- The Falcons came in off a strong rookie campaign from Matt Ryan and tried to replicate what they did going 11-5 and making the playoffs if not improve upon it
- Matt Ryan faced some adversity for the first time in his career and handled it decently, he also missed two games due to injury
- Finished with a 9-7 record but did not make the playoffs
- Scored 363 points and allowed 325
Atlanta Falcons
NFC South
Players
2010 Schedule
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Week 1
ATL @ PIT
09/12/10
1:00 pm
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Week 2
ARI @ ATL
09/19/10
1:00 pm
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Week 3
ATL @ NO
09/26/10
1:00 pm
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Week 4
SF @ ATL
10/03/10
1:00 pm
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Week 5
ATL @ CLE
10/10/10
1:00 pm
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Week 6
ATL @ PHI
10/17/10
1:00 pm
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Week 7
CIN @ ATL
10/24/10
1:00 pm
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Week 8
bye
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Week 9
TB @ ATL
11/07/10
1:00 pm
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Week 10
BAL @ ATL
11/11/10
8:15 pm
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Week 11
ATL @ STL
11/21/10
4:00 pm
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Week 12
GB @ ATL
11/28/10
1:00 pm
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Week 13
ATL @ TB
12/05/10
1:00 pm
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Week 14
ATL @ CAR
12/12/10
1:00 pm
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Week 15
ATL @ SEA
12/19/10
4:00 pm
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Week 16
NO @ ATL
12/27/10
8:30 pm
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Week 17
CAR @ ATL
01/02/11
1:00 pm
Offensive Depth Chart
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Quarterback
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Running Back
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Wide Receiver
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Tight End
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Kicker
2009
By Air
- Matt Ryan had a solid sophomore season while facing more adversity then his golden boy rookie year
- Chris Redman also had to step in for 2 games and performed well posting 781 yards and 4 touchdowns
- Roddy White had a second straight productive season putting up 1153 yards on 85 catches
- Tony Gonzalez joined the team in a trade and caught 83 passes for 867 yards
- The team also likes to spread the ball to their RBs
By Land
- Michael Turner had a tremendous first season with the Falcons and tried to follow it up with an even stronger one, due to his injuries he was unable to accomplish his goals
- Started only 11 games during 2009 averaging 79.2 yards a game and racking up 871 yards and 10 TDs
- The injuries caused the team to find out their depth at RB and it was fairly impressive with Jason Snelling emerging as a solid talent with his running and pass catching ability
- Jerious Norwood also proved to be a solid change of pace back with his elusive speed
RB
- The Falcons will rely on a bounce back year from Michael Turner as he will be the starting running back
- If he starts all 16 games look for another huge year behind a solid offensive line
- Jerious Norwood reads second on the depth chart because of his change of pace ability but if Turner were to get injured look for Snelling to get a majority of the carries
WR
- The Falcons have a clear #1 target in Roddy White
- White put up an impressive stat line of 85 catches for 1,153 yards and 11 TDs
- Behind White the only proven receiver on the roster is Michael Jenkins who caught 50 passes for 635 and 1 touchdown
- Who else catches passes at the WR position?
te
- Tony Gonzalez was as solid as every catching 83 passes for 863 yards and 6 TDs
- Justin Peele the back up caught 12 passes for 115 yards and 2 TDs
Kicker
- Who is going to kick for the Falcons Hauschka or Bryant?
- Bryant proved to be the more accurate kicker while playing
Team Defense
- Curtis Lofton lead the team with 133 tackles, Erik Coleman had 113
- The Falcons had only 28 sacks last season
- Leading sacker was Jonathan Babineaux with 6.0
- How can the team increase their pass rush???
- Brent Grimes led the team with 6 INTs
- Team forced 20 fumbles
- Team forced a total of 35 turnovers
Offensive Line
Analysis: This unit came together to protect the rookie. Not having Harrington under center had to have helped their Sacks Allowed ranking.
Offensive Scheme
Analysis: The numbers favored the run because Ryan was a rookie. Watch those numbers balance out this year. They will attempt more plays from scrimmage because there will be more first downs with Gonzo in the fold. Rush attempts will be down and pass attempts will spike up to the low 500's.
Major Off-Season Moves
June 19, 2010
Signed G Michael Johnson.
June 15, 2010
Signed C Joe Hawley and CB Dominique Franks. Waived CB Dominique Daniels, LS Justin Drescher, K Garrett Lindholm and DT Trey Bryant.
June 10, 2010
Signed S Shann Schillinger. Waived QB Eric Ward.
May 13, 2010
Released TE Leroy Banks.
April 29, 2010
Signed DT Trey Bryant and DE Rajon Henley.
April 27, 2010
Signed TE Leroy Banks, WR Tim Buckley, S Rafael Bush, CB Dominique Daniels, S Gabe Derricks, LS Justin Drescher, WR Brandyn Harvey, LB Weston Johnson, PK Garrett Lindholm, RB Dimitri Nance, TE Michael Palmer, TE Colin Peek, DE Emmanuel Stephens, WR Ryan Wolfe and LB Bear Woods.
April 24, 2010
Re-signed TB Jerious Norwood and P Michael Koenen.
April 15, 2010
Re-signed RB Jason Snelling, OT Tyson Clabo, G Harvey Dahl and G Quinn Ojinnaka.
March 22, 2010
Named Mark Collins a defensive assistant.
March 8, 2010
Re-signed C Joe Zelenka.
March 6, 2010
Signed CB Dunta Robinson to a six-year contract.
March 5, 2010
Agreed to terms with QB Chris Redman on a contract extension.
March 4, 2010
Re-signed CB Brian Williams to a one-year contract. Announced the retirement of LS Mike Schneck.
February 16, 2010
Promoted quarterbacks coach Bill Musgrave to assistant head coach.
February 11, 2010
Agreed to terms with WR Brian Finneran on a contract extension.
January 26, 2010
Named Tim Lewis secondary coach.
January 11, 2010
Signed DT Dan Klecko to a reserve-future contract.
Strength of Schedule
We are firm believers that strength-of-schedule analysis is essential when ranking players at every position. We applied this system (without the 5% NFL draft impact) in hindsight to last year's schedule as we were curious how well it could work. The notable results were that Michael Turner and the Falcons had a #32 ranked (easiest) rush schedule last season and DeAngelo Williams and the Panthers were #30.
Our SoS considers three factors when determining rankings for schedules for the upcoming year:
80% weight is applied to the quality of defense from the previous year. We determine quality of defense based on fantasy points given up (run and pass). However, before we get to that number, we factor in the quality of teams that these defenses faced (basically a strength-of-schedule for the previous year). This was all done by hand. Let's just say our boy, Stitchface, has a bit of the carpal tunnel-syndrome going on.
15% weight is applied to Free-Agent movement. We ranked each free agent's impact to their former team (2008), and then ranked each team according to whether they added or lost talent overall.
5% weight is applied to the NFL draft impact. It's tough to gauge a rookie's effectiveness which is why we valued it so low. Certain teams not only drafted defensemen well in '09, but also will be sliding those guys into highly deficient positions from '08, and usually, anything is an upgrade when you are starting a rookie.
If you trust Stitchface's formula (and you will eventually), all you need to realize is the following... The higher the SoS number, the easier the fantasy schedule.
Ranking: 1=toughest 32=easiest
Breaking News
Ryan and Gonzo active, Turner is not expand +
The Falcons declared running back Michael Turner inactive for their Week 17 game against the Buccaneers. QB Matt Ryan and TE Tony Gonzalez are active and will make their normal starts.
Pyro's Take:
This wasn't too tough of a call to make. If you had Turner on your fantasy team, you likely aren't in your league Super Bowl right now anyway. Those of you who are still playing, make sure you get Gonzo and maybe even Ryan in your lineup against a weak-ass Bucs pass D.
Falcons need new kicker after Bryant injury expand +
Falcons kicker Matt Bryant injured his hamstring during the game against the Bills on Sunday, leaving the team in need of a new kicker for their season finale against the Buccaneers.
Pyro's Take:
This isn't definite, but it doesn't look good for Bryant. Some possible names that could be signed are Nick Folk, Paul Edinger, Brandon Coutu, Steve Hauschka, Sam Swank and Shane Andrus.
Ryan active for Sunday's game expand +
Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan (turf toe) is active for today's game and will start as usual.
Pyro's Take:
Ryan gives the Falcons a better chance to win this week, but not your fantasy football team. The Bills are pretty tough against the pass, so unless you have no better option, sit Ryan this weekend.
Snelling starting for the Falcons expand +
Falcons running back Michael Turner (ankle) has been declared inactive for the game against the Bills today. Jason snelling will get the start in his place.
Pyro's Take:
Get Turner out of your lineup and Jason Snelling in! The Bills have the worst rush D in the league, so expect Snelling to put up at least RB2 numbers and possibly even better than that.
Turner inactive for Sunday game expand +
Falcons running back Michael Turner (ankle) has been declared inactive for the game against the Bills today. Jason snelling will get the start in his place.
Pyro's Take:
Get Turner out of your lineup and Jason Snelling in! The Bills have the worst rush D in the league, so expect Snelling to put up at least RB2 numbers and possibly even better than that.
Turner still pushing to play final two games expand +
Even though the Falcons are officially out of the playoffs, running back Michael Turner (high ankle sprain) and coach Mike Smith are still doing everything they can to get Turner ready to return and play in the final two weeks of the season.
"He started his rehabilitation this morning," Smith said Monday. "We want to get him back as quickly as possible because there are still two more games to play."
Pyro's Take:
You have got to be f*#king kidding me. After experiencing two setbacks now, Smith still wants to risk his star running back's health when there is nothing to play for but a non-losing season? We're not buying it, and don't you buy it either by putting Turner in your fantasy football lineup this weekend.
Smith not sure if Turner will play in Week 16 expand +
After getting hurt on his very first carry against the Jets in Week 15, running back Michael Turner (high ankle sprain) is said to be very iffy for next week's contest against the Bills and coach Mike Smith is not sure he'll be ready to go.
Pyro's Take:
With the Falcons officially eliminated from playoff contention, we don't expect the Falcons to risk the future of their running game by playing Turner these last two weeks. Turner may convince them he's ready, but don't go starting him on your fantasy team unless his health is a sure thing.
Matt Ryan sore as expected expand +
According to Falcons coach Mike Smith, quarterback Matt Ryan (turf toe) was definitely sore after playing the whole game in beating the Jets on Sunday.
"We're going to have to manage that situation... Matt toughed it out," said Smith.
Pyro's Take:
Props to Ryan for gutting out that victory to try and keep his team in the playoff hunt, but we hope it didn't end up setting back his recovery at all. The Falcons are now officially eliminated from contention, so expect Atlanta to shut him down if his soreness continues throughout the week.
Falcons to start Michael Turner expand +
Falcons running back Michael Turner (ankle) was declared active today and will make his normal start against the Jets.
Pyro's Take:
Just as with Matt Ryan, this is completely unexpected. The Falcons are likely to pound the football today, so Turner could be in for a nice load of work. It's not the best matchup for him, but worth the chance on your fantasy team.
Matt Ryan is active and will start vs. the Jets expand +
Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan (turf toe) is active for the game against the Jets and will start as normal.
Pyro's Take:
Totally unexpected. This definitely gives Atlanta a better chance to win the game, but that Jets pass D is nasty, so we'd think twice about using him even as a QB2 on your fantasy team this week.
Roddy practices in full Friday expand +
Falcons wide receiver Roddy White (knee) practiced in full on Friday and is slated to start as usual against the Jets on Sunday.
Pyro's Take:
It's rare, but we'd have to suggest benching White this week as he'll be shadowed by Mr. Darrelle Revis all day long. If you can, look elsewhere on your fantasy team for a WR play this weekend.
Turner to be a game-time decision expand +
Falcons running back Michael Turner (ankle) went through another limited practice today and is being listed as questionable on the team's Week 15 injury report. He is likely to be a game-time decision come Sunday.
Pyro's Take:
You'll want to check back to get the final word on Turner, but if he plays, the weather will be bad and the Jets can be stingy, so we'd have a tough time telling you to play him on your fantasy team even if he is active.
Ryan to be a game-time decision expand +
Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan (turf toe) was limited in practice again today and is listed as questionable on the team's Week 15 injury report.
Pyro's Take:
Ryan will be a game-time decision along with Turner, but he'd hardly be worth starting on your fantasy team even if he was completely healthy. That Jets pass D is brutal.
Matt Ryan not practicing on Wednesday expand +
Falcons coach Mike Smith announced in a conference call on Wednesday that quarterback Matt Ryan (turf toe) will not be practicing today and at this point he is considered day-to-day.
Pyro's Take:
Ryan will likely be a game-time decision again this Sunday, so check back with us to see if he can be used in your fantasy football lineup this weekend. Facing the Jets D, however, we wouldn't recommend it.
Turner still sidelined at practice Wednesday expand +
Falcons running back Michael Turner (ankle) won't be practicing with the team today, but is set to get in some running on the side as he hopes to be ready for the Week 15 game against the Jets.
Pyro's Take:
We'd like to see Turner get in a full practice before advocating a fantasy start out of him, so check back throughout the week to find out what you should do about the potential RB1 for your team this weekend.
