Atlanta Falcons Controlling the Clock By Winning on Third Down

The Falcons improved to 2-1 by taking down the defending Super Bowl champion Saints last Sunday in overtime. It was their second overtime game of the young season, the first of which came in a Week 1 loss to the Steelers, 15-9.

At 2-1 and one play away from being 3-0, the Falcons are playing with confidence, especially on third down.

The Falcons are 22-for-43 on third down this season, allowing them to keep drives alive and control the clock, something imperative against high-powered offenses like the Saints’.

“We’ve made plays,” quarterback Matt Ryan said. “That’s kind of the biggest thing that you notice when you look at the past couple of weeks, especially on third-down situations. We’ve made plays when they’ve been there. And we’re going to need to continue to do that."

“I think we can be even better. I think we can put ourselves in better position on third down if we’re a little more efficient on first and second down...We’ve been pretty productive on third down, and we need to keep that going.”

In Week 1 against the Steelers, the Falcons lost the time-of-possession battle by just over 1:30. Since then, they have dominated ball control. In all three games combined, the Falcons have held the ball for over 115 minutes, while their opponents controlled it for just 72.

That’s around 43 more minutes—almost three quarters of football—that the Falcons have had control. In their 27-24 win against the Saints, they controlled the ball for 45 minutes to the Saints’ 27:15, more than a full quarter of additional control.

Their success on third down can be attributed to many players, from the running back tandem of Michael Turner and Jason Snelling, to Roddy White at the receiver position, to Tony Gonzalez, the big, veteran target at tight end.

“It’s confidence,” said Gonzalez. “It’s confidence knowing that any situation that we get in, we can go out there and pick it up—any reasonable situation—we can pick it up, and that’s a sign of a good team.”

The Falcons look to continue their third-down success by controlling the clock against the 0-3 49ers, who come to town for a 1 p.m. Sunday kickoff.

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