NFC South | Atlanta Falcons Tickets

Ryan, Streaking Falcons Protect NFC’s Best Record

ATLANTA. Matt Ryan and the Atlanta Falcons plan to enjoy January in the Georgia Dome.

The Falcons (9-2) are motivated to protect the NFC’s best record — they want home-field advantage in the playoffs.

They aren’t getting ahead of themselves, though, not with three straight regular season road games in December, including this week’s visit to Tampa Bay.

Ryan’s hot hand gives the streaking Falcons hope they can extend their five-game winning streak. His only incompletion in the second half of the 20-17 win Sunday over the was a throwaway before Matt Bryant’s game-winning field goal.

Ryan has no interceptions in the last four games, helping the Falcons post their first four-game stretch with no turnovers in franchise history.

Ryan completed a career-best 86 percent of his passes — 24 of 28 — for 198 yards with a touchdown against Green Bay.

“He’s just not making any mistakes,” said Falcons receiver Roddy White of the third-year quarterback.

The Falcons are 19-1 when Ryan starts at the Georgia Dome the last three years and 19-3 overall at home under coach Mike Smith.

“It is an emphasis for us, knowing we have to win at home because it’s difficult to go on the road,” Smith said Monday.

The Falcons’ five straight wins includes only one by more than 7 points. It’s their longest winning streak since their 1998 season.

The Falcons know the best path back to the Super Bowl is with as many home playoff games as possible. That’s why beating Green Bay was especially important.

“It was a big win because they’re a good football team,” said Ryan of the Packers. “We know if we continue to take care of our business we’re going to play more teams like that down the road.”

Atlanta is one game ahead of New Orleans and two games ahead of Tampa Bay in the NFC South. The Falcons visit the Buccaneers this week.

The Falcons didn’t panic after the Packers tied the game with a 16-play drive that ended with only 56 seconds remaining. Overtime was not in Atlanta’s plan.

“We’ve been in those situations quite a bit this year and we’ve been successful in those situations,” Ryan said.

Ryan has led the Falcons to a game-winning score in the fourth quarter or overtime in five games this season.

“We’re used to it,” White said. “We were calm, cool and collected on the sideline.”

No nerves?

“No, we got Matty Ice,” White said. “Ice cold. He just keeps moving the sticks.”

Ryan has thrown seven touchdown passes in the streak of four straight games without a turnover.

His passer rating has been over 100 in three straight games. He said he didn’t realize he was close to perfect in the second half.

“I didn’t even realize I hadn’t thrown an incompletion until the end of the game,” Ryan said. “I was just going out there trying to make good decisions and be accurate with the ball.”

Michael Turner also is on a roll. He had 23 carries for 110 yards and a touchdown against Green Bay. It was his fourth 100-yard performance in the last five games.

After the game, Turner shook his head when asked if the players were motivated to post their third straight winning season for the first time in franchise history. Before the current run, the Falcons never managed back-to-back winning seasons.

“We’re not the Falcons of old,” Turner said.

Turner signed as a free agent from San Diego before the 2008 season. Turner, Ryan and Smith are in their third seasons in Atlanta.

“Once we got together, we started winning,” Turner said. “We’re building a new tradition. Three winning seasons in a row, we’re not even blinking right now. We’ve got our eyes set on something bigger.”

Falcons Keep Low Profile Despite NFC-Leading Mark

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga.. The Atlanta Falcons are at their best when playing takeaway.

The NFC-leading Falcons (8-2) have outscored opponents 73-30 in the fourth quarter. Coach Mike Smith attributes much of the late success to a turnover margin that ranks second in the league.

When winning the turnover battle, Atlanta is 17-1 in three years under Smith. This season, the Falcons have a plus-10 margin in takeaways, which trails only Philadelphia.

Coming off a 34-17 victory at St. Louis, the Falcons have a four-game winning streak and lead New Orleans and Tampa Bay by one game in the NFC South heading into Sunday’s big contest against another division leader, the .

Like every coach, Smith recites a familiar mantra to his players every spring when they report for mini-camp: Win the turnover battle, and you win games.

The team has clearly taken the message to heart. Atlanta is 7-0 this season when it has fewer turnovers than the opponent.

“We’re plus-one this week, so we’re now plus-10,” Smith said Monday. “We’re second in the league, and when you get the turnovers and don’t turn the ball over and you’re on the plus side, you’re basically stealing possessions.”

Not that it’s been easy. The Falcons have needed fourth-quarter magic to beat St. Louis, Baltimore, Tampa Bay and Cincinnati.

Safety William Moore was the latest hero, picking off Sam Bradford’s shuttle pass at the Atlanta 1 before Michael Turner’s 39-yard touchdown run one possession later sealed the win.

“We just got away for a minute in the end there,” Turner said, “but it was pretty tight throughout the whole game.”

The Falcons aren’t just satisfied with multiple takeaways and minimal giveaways. Ranking second in time of possession, second in third-down offensive efficiency and seventh in rushing, Atlanta has found a strong formula for winning.

Defense creates turnovers. Offense scores points.

But it also helps that quarterback Matt Ryan is becoming a master at making the correct pre-snap reads, calling plays from no-huddle formations and making use of several targets.

Ryan benefits from having three elite playmakers in Turner, NFL receiving leader Roddy White and tight end Tony Gonzalez, but he also gets starting wideout Michael Jenkins and several reserves involved in the passing game.

Against the , a four-man tandem of reserves — tight end Justin Peelle, running back Jason Snelling and receivers Brian Finneran and Eric Weems — combined to catch seven passes for 70 yards, two touchdowns and three third-down conversions.

If there was one complaint about Sunday’s win, the Falcons scored just two touchdowns in five red-zone opportunities. But Ryan was still pleased to put up points on four straight first-half possessions as he changed the offensive tempo, switching out of the no-huddle.

“We had some quick snaps, but we also used some clock and also some dummy cadences to kind of get a look from them,” Ryan said. “I think we were more effective in our no-huddle, but we also had great field position.”

It was enough for the Falcons to return home with their 11th victory in 13 games dating to Week 15 last season.

Maybe the national buzz hasn’t swept up the Falcons. They don’t mind a bit.

“It was a good win for us, but again we’ve got another tough opponent this week,” Ryan said. “We’re going to need to get back to work and prepare the way we have all year.”

Notes: Smith said the decision to rest team sacks leader (groin) was easy. It was the first game Abraham has missed under Smith. “We believed it was in our best interests to hold him out, knowing that we’ve got a long, hard part of our season coming up, especially now with three of the next four games on the road,” the coach said.

Falcons, Ravens Offer Prime Matchup in Prime Time

ATLANTA. Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco just can’t get away from each other.

Thrown together on draft day in 2008, these two quarterbacks set off on remarkably parallel NFL careers. Both earned starting jobs as rookies. Both led their teams to unexpected playoff appearances right out of the gate. And now, in Year 3, they continue to put up carbon-copy numbers.

“They’ll be hooked together their entire career,” said Atlanta Falcons coach Mike Smith, who’s got Ryan on his side. “When you come in at the same time, especially at the quarterback position — which is probably the most scrutinized position in all of sports — they’ll always be compared to one another.”

They’ll finally be on the same field Thursday night. Flacco’s take on Ryan’s Falcons in a game that might just be a preview of the get-together they’d really like to have on the first Sunday of February in Big D.

“They both have all the skills to lead their team to great heights,” Ravens coach John Harbaugh said. “It’ll be interesting to see how they develop over the next couple of years.”

So far, so good — and so similar.

This season, Ryan has completed 62.5 percent of his passes, Flacco is at 60.8. Ryan has thrown for 1,949 yards, Flacco is right behind at 1,917. Ryan has 13 touchdown passes and five interceptions, Flacco has one less TD and one more pick. Their efficiency ratings are nearly identical as well: Ryan ranks 12th in the league at 90.2, Flacco is 14th at 88.9.

“(We’re) just two bigger guys that throw well from the pocket. Both of us have been able to get outside the pocket and make plays, too,” Ryan said. “We’re probably more similar than different.”

Their teams are, too.

At the midway points of the NFL season, it’s become clear the Falcons and the Ravens — both 6-2 and leading their respective divisions — are on a shrinking list of contenders for the in Dallas.

Heck, this game might actually be worth the trouble of trying to find the NFL Network on your cable or satellite dial.

“I know it’s not going to be one of those games where it’s won in the first quarter,” Ravens running back Ray Rice said. “It’s going to be one of those fourth-quarter games.”

The Falcons, who hold a half-game lead over defending Super Bowl champion New Orleans in the rugged NFC South, hope that playing at home will be the deciding factor in a game where the teams appear so evenly matched. Atlanta is 17-3 at the Georgia Dome in Smith’s three-year coaching tenure — and 17-1 with Ryan as the starter.

“We’ve been tough at home,” Ryan said. “Our fans have really done a great job this year, especially when we’re on defense. The Dome has been loud. It’s been a great environment, and hopefully we can keep that going.”

Baltimore is tied for the AFC North lead with Pittsburgh and knows that every win is crucial in a conference that has seven teams at 5-3 or better. There’s only six playoff spots available.

Plus, the Ravens wouldn’t mind scoring another blow for the AFC, which holds a 21-17 edge over the NFC in interconference games.

“It’s not as if we don’t know what’s going on,” linebacker said. “We know Atlanta is playing at a very, very high level in the NFC right now, and we’re playing at a high level in the AFC. So, we know what’s coming.”

The comparisons don’t stop there.

Michael Turner has carried the ball 155 times for the Falcons, Rice has gotten it 153 times for the Ravens. Atlanta would seem to have the edge in the receiving department with NFC-leading Roddy White (58 catches, 796 yards, five TDs) and Canton-bound tight end Tony Gonzalez, but the Ravens aren’t too shabby either with Anquan Boldin, Derrick Mason and Todd Heap. Overall, the Falcons appear to have an edge on offense with their balance and big-play capability.

That said, the Ravens appear to have the clear advantage on defense, especially since safety Ed Reed returned from an injury to hold down the back end. Haloti Ngata anchors the defensive line, Terrell Suggs provides pressure off the edge in the 3-4 scheme, and the 35-year-old Lewis, despite losing a step or two, remains the heart and soul.

“They always talk about being strong down the middle in baseball,” Harbaugh said. “Well, we’re pretty strong down the middle on defense.”

The Falcons will surely test that defense if White is healthy. He hurt his right knee in last Sunday’s win over Tampa Bay and barely practiced in the short lead-up to this game. But he’s expected to play against the Ravens.

“He’s just spectacular,” Harbaugh said. “I’m very impressed the fact that he’s a threat to the field in both directions. He can stretch it horizontally coming across the field. He can stretch it vertically.”

For Smith, this is a chance to face the team he once worked for. He was a defensive assistant under his brother-in-law, , when the Ravens won the Super Bowl during the 2000 season.

“When I think about the Baltimore Ravens, I think about a team that each and every year is one of the top teams in the league,” Smith said. “That’s what we’re trying to do here in Atlanta.”