Can you say wild card? The Atlanta Falcons hope to be saying it come the holiday season because their NFC South title chances are as flat as a 50-cent beer on Bourbon Street.
After Monday's 35-27 spanking by New Orleans, the Falcons trail the Saints by three games with nine to negotiate. Not a prohibitive gap, especially with N'Awlins paying a return trip to the Georgia Dome on Dec. 13. (Mark dem calendars.) But the Saints get Carolina, St. Louis and Tampa Bay in the next three weeks, then the Redskins, Panthers and Bucs later.
In Falcon Nation, there was much to be encouraged about. Michael Turner, legs churning piston-like, relived '08 with 151 yards on 20 carries. Matt Ryan is getting slammed for his three picks, but he threw 41 times into the Saints' ball-hawking secondary. The defense held Drew Brees to 308 passing yards, below his otherworldly standards.
At 4-3, with the hangdog Redskins hitting the A-T-L to take us to the midway point, the Falcons are about where we expected them. They lost a game Monday that nearly every other NFL team would lose.
So it's onward and upward . . . to second place in the division and a wild-car
I thought they did very well, I thought it was going to be a blow out. Mike Smith did a good job managing the game. The game bordered on getting out of control several times. They gave up only one touchdown in the second half to probably the best offense in football right now.