The Atlanta Falcons knew they needed a big target for quarterback Matt Ryan this season so they went out and traded for one of the best in league history.
On Sunday at the Meadowlands, Ryan found tight end Tony Gonzalez on 4th-and-goal to pull ahead of the New York Jets, 10-7, with just 1:42 left to play. The 6-foot-5 Gonzalez said the Jets (7-7) playing zone coverage in that situation allowed him to easily get open.
“They were doing a pretty good job of taking me out of that drive and then that last play I was like ‘Oh my god, I think they’re going zone here and I might have a shot to get open,” Gonzalez, whom the Falcons acquired from the Kansas City Chiefs for a second-round draft pick last off-season, said. “I just turned out and Matt put the ball right on the money.”
“There’s no better runner of that route in this league than Tony Gonzalez,” Ryan said. “He ran a perfect route and was in the right spot.”
That final drive started on the Falcons’ own 27 yard line after Jay Feely missed his third field goal of the afternoon. Nearly three minutes and 73 yards later, Atlanta (7-7) found the end zone for the first time of the day.
“We just kept scratching and like I said, we found some things we thought could work,” Falcons head coach Mike Smith said.
Ryan said he’s had a lot of fun this season throwing to Gonzalez, who holds a number of NFL records at the tight end spot, including career touchdowns (82) and receptions (994).
“He’s made a big difference for us the entire year in the red zone,” he said. “He’s a great player, there’s no getting around it. My only complaint is that he’s not 10 years younger so we could play 10-15 years together.”
Aside from that drive, the Falcons didn’t have much luck on offense. Ryan (16-for-34, 152 yds, 1 TD) saw great coverage all afternoon by the Jets, including on his top target, Roddy White. The wideout was able to get open only on a few occasions, most of them coming when cornerback Darrelle Reevis passed White off to one of the other defensive backs.
“It’s kind of hard to chase somebody all across the field and cover them so it’s kind of what they do, they switch you off and pass you on to the next guy,” said White, who finished with four catches for 33 yards. “Defensive coordinators, they watch film, they know what you do best and they’re just not going to leave somebody man on man all day; you’re going to get beat.”
Atlanta put the first points on the scoreboard with a 24 yard field goal by Matt Bryant half way through the first quarter. That scoring drive was set up after Falcons’ tackle Thomas Johnson picked off Mark Sanchez in Jets territory.
Four minutes later, Sanchez found wide receiver Braylon Edwards on a 65-yard pass play for the score. It was Sanchez’ longest throw and touchdown of his young career.
New York tried twice to add to their lead in the second quarter with field goals, but a botched snap by holder Kellen Clemens and a bad kick by Feely left them empty.
Sanchez finished the day 18-for-32 for 226 yards, a touchdown and three interceptions, two to Falcons cornerback Brent Grimes. Edwards led all Jets receivers with five catches for 105 yards. The Falcons did a nice job of preventing New York’s top-ranked rushing attack from producing and held the Jets to just 99 yards on the ground.
With a game next week against the undefeated Indianapolis Colts, the Jets know they have to get past this loss quickly.
“As tough and as hard as this loss is we have to move forward. Trust me, Indianapolis is not going to feel sorry for us,” Jets right tackle Damien Woody said. “We have to come back Monday and make the corrections and go to work on Indianapolis.”
The Jets still have a shot at the playoffs, albeit a slim one. Match-ups against Indianapolis and Cincinnati during the last two weeks of the season, however, do not work in their favor. Atlanta, meanwhile, learned they have no shot of the playoffs after the Dallas Cowboys defeated the New Orleans Saints on Saturday night.
Despite news that there would be no Super Bowl rings this year, the Falcons went out and proved that there’s still something to play for when you’re playing for nothing.