By Pat Yasinkas
For all the good the Falcons did this season (and they did at least get a playoff win against Seattle last week), they’re right back where they were at the start of the season. And the start of the season before that.
Go ahead and fire away with the same old questions and criticisms.
Smith is too nice to win the big ones. Ryan can win in the regular season, but not when it matters most.
It’s all valid. In fact, now the Falcons have firmly earned the right to be questioned and criticized from now until the day they win a Super Bowl -- if they ever do.
Put the blame on the coaches, and put the blame on Ryan. The Falcons scored 24 points in the first half and precisely zero in the second half. Ryan fumbled away a snap out of the shotgun formation and threw an interception. A team that prides itself on not making mistakes made plenty of them. There were the two personal fouls and repeated breakdowns on defense.
Let’s not forget what might have been the biggest issue of all.
"Covering the tight end," Smith said. "The tight end was an issue."
The tight end (Vernon Davis, who finished with five catches for 106 yards) was a huge issue, mainly because the Falcons inexplicably didn’t bother to cover him.
But let's forget the individual breakdowns for now. It’s time to start wondering if there’s a more systemic issue with the Falcons. Is there some inherent flaw with this personnel, with this coaching staff and with the way the Falcons do things?
They had everything: a ton of talent, an incredibly loud home crowd and a big early lead.
Yet the Falcons have squandered yet another postseason opportunity. After all the talk about how -- this time -- this team was really, truly different, it turns out the Falcons are nothing but the same old Falcons.
More: http://espn.go.com/blog/nfcsouth/post/_/id/44512/in-the-end-the-same-old-falcons
Pat absolutely took the heart out of the Falcons fans and put it in a bag.
