The Falcons enter the last week of the season with the playoffs on the line, but they don’t control their own destiny.
A win against the Saints in New Orleans alone wouldn’t end Atlanta’s postseason drought; the club needs an improbable Panthers upset of the Buccaneers. That would put the Falcons as winners of the NFC South, hosting a playoff game in Atlanta for the first time since 2016.
In that same breath, if they fall in New Orleans to the Saints and the Jets beat the Patriots, Terry Fontenot’s front office will be preparing for a draft cycle with the 8th overall pick for the third straight offseason.
It’s the perfect ending for the Falcons season — polar opposites. One week the team looks like a competently run group, and the other it looks like it should be torn down and sold for parts.
For instance, last Sunday in Chicago, the Falcons looked disinterested in even being on Soldier Field and were taken to the woodshed by a lousy Bears team. Then the week prior, Arthur Smith’s team put on the best performance of the season against the Colts.
Interestingly, before the Falcons’ final home game of the season, the club’s owner spoke to the team before the Week 16 contest. Calais Campbell said that Arthur Blank had a simple message, “… You do better when you play loose and just have fun.”
WATCH: Calais Campbell told me earlier today that Falcons owner Arthur Blank spoke to the team before the Colts game.
"…You do better when you play loose and just have fun."
The Falcons are hoping to do just that on Sunday against the Saints. pic.twitter.com/6rNkTQlyK6
— Georgia Chambers (@itsgeorgiatv) January 4, 2024
I wouldn’t read too much into Blank speaking to the players at this juncture in the season. It’s not an indictment of Arthur Smith’s control of the locker room or anything else.
I find it fascinating that the one time we know of Blank speaking to the team before a game is somehow the best performance of the season. It might just be a coincidence, but it’s notable nonetheless.
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Photographer: Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire
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