Can the Atlanta Falcons Improve on Their 2008 Success?

A rookie coach leads the Atlanta Falcons to an 11-5 season and a trip to the playoffs. Sounds improbable, right? Not really. This actually was the second time in five years that a rookie coach led the Falcons to an 11-5 record, the first being Jim Mora back in 2004.

Mora not only led the Falcons to an 11-5 record back in 2004, he actually got them to the second round of the playoffs, where they fell to the Philadelphia Eagles. What followed that successful season was an 8-8 record in 2005, a 7-9 record in 2006, and a 4-12 season in 2007 before the Falcons were able to turn it around last year. So it begs the question: Are the Falcons finally moving in the right direction, or should we look to the 2005-2007 seasons for a glimpse of what’s to come?  

The answer to the latter part is no. One factor is the drafting of Matt Ryan. Ryan is more of a cerebral quarterback than Michael Vick, who was the Falcons quarterback in 2004. He has shown to be cool under pressure and is also more of a leader on and off the field than Vick was. Ryan’s continued development will only make this team better in the years to come.

The biggest factor to Atlanta’s continued success though will be the play of running back Michael Turner. In 2008, Turner’s 1,699 rushing yards were second best in the NFL behind Minnesota’s Adrian Peterson, and his 17 rushing touchdowns were second only to Carolina’s DeAngelo Williams. The 2004 Falcons didn’t have a single player this productive to center the offense around and with Turner weighing in at 244 pounds; he is definitely built to withstand a bruising NFL schedule.

One last factor that may help Atlanta improve this year is the addition of Pro Bowl tight end Tony Gonzalez. Wide receivers Roddy White and Michael Jenkins both had breakout seasons last year and bringing in Gonzalez will help the Falcons to spread the field and give Turner even more room to run. Gonzalez caught 96 passes with the Chiefs last year and didn’t have a running back or quarterback as good as the ones he will be playing with this year.

So how will the 2009 season play out for the Atlanta Falcons? I don’t know if they will be able to achieve another 11-5 record since they won’t be sneaking up on anybody this year, but they look to have the recipe for a winning season.