ATL: Superbowl LI

[rilamann]

I feel bad for Julio. That sideline catch was absolutely amazing. The Edelman catch was luck, Julio's was skill. And no one will remember it.

Julio was putting on a show, felt bad for him. The offense failed in the spotlight and their Coordinator gets a promotion.

The 49ers are already considering firing him.

[El Duderino]

They could have taken a knee three times there and they are likely Super Bowl champs.

I still can't believe they called a standard pass play there besides maybe a screen. A FG wins them a title, but a sack would keep NE in the game and even an incomplete pass saves NE a timeout. For all of the flack McCarthy gets, that is maybe the second worst play call ever behind Seattle not running the ball vs NE at the one yard line.

I was going to say the same thing,if the Falcons take 3 knees after the Jones catch they could have kicked about a 40 yard FG indoors to likely ice the game and a Super Bowl championship.At that point the Patriots would have needed to score and then recover an onside kick to have a chance.

I'll admit,for as much as I don't like Mike McCarthy,had the Falcons let Mike McCarthy take over the offensive play calling after the Julio Jones catch the Falcons probably win the Super Bowl.

Not just the pass play call in the pocket where a sack could happen.

Atlanta wasn't running the play clock down on their drives in the 4th quarter. Multiple times i saw them snapping the ball with say 12-17 seconds still on the play clock. They easily could have burned off about another roughly minute and a half/two minutes simply snapping the ball under five seconds.

I get that they like to play fast, but when you are up 19 with under 11 minutes left, that clock is your friend. Drain it every snap. Just bizarre how they handled that 4th quarter.

[Wooderson]

Throwing the ball is one thing but trying to throw downfield was the even crazier part. And they did it on both of the game changing sacks. Atlanta was playing like they were down 8 instead of up 8. Even on the Julio catch Ryan was close to being sacked and the play required flawless execution on both ends (a slight underthrow is probably intercepted).

[El Duderino]

To me one of the traits that makes a great game day coach a great game day coach is knowing when to be aggressive and knowing when to be conservative,there's a time for both.

Don't let players off the hook though. Ryan simply cannot fumble at his own 20 up 16 in the 4th quarter. Every drive has to end in a kick. Field goal, extra point, or punt. Their OL also chose the worst times to screw up terribly and not make their blocks.

In the Packers loss vs Seattle, numerous players at various points in that game could have basically ended it by executing basic plays.

Coaches clearly can brainfart, but they aren't on the field. Players do things which can often make coaches look smart or dumb based on how they execute.

[LikeABosh]

I don't think there's a worse loss in sports history.

Game 6 and 7 for the Cubs in 2003? That would be brutal for fans because it's not just one game, it's two over two nights.

Well, with that in mind, GSW losing 3 in a row would have to be up there too. Only consolation is that they already broke their championship drought in 2015

[Buck Dweller]

still waiting for the nfl to change it's overtime rules

[HKPackFan]

still waiting for the nfl to change it's overtime rules

I hope there is some talk about it.


You have the NFLs MVP qb, and the #1 offense in the NFL for the season, and we didn't even get to see them in OT. Mainly because of a coin flip.


Something just doesn't seem right about that.

The NFL has changed the rules titling towards offense over the years, and defenses get worn down after 60 minutes. This puts greater emphasis in the coin flip.

The game is such that defenses have a tendency to wear out, 11 guys always chasing the ball every play, every down, whereas the offensive players don't have to chase once the ball carrier clears their area.

If they are going to keep pushing the rules toward the offense, they need to offset OT to allow both teams a chance at an offensive possession.

Most sports have this, NFL is lame not to have it.



They could have made the game even better if the NFLs MVP had a chance in OT to make his name.

Last year you have one of the GOAT, who just completed one of the most insane series with 2 unbelievable passes to tie a game in history, not even given a chance. I'd say the sport robbed itself of 2 amazing entertainment opportunities for an even more exciting ending to both games.

[FAH1223]

Up 28-20, Falcons had 1st and 10 on NE 22 with 4:40 left.

I don't think MM would even mess that up

[WRau1]

James White was robbed.

[LUKE23]

Comes down to the drive where Ryan takes a sack. Granted, never should have come down to that, but as a 31 year old QB, you have to know what's at stake there. FG ends the game. Granted, they probably shouldn't have been throwing in the first place.

This overtakes Packers vs. Seahawks 2015 NFCC for me in terms of choke jobs. Granted, Packers had like 5 or 6 things all go wrong, where one not happening results in a win. The Falcons was more of a slow bleedout, but that sack was inexcusable. Can't imagine Falcon fans this morning.

[raysbookclub]

Falcons will be a mess next year. That Falcons franchise literally died tonight. They will never recover from this.

I agree, this kind of loss is one that sets your franchise back. Happened to the Oilers after losing the Bills' comeback in the wild card game. The Jets after the Marino fake-spike. Happened to the Packers after 4th and 26. Arguably happened to the Packers after the Seattle championship game two years ago.

I know the Falcons are young and all that, but that's a terrible loss.

[raysbookclub]

Must say, kudos to Matt Ryan. He seems like a stand-up guy, good sportsman, good competitor. Handled himself really well on the sideline in the 4th quarter and for the coin toss in OT.

[WeekapaugGroove]

They could have taken a knee three times there and they are likely Super Bowl champs.

I still can't believe they called a standard pass play there besides maybe a screen. A FG wins them a title, but a sack would keep NE in the game and even an incomplete pass saves NE a timeout. For all of the flack McCarthy gets, that is maybe the second worst play call ever behind Seattle not running the ball vs NE at the one yard line.

I was going to say the same thing,if the Falcons take 3 knees after the Jones catch they could have kicked about a 40 yard FG indoors to likely ice the game and a Super Bowl championship.At that point the Patriots would have needed to score and then recover an onside kick to have a chance.

I'll admit,for as much as I don't like Mike McCarthy,had the Falcons let Mike McCarthy take over the offensive play calling after the Julio Jones catch the Falcons probably win the Super Bowl.

Not just the pass play call in the pocket where a sack could happen.

Atlanta wasn't running the play clock down on their drives in the 4th quarter. Multiple times i saw them snapping the ball with say 12-17 seconds still on the play clock. They easily could have burned off about another roughly minute and a half/two minutes simply snapping the ball under five seconds.

I get that they like to play fast, but when you are up 19 with under 11 minutes left, that clock is your friend. Drain it every snap. Just bizarre how they handled that 4th quarter.

I think this was way worse than Seattle throwing at the goalline. I can at least see some justification for that throw because they needed to get that TD. This was worse because they were well in fg range and they had the opportunity to both go up 2 scores and force NE to burn those timeout plus freeman was running it well. Combine that with them not running the playclock down earlier that drive, the other 3rd and 1 throw that they fumbled, and the horrible wasted timeouts and this is by far the biggest coaching disaster in history. That what makes this the worst fan loss ever, its not just a simple choke its a choke that was very avoidable. This game will haunt the Atlanta coaching staff the rest of their lives.

Sent from my SM-G930V using RealGM mobile app

[DigitalFool]

I didn't want the Patriots to win, let alone the fashion that they did, but I couldn't help but smile at the implosion of the Falcons. Felt like I was watching a Packer game honestly.

[Kerb Hohl]

I have a handful of friends that loathe McCarthy never letting Rodgers step on the throat for the kill. Their replacement that they had been begging for was none other than Kyle Shannahan. Let me first say that I mostly agree that we absolutely should give Rodgers the chance for the kill most of the time in these games. I wanted to strangle MM when he almost moved us out of FG range @Dallas in a different situation. However, there are risks to keeping your foot on the gas.

If you had subbed in Mike McCarthy for Shannahan when the Falcons got the ball up by 16 or the subsequent possession up by 8, they win that game. It's still generally smart to play aggressively when you have a great offense, but there is definitely a downside to it.

[Rockmaninoff]

Well 2 hours ago, everyone kept saying "speed, speed, speed". Any new thoughts?

Heart, heart, heart.

So is that the difference between the Patriots and the Packers?

Packers were down 24-0 vs ATL, Patriots were down 21-3. That's comparable. So why do the Patriots win their game, and the Packers get trounced?

[Kerb Hohl]

Well 2 hours ago, everyone kept saying "speed, speed, speed". Any new thoughts?

Heart, heart, heart.

So is that the difference between the Patriots and the Packers?

Packers were down 24-0 vs ATL, Patriots were down 21-3. That's comparable. So why do the Patriots win their game, and the Packers get trounced?

Defense, defense, defense.

[chuckleslove]

Heart, heart, heart.

So is that the difference between the Patriots and the Packers?

Packers were down 24-0 vs ATL, Patriots were down 21-3. That's comparable. So why do the Patriots win their game, and the Packers get trounced?

Defense, defense, defense.

This, their defense stopped the bleeding, ours continued to get gashed.

[Rockmaninoff]

So is that the difference between the Patriots and the Packers?

Packers were down 24-0 vs ATL, Patriots were down 21-3. That's comparable. So why do the Patriots win their game, and the Packers get trounced?

Defense, defense, defense.

This, their defense stopped the bleeding, ours continued to get gashed.

Agreed. Article supporting that point and more.

http://host.madison.com/wsj/sports/football/professional/tom-oates-packers-can-take-lesson-from-patriots/article_4e34903d-0127-5067-9d8c-537d6021eedf.html

[Mags FTW]

Packers open with 3rd best odds to win the SB next year, behind the Pats and Cowboys.

www.oddsshark.com/super-bowl/futures