by Dave Weinthal
posted November 30, 2009
No one would have been surprised Sunday at the Georgia Dome if Alan Alda and Wayne Rogers trotted out onto the field as the Atlanta Falcons rallied to defeat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the closing seconds of the game 20-17.
The Atlanta Falcons these days resemble more a M*A*S*H unit than a professional football team. Injury-riddled coming into the game, Matt Ryan, offensive linemen Harvey Dahl and Sam Baker left the game due to injuries and Michael Turner who returned after missing a week with a high ankle sprain re-injured the same ankle.
Fortunately for Atlanta Chris Redman did his best B.J. Honeycutt impersonation rallying the Falcons as he threw for two scores – the second coming with 23 seconds to play to Roddy White to cap comeback.
“There were so many things that were going against us: fumbling the ball, turning it over, losing all those guys. It’s really a credit to the way we work, and the way guys never gave up. You saw it in the huddle, guys were confident. Don’t get me wrong, I think Tampa came out and played really well. But in the end, we were able to make plays when we had to,” said Tony Gonzalez.
Ryan injured his right foot nine plays into the game on a sack by Stylez White. Redman, who took over in 2007 when Michael Vick was suspended by the league stepped in and led the offense going 23-of-41 for 243 yards two scores and more importantly no turnovers.
"I am always in the game whether I am in or not. As the back-up, you have to be prepared to play at any second to be in the game. I understand that I am one play away from getting my number called to step in. This approach enabled me to focus in and help the team as much as possible. This organization has believed in me from the beginning and I will forever be thankful. I am fortunate to be a part of this victory – it was a concerted effort,” said Redman.
After a scoreless first quarter Atlanta struck first blood on a 45-yard field goal by the embattled Jason Elam. Later in the quarter Tampa Bay tried to rattle the veteran Louisville signal caller with a blitz. Redman stepped up and tossed a shuffle pass to Jerious Norwood, playing his first game in five weeks who rambled 22 yards down the middle of the field for a touchdown.
With the score 10-0, Josh Freeman led Tampa Bay downfield very quickly – in two plays to be exact as they covered 80 yards in those two plays. The second play was a 42 yard pass down the left sideline to Antonio Bryant to make the score 10-7.
Freeman, the rookie from Kansas State looked sharp in only his third start. He was 20-of-29 for 250 yards and two touchdowns and no turnovers to lead the Bucs who play much better than their 1-10 record.
The Bucs tied the score with just seconds left in the half to make the score 10-10.
Atlanta’s Achilles’ heel once again reared its ugly head in the second half. Michael Koenen had a punt blocked on the 10-yard-line by Corey Lynch setting up a first-and-goal for the visiting Buccaneers. Two plays later Freeman hit Carnell Williams along the right sideline to give the Tampa Bay a surprising 17-10 lead.
“I’m happy for the guys. They fought so hard. Looking at my performance, I’ve have to find a way to be more consistent. That’s what this game is all about. In this league, you have to be as consistent as possible. I can’t remember the last time I walked off the field feeling good about my performance, so, it’s very frustrating,” said Elam.
Atlanta made it 17-13 on a 37-yard Elam field goal, but the kicker almost sealed his fate with six and a half minutes to play when he missed a 42-yard field goal to bring Atlanta within 1.
Tampa looked like they were on their way to pad their lead as they drove to the Falcons’ 34. Connor Barth returned Elam’s favor as he missed from 51 yards with a little over two minutes to play.
Redman brought the team under center with no timeout remaining as he led the Falcons to the winning score hitting Gonzalez four times and converting two forth downs, the final a five-yard pass to White with 23 seconds to go.
“We did our job. Someone needed to make a play on that last drive, and nobody did. But it was a great throw and catch on the touchdown. We shouldn’t have let it happen,” said the Bucs’ Ronde Barber.
“I put all the confidence in our offense. We knew QB Chris Redman would make enough plays out there to put our offense in enough positions to succeed. It was not pretty all the time, but we won the game – that’s all that matters. We have to give the Tampa Bay defense a lot of credit for mixing the coverages and blitzes, but at the end we made enough plays,” said Falcons’ coach Mike Smith.
With the win the Falcons improve to 6-5 trailing the Eagles and Packers by one game for the wild card. Atlanta will be able to do something about that next week when they welcome the Eagles to the Georgia Dome Sunday. Sunday will also mark Michael Vick’s first return to the Georgia Dome since he went to jail two years ago.
“We’ve got a six game season that started tonight, and we’ll prepare, and work hard for next week’s game. If we stick together as a team, I know we’ll be fine,” said Norwood.
Dave Weinthal
View Photo: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15
Photo by Dave Weinthal
Blocked kick
| Dining Out | Business | Movies | Focus | About Us |
| Church | Living Well | Memories | Outdoors | Real Estate | Student Scene | Travel |