Thomas Morstead continues to be a field postion changing force both on 4th down and as a kickoff specialist. K Garrett Hartley hit a big field goal in the 4th quarter to give his team a four point lead. Overall, it was a solid performance from the kicking game.
The return game for New Orleans is still below average from last season. In the absence of Sproles, the team has turned to Travaris Cadet and Lance Moore as the main kickoff and punt return options. Field position changing returns have yet to sprout up, but fumbles (not counting last week) have been largely absent as well.
COACHING: B+
Give credit to DC Steve Spagnuolo. He has been widely criticized all season long, and with good reason: statistically speaking, the 2012 New Orleans Saints have the potential to be one of the worst defenses in league history. Nonetheless, the defense played brilliantly at times against the Falcons. Erasing the Atlanta running game was obviously a point of emphasis, and it certainly showed. The 400+ passing yards allowed seem not as bad in the face of victory, but still need to be lowered. Even so, the Saints’ defense has improved dramatically over the past few weeks, and Spags deserves much of the credit.
