Is Falcons Defense Good Enough to Mask Mistakes, Pave Way to Playoffs?

The Atlanta Falcons' Deion Jones will invade Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints' nightmares after Thursday's 20-17 victory at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium. 

The middle linebacker led the Falcons defense with 13 total tackles, three tackles for loss, two deflected passes and a game-clinching end-zone interception. 

Jones' performance serves as a microcosm of the Falcons' evolving campaign. The defense showed it can win games, instead of always relying upon Matt Ryan, Julio Jones and the rest of the offense. 

Atlanta began its season with a 4-4 record before winning four of its last five and improving to 8-5 overall. The team may sit third overall in the NFC South, but it could end up tied with the Carolina Panthers by the end of Sunday's play if Cam Newton and Co. fall to the Minnesota Vikings. If that happens, the two franchises will have identical records, while vying for the sixth and final playoff seed. 

The 8-4 Seattle Seahawks could also factor into the equation if they falter against the Jacksonville Jaguars. 

Once again, there's hope for the Falcons after last year's Super Bowl disaster and a sluggish start to this season. The Falcons defense has provided a shining light even when everything isn't clicking on an explosive offense. 

Tom Brady picked apart the Falcons during Super Bowl LI with the use of tempo and quickly getting the ball out of his hand. This neutralized Atlanta's aggressive defensive front and forced the secondary to sit back in coverage. 

The Falcons also featured a very young defensive group that didn't know exactly how to react at the time. Added experience naturally made those same defenders more comfortable with the ability to react in adverse situations. 

Even so, Atlanta has still dealt with recent late-game letdowns. 

Dan Quinn's defense allowed 55 second-half points during the team's five losses, including a fourth-quarter game-winning touchdown to the Minnesota Vikings just four days ago. The unit knew it was a problem, too. 

"Finish," defensive end Takkarist McKinley said when asked what the biggest key for the defense is after the Falcons' 34-20 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 12, per ESPN.com's Vaughn McClure. "When we were up 27-6, we should have kept them to single digits. So for us, we've got to really take that 'finish' word heavily because ain't no way they should have climbed back in that game and made it a game."

Since this has been a consistent problem, the unit's response against the Saints bordered on the sublime.

Jones is the catalyst. He leads the Falcons in tackles after doing the same as a rookie in 2016. But his performance is about more than statistics. 

"Deion's a special player," Ryan said, per McClure. 

The 222-pound defender covers an immense amount of ground. His sideline-to-sideline range is exceptional, while his ability to drop into coverage on a play designed to overwhelm a linebacker only to secure the aforementioned interception provides an inkling of his athletic ability, courtesy of NFL.com: 

Brees rarely makes mistakes of that nature. Granted, Josh Hill isn't going to make anyone forget about Jimmy Graham, but the route concept is supposed to take advantage of a tight end's natural size advantage by lofting the pass over the dropping linebacker into his awaiting arms. Jones' ability to drop into coverage, keep his eyes on Brees and make the leaping grab saved the Falcons from themselves after allowing the Saints to convert on 4th-and-1 earlier in the drive. 

Middle linebackers are historically known as fierce competitors ready to rip off facemasks and end run games. Jones is a new breed of backer. He's not the biggest, and he doesn't hold up particularly well at the point of attack. However, his ability to play against today's wide-open offenses gives him an edge even when he's targeted, per Pro Football Focus: 

Multiple other young defenders are coming into their own as part of an improved unit. 

Second-year linebacker De'Vondre Campbell finished second Thursday night with six total tackles. Safety Keanu Neal continues to be a presence at or near the line of scrimmage. Ricardo Allen is a viable free safety to complement Neal. Grady Jarrett is a disruptive presence along the defensive interior. Brian Poole is an exceptional nickel corner. Vic Beasley Jr. didn't have a big impact against the Saints, but he's also the NFL's 2016 sack leader. 

Along with Jones, these seven pieces are significant contributors, and none have been in the league for more than three seasons. 

Thursday's performance may have been dominated by Jones, but the group's entire effort proved to be significant. The Falcons held the NFL's second-ranked offense to 306 total yards. While this may not seem like a major accomplishment, the Saints averaged 408.6 yards per game through the first 12 games. Brees and his group also averaged 29.4 points per game before playing their division rival. 

The Saints' potent rushing attack even stalled with only 50 yards and 3.3 yards per carry. Granted, rookie sensation Alvin Kamara left the game after the opening series due to a concussion, but New Orleans still had to slow Mark Ingram, who ranks second overall in rushing yardage going into the weekend. 

More importantly, Ryan didn't play well. The quarterback completed 55.6 percent of his passes and tossed three interceptions—whether or not the turnovers were actually his fault. The Falcons defense picked up its quarterback, and it's not the first time it's had to do so, per Atlanta 92.9 The Game's Knox Bardeen: 

Ryan doesn't need to perform at an MVP level for the Falcons to succeed. Jones doesn't need to be Superman and dominate every contest. Devonta Freeman doesn't need to be a dynamic dual-threat running back, either. 

"We wanted to take it on our hands," Allen said after the game, per McClure. 

The Falcons' season is still alive and even flourishing because the defense came to play. 

Brent Sobleski covers the NFL for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter: @brentsobleski.