Let's go ahead and get this out of the way: there is no such thing as a moral victory in the National Football League. Bill Parcells once told us that you are what your record says you are, and the Falcons are an 0-1 team.
Ok -- now that it's out of the way, the Falcons looked better on Sunday despite their 16-point blown lead to their rival.
Jon Chuckery discussed what he saw from the Atlanta Falcons in Week one. He saw some things that made him want to tear his hair out (yeah, the blown lead was pretty rough), but don't let it get in the way of things he liked.
"Defensively, I thought the defensive line was outstanding," Jon said on Tuesday afternoon. "Four sacks? That's a net results business, and [it comes down to whether] you sacked the quarterback or not. They made Jameis Winston's life miserable."
The much-maligned Falcons defensive line had a good day - at least for 75 percent of the afternoon. They were able to effectively get after the passer and, besides a few big plays from Taysom Hill, they held their own against a strong Saints rushing attack.
If you asked the average Falcons fan if they would take four sacks per game, they would run to the bank and cash that check before you could change your mind.
"What do I tell you guys all the time? 40 sacks," Jon started. "I'll tell you that you've got a good defense or not if I see 40 sacks up there on the board. If you have 40 sacks, you're going to be a good defense in the NFL."
Not much has the ability to swing the outcome of a football game quite like harassing and sacking the opposing quarterback. Even consistent pressure has the ability to disrupt the game, and that's something the Falcons have been sorely lacking for the better part of a decade. Up until the fourth quarter, it looked like that narrative was finally shifting in their favor.
Speaking of solid line play, the other much maligned unit for the Falcons played well, too.
"Our offensive line, they were outstanding! Remember last year when I railed every single week about trotting out [the same struggling guys]?" Chuckery exclaimed. "Do you know why the Falcons were in that game? Because their offensive and defensive lines played outstanding for three quarters."
Having a strong day on the offensive line doesn't guarantee a win, but a bad one can all but guarantee a loss. The Falcons rushed for 201 yards and allowed zero sacks. Any team that does that week-in and week-out will be in just about every game they play in the NFL.
Football games are won in the trenches: get after the quarterback on defense, and protect him on offense. Atlanta has struggled with this for years, and their .385 winning percentage is evidence enough of that, but do what they did on Sunday it won't be like that for much longer.
Now they just need to figure out how to finish out a game.
