Falcons Weekly Release - Bengals Home

WING TIPS
MATTY ICE
Quarterbacks are often judged by their play in tight games
in the fourth quarter and their ability to put together gamewinning
drives late in games. QB Matt Ryan has shown
an ability to rise to the challenge in pressure situations
by leading the Falcons on 22 game-winning drives in the
fourth quarter or overtime (including postseason), which
are the most in the NFL since 2008 and most by a quarterback
in his first five seasons since 1966.
MATT RYAN’S GAME-WINNING DRIVES
Date Opponent Score Date Opponent Score
10/05/08 Green Bay 27-24 12/05/10 Tampa Bay 28-24
10/12/08 Chicago 22-20 09/18/11 Philadelphia 35-31
12/14/08 Tampa Bay* 13-10 10/16/11 Carolina 31-17
12/28/08 St. Louis 31-27 12/11/11 Carolina 31-23
10/18/09 Chicago 21-14 9/30/12 Carolina 30-28
12/20/09 NY Jets 10-7 10/7/12 Washington 24-17
01/03/10 Tampa Bay 20-10 10/14/12 Oakland 23-20
09/26/10 New Orleans* 27-24 11/18/12 Arizona 23-19
10/03/10 San Francisco 16-14 11/25/12 Tampa Bay 24-23
10/24/10 Cincinnati 39-32 1/13/13 Seattle^ 30-28
11/11/10 Baltimore 26-21 *denotes game winning drive in OT.
11/28/10 Green Bay 20-17 ^denotes game winning drive in playoffs.
The Pro Bowl signal caller led the Falcons on game-winning
drives in the fourth quarter six timesin 2012, including
back-to-back wins over Washington and Oakland, and Arizona
and Tampa Bay. Ryan set up three game-winning field
goals by K Matt Bryant and three game-winning touchdown
runs by RB Michael Turner in 2012. His six gamewinning
drives in 2012 are tied for the most in a single season
in his career. He led six game winning drives in 2010.
Trailing 28-27 with 31 seconds remaining in
the NFC Divisional playoff game vs. Seattle,
Ryan drove the Falcons 41 yards in two
plays to set up Bryant’s game-winning field
goal. The win sent the Falcons to the NFC
Championship Game for the third time in
franchise history.
WHITE OUT
WR Roddy White continued to show
he is one of the premier wide outs
in the NFL in 2012. White posted 92
receptions for 1,351 yards with seven
touchdowns. He is the only player in
the NFL to record over 1,200 receiving yards in each of the
last three seasons and one of just three receivers to post
at least 1,000 receiving yards each year during that time.
In Atlanta’s Week 16 win at Detroit,
White caught eight passes
WHITE’S 100-YD GAMES
Season Games
for 153 yards with two touchdowns.
He posted his 35th ca-
2012 7
2008 7
reer 100-yard game and tied his
2011 5
franchise record for 100-yard
2010 5
games in a season with his seventh.
White has posted five-or-
2009 4
more 100-yard games in each of the least four seasons.
USS BABINEAUX
Defensive tackles are tasked with holding
the point of attack, penetrating the offensive
line to break up plays in the backfield
and pressuring the quarterback. Since
being drafted by the Falcons in 2005, DT
Jonathan Babineaux has excelled in each
of those roles.
• Babineaux recorded his first career interception in Atlanta’s
Week 13 win over the New Orleans Saints, picking
off QB Drew Brees at the line of scrimmage.
In 2012, Babineaux recorded TACKLES FOR LOSS
42 tackles (33 solo) with 3.5 Team
Stuffs
sacks. According to Stats Inc., Kyle Williams 9
he ranked second among defensive
tackles with 8.5 tackles Justin Smith 8
Jonathan Babineaux 8.5
behind the line of scrimmage. Paul Soliai 8
Since he was drafted by the Falcons
in 2005, Babineaux’s 49.5
Ndamukong Suh 8
stuffs are the most by any defensive tackle.
In Atlanta’s Divisional playoff win over Seattle, the Seahawks
held the ball at the Atlanta six-yard line with 25
seconds on the clock in the first half. After two incomplete
passes and a penalty, Babineaux broke through the line and
sacked QB Russell Wilson, which allowed the clock to run
out and kept the Seahawks off the scoreboard. Babineaux
finished the game with three tackles (one solo) with one
sack, one tackle for loss, and one quarterback hit.
SCOREBOARD WATCHING
Last season, Atlanta held opponents
to 20 points or less nine times. One
of the keys to the Falcons ablity to
limit opponents scoring was their
success on teams’ first offensive
possessions. The Falcons surrendered
299 total points (18.7 per
game) which was the fifth fewest
POINTS ALLOWED
Team
Pts.
Seattle 245
San Francisco 273
Chicago 277
Denver 289
Atlanta 299
points allowed in the NFL in 2012. Additionally, Atlanta’s
average margin of victory was 10.7 points.
QUICK TURNOVER DRIVES
Atlanta’s 31 total takeaways
ranked tied for fifth in the NFL in
2012. Of those 31 turnovers, 21
came on opponent drives lasting
four or fewer plays, getting the
defense off of the field early and
giving the offense opportunities
QUICK TURNOVERS
Team