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Falcons earn playoffs advantage
Source: Agencies |
December 24, 2012, Monday
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ATLANTA quarterback Matt Ryan matched a career high with four touchdown passes to help the Falcons beat the Detroit Lions 31-18 on Saturday, earning home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs.
"It's great," Ryan said. "Our confidence is high and our experience - good and bad - has helped us. The key is to keep the focus where it's been."
Detroit's Calvin Johnson had a record-breaking night on the losing side.
Johnson broke Jerry Rice's NFL single-season yards receiving mark of 1,848. After making the record-breaking catch in the fourth quarter, Johnson jogged over to the sideline and handed the football to his father. "That was a very special moment," he said.
Johnson also became the only player with 100 yards receiving in eight straight games and the first in league history with 10 receptions in four games in a row. He had 11 receptions for 225 yards, giving him 1,892 this season.
"I've been an NFL fan my whole life, dating back to watching Johnny Unitas and Raymond Berry as a kid, and I've coached in this league for 19 years," Detroit coach Jim Schwartz said. "I've seen a lot of Hall of Famers, but I've never seen a better player than Calvin Johnson.
"He just broke a record set by Jerry Rice, who is arguably the best player in this history of this league."
The Falcons (13-2) pulled away with Ryan's fourth TD pass to wide-open tight end Michael Palmer in the fourth quarter and Matt Bryant's 20-yard field goal with 3:05 left that gave them a 15-point lead.
Ryan was 25 of 32 for 279 yards without a turnover. The Falcons hope playing at home, potentially throughout the conference playoffs, helps them more than it did after the 2010 and 1980 seasons. The Falcons failed to win a game in either postseason, getting routed by Green Bay two years ago and blowing a double-digit, fourth-quarter lead to Dallas three decades ago.
The Falcons won't have much incentive next week at home against Tampa Bay, when they'll have nothing to gain and something to lose if a key player or more gets hurt. Detroit (4-11) has been relegated to playing for pride this month and that hasn't been going very well.
The Lions, whose seven-game losing streak is the longest in the league, haven't struggled this much since the laughingstock of a franchise became the league's first to go 0-16 in 2008.
The Falcons led 21-3 at halftime before letting the Lions pull within five points early in the fourth quarter.
Ryan dashed Detroit's comeback hopes. Facing intense pressure, he converted a third down in Atlanta territory with a pass to Roddy White, picked on rookie cornerback Jonte Green by throwing to Jones to pick up more first downs and found Tony Gonzalez open to convert another third down to set up his fourth TD pass.
"We didn't play well in the third quarter," Atlanta coach Mike Smith said. "Matt made some big throws on that drive."
"It's great," Ryan said. "Our confidence is high and our experience - good and bad - has helped us. The key is to keep the focus where it's been."
Detroit's Calvin Johnson had a record-breaking night on the losing side.
Johnson broke Jerry Rice's NFL single-season yards receiving mark of 1,848. After making the record-breaking catch in the fourth quarter, Johnson jogged over to the sideline and handed the football to his father. "That was a very special moment," he said.
Johnson also became the only player with 100 yards receiving in eight straight games and the first in league history with 10 receptions in four games in a row. He had 11 receptions for 225 yards, giving him 1,892 this season.
"I've been an NFL fan my whole life, dating back to watching Johnny Unitas and Raymond Berry as a kid, and I've coached in this league for 19 years," Detroit coach Jim Schwartz said. "I've seen a lot of Hall of Famers, but I've never seen a better player than Calvin Johnson.
"He just broke a record set by Jerry Rice, who is arguably the best player in this history of this league."
The Falcons (13-2) pulled away with Ryan's fourth TD pass to wide-open tight end Michael Palmer in the fourth quarter and Matt Bryant's 20-yard field goal with 3:05 left that gave them a 15-point lead.
Ryan was 25 of 32 for 279 yards without a turnover. The Falcons hope playing at home, potentially throughout the conference playoffs, helps them more than it did after the 2010 and 1980 seasons. The Falcons failed to win a game in either postseason, getting routed by Green Bay two years ago and blowing a double-digit, fourth-quarter lead to Dallas three decades ago.
The Falcons won't have much incentive next week at home against Tampa Bay, when they'll have nothing to gain and something to lose if a key player or more gets hurt. Detroit (4-11) has been relegated to playing for pride this month and that hasn't been going very well.
The Lions, whose seven-game losing streak is the longest in the league, haven't struggled this much since the laughingstock of a franchise became the league's first to go 0-16 in 2008.
The Falcons led 21-3 at halftime before letting the Lions pull within five points early in the fourth quarter.
Ryan dashed Detroit's comeback hopes. Facing intense pressure, he converted a third down in Atlanta territory with a pass to Roddy White, picked on rookie cornerback Jonte Green by throwing to Jones to pick up more first downs and found Tony Gonzalez open to convert another third down to set up his fourth TD pass.
"We didn't play well in the third quarter," Atlanta coach Mike Smith said. "Matt made some big throws on that drive."
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