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Falcons TE Tony Gonzalez Adds Another Record

Atlanta Falcons tight end Tony Gonzalez has added another NFL record to his resume with his 12th straight season of 60 or more receptions.

Gonzalez had four catches Sunday against Seattle to give him 62 for the season. Gonzalez previously shared the mark with .

Gonzalez says bettering a record that Rice held is a major accomplishment and one of the career accolades that he’ll remember. He says it also reminds him how lucky he’s been to stay healthy and productive for so long.

Gonzalez is in his second season with the Falcons. His most receptions came in 2004 with Kansas City when he had 102. Last year, Gonzalez had 83 catches with Atlanta.

Meticulous Mularkey Focuses on Details for Falcons

ATLANTA. Mike Mularkey likes to keep his focus on the Falcons’ next game.

Receiver Michael Jenkins on Wednesday called Mularkey “meticulous.”

Atlanta’s offensive coordinator is all about the details. He’s all about the now. Thanks in part to Mularkey’s focus, the Falcons are all about winning.

Mularkey’s offense ranks fifth in the NFL in scoring and is a big reason the Falcons (11-2) have the NFC’s best record — and poised for a run.

“He’s just real meticulous with his work,” Jenkins said. “He likes to go over everything to the finest detail. If you’ve heard it 30 times, he wants to go over it 31 times. That’s just the way he is. He strives for perfection. And he does a great job of feeling the games, knowing when to put us in no-huddle, when we should continue to run the ball. He has a good sense of that.”

It’s as if Mularkey can make no bad calls.

His offense wears down defenses with a power running game led by 1,000-yard rusher Michael Turner and a dangerous passing attack. Matt Ryan, in his third season, is having his best year while throwing to Roddy White, who leads the NFL with 99 catches.

With Hall of Fame-bound tight end Tony Gonzalez and a line that has been together for three years, Mularkey has a variety of weapons at his disposal.

“I think he tries to be unpredictable,” Gonzalez said. “He tries to keep the defense on their heels with different formations. I think we go into games with like 15 different groupings. Not plays, I’m talking about literally sets, names of groups where like each group is different players in the game. Different sets.

“We never really run anything twice, and that keeps a defense on their heels. That comes from his preparation.”

Mularkey was the offensive coordinator for the and and the head coach at Buffalo before joining Mike Smith in Atlanta.

He said he’d like to be a head coach again but he insisted he isn’t thinking about his next possible career move. For now, he’s consumed with devising a plan for Sunday’s game at Seattle.

Mularkey, zoned in on the Seattle defense, was caught off guard this week with a question about his future: Was he aware that he was mentioned in a TV report as a possible candidate to be the next head coach in Denver, where Josh McDaniels was fired and Eric Studesville is the interim coach?

Mularkey seemed to be genuinely stumped by the question.

“I don’t know anything about it,” he said.

Mularkey’s success in three seasons with coach Mike Smith in Atlanta is likely to ensure his name continues to be included in speculation about head jobs.

“I’d like the opportunity again,” Mularkey said. “I would if it ever presents itself.”

He was 14-18 in two seasons with the , including a 9-7 record in 2004. In Atlanta, he has been part of a three-year run of winning seasons — especially impressive considering the Falcons had never before managed back-to-back winning records.

Ryan said he “absolutely” would not be surprised to see a team interview Mularkey for a head coaching position.

“That’s part of this industry,” said Ryan, who has thrown for 3,147 yards with 22 touchdown passes and only eight interceptions “That’s a great thing. He’s a great coach. He’s a great person. Obviously, I’d love to have him stick around here my entire career, but that’s not always the case.”

Ryan said his goal is to make the most of this season with Mularkey.

“One of the things I’m excited about is this year and not looking too far down the road, and knowing that Mike will make a good decision for himself and his family in the future,” Ryan said. “But I’m glad that we have him for this season.”

Mularkey said he has had no reason to consider how he would approach interest from another team.

“No, to be honest with you, it hasn’t even crossed my mind,” he said. “We’re trying to win this football game. I’m telling my players to focus on the now, don’t worry about anything else, don’t worry about what anybody else is doing. You have absolutely no control over what anybody else is doing, in regards to jobs or any of that.”

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.”