NFC Wild Card Live-Blog: Falcons @ Cardinals, 2nd Half
Saturday, January 03, 2009
Good first quarter for Arizona, better 2nd for Atlanta. Rackers kicks off to Norwood, who gets out to the 27. Ryan hits Peelle at the 30.
Turner runs....and the ball's knocked out by Dockett! Rolle picks it up and runs into the end zone, TOUCHDOWN, CARDINALS! That was quick, 27 yard return. Rackers, up and good (barely), and it's 21-17, Arizona.
Let the good times Rolle! - SSR
Very punny. Norwood kneels on the kick, start at the 20. Turner had a wide open lane, but Arizona called time-out. He was gone if they hadn't, but let's guess that a TO called that early might bite them in the ass.
Turner gets brought down in the backfield again on first down. Ryan to White...but negated thanks to holding. An incomplete on a rush, and then a delay of game. Does not look good for Atlanta. Ryan throws it away on 3rd and 25, and the refs miss a hold in the end zone that would have been a safety. Breaston gets nailed on the punt before he could catch it -- 15 more yards, and Arizona will start inside the Atlanta 40.
Edge rushes for several yards in his LDT visor. Warner goes for Fitzgerald, who tries to bring it in one handed, but is a couple feet short. Warner to Fitz, it's incomplete, but man, that's a PI flag if I ever saw one. Rackers tries to kick one from 51, but it's wide left. Ken Whisenhunt ought to be fucking furious right now.
Turner gets to the 42. Roddy White brings in another catch, but for not much. 3rd down, and the O-line gets savaged. Incomplete, of course. Punt goes out of bounds at about the mid 20s. Edge gets eight on the next two carries, and Cris is agitating for Pat Tillman in the HOF. Warner to the TE, first down.
"Impressive yards after catch for James, and we did count the times he ran into his own offensive linemen." - Cris, as Warner scampers to the 46 for a first down. James gets into Atlanta territory again for another first down. Tim Hightower gets a couple on the next carry. Warner hits the TE Urban, then checks down to James for another first down at the 25 of the Falcons. Hightower grabs five more to the 20. Warner smokes one into Breaston at the five yard line.
Warner, short pass to Hightower, in the end zone. Rackers point is up and good, 28-17.
Has anyone noticed how odd it is to have Clint Eastwood hunting down Asian gang members. It's like Dirty Harry: The Retirement Years. Looks good though. Atlanta will start at the 20 after a touchback.
Ryan aims downfield for Roddy White....and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie makes an acrobatic interception to pick it off! He got UP THERE. Three and out, though. Punt downed inside the 15. Turner continues to get nothing from Berry and the D-line, Norwood doesn't get much more as the 3rd quarter ends.
Ryan overthrows Jenkins on first down, and he's unraveling. Punt again. Stop hitting yourself, Falcons! 15-yard face mask on the end of an Edge run gets inside Falcons territory. Dumb, dumb screen pass on first down to Arrignton, loses tons of yards. 3rdr and 11. Warner gets harried by the blitz and it's incomplete. Falcons get called for a hold on the punt, giving Arizona ten more yards.
THEY BROKE OUT THE VANILLA ICE FOR MATT RYAN. Good lord.
And they get Matt Ryan in the grasp....and IT'S A SAFETY!!! 30-17. Looks debatable, he held on to the ball too long and they called it as if he was in the grasp and about to go down, and the ref was grabbing Ryan's crotch.
Cris: "He gave him a couple of bucking bronco rides, but the third and fourth was too much." (via Mal)
James burrows for more yards and another first down. Warner out to the TE, about the 22. James gets stopped up in the backfield, there's a flag, and they're battling out of bounds. Holding on Arizona. Warner hits Fitzgerald, but he's short of the first. Douglas takes the punt return out to the 41.
Ryan to Norwood for some serious yardage after the catch, going way deep into Cards' territory. Ryan then goes to Peelle at the 20 -- next pass to Jenkins, short of the first down. QB sneak for the first down. Offsides on the Cards. Toss to White for another first down, and it's first and goal.
Ryan to White -- in the flat, just walks into the end zone, kick is good. 30-24, Cards.
Lost transmission thanks to incompetence at the local station. And now they're not broadcasting in HD. Warner aims for Breaston, who makes the catch and gets into Falcon territory at the 40. Hightower to the 43, and an ATL timeout. An end around to Breaston is broken up big time. And Warner just iced this game with a throw to Spach over the middle and to the 20.
Now they're eating clock, and this game is over with another first down. Your final score will be 30-24, and I totally blew it on this call -- where was this Arizona team all season? See you in a bit for the Colts and Chargers.
105 Comments:
Matt Ryan didn't even try to tackle him. Just call Antoine Rolle Butter because he has that last name!
Let the good times Rolle!
Thank you!
Tip the veal and try the waitresses!
Arizna took the best time out in history according to Mr. Collinsworth.
They threw into triple coverage, and it weas null and void.
Mike Smith channeling his inne Peyton/Norv/Eli face...
...I just got home and I don't know what I'm more perplexed by: Millen in the NBC Studio or Mariotti being hired by Fanhouse.
Mike Smith's ill-conceived half time speech must have been: "Remember....you are the Atlanta Falcons!"
Larry Munson would be bitching about the officiating at this point.
Chris: "Watch the difference in the get off".
The Last Templar. NBC obviously going for the Simple Simon audience unsaintly.
Is there a Big 10 officiating crew out there?
Man, Atlantalucky not to have surrendered a point in the last few minutes.
And +1 to RJBO. Looks more like an SEC refereeing crew.
Sliced badly like one of my 3-irons.
Big plays happen in the 4th qtr - Collinsworth, thanks Capt Obvious
refs suck nuts
Chris: "The John Madden bus doesn't make it over to Hawaii, so I get a trip to the islands".
Tom: "You're on tv nearly every day, so I guess you've earned it".
"john Madden bus doesn't make it to Hawai'i, so I get a trip..." - Collinsworth making his post-Tampa plans...and you might wanna make future plans about 2009.
Hammond: "You've earned (the trip to the Pro Bowl). You're on TV every day of the week, as I can tell."
Or more than Leave it to Beaver reruns.
/Pete Gillen'd
So Michaels and Collinsworth in Hawai'i.
Nothing like a tribute to a soldier shot down by his own men to 'go great with the holidays and the soldiers serving overseas'
Tiki Barber is a fuckstick. What an embarrassment.
He's Rick James Bible owner, bitch!
RE: Tiki's Pat Tillman report
There's no other way he can hold the mic to solve his new fumbling problems?
Nothing like Anon 6:39 PM to act like a jerkaway putz making comments about people who give their lives for Christ on a Cracker!
And to quote Ben Afflick as Keith Olberman, "How dare you, sir! HOW DARE YOU!"
In the name of Miss Perfect Precious!
Hightower high steps into the end zone for the touchdown!
Hammond: "(Grady Jackson) can't cook, but he knows everything about food."
Great, another week for Pete Prisco to suck on the Cardinals whilst being "neutral".
Falcons are getting closer to being done.
Eastwood's "Get off my lawn."
Lawn Guyland Phil over at uniwatchblog.com will never sound the same again
Who's doing the Super Bowl Halftime show? I hadn't heard anything about it. We need some advanced notice or something...
Well Arizona can just waltz into the East Coast and get blown out.
One word, RJBO:
BRUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCE!
Gosh, I was hoping you'd be facisious or something.
Doobie Brothers.
*TPiR buzzer* MRRRRRP!
Oh, I'm sorry, Mal, but that's wrong. however, we have a lovely parting gift for you. A pair of tickets to this weekend's New England Patriots Playoff game at Schaffer Stadium, right on the 50-yardline.
@James Craven: Thanks, but I can't make it. Can you ask Belichick to tape the game for me?
I was hoping you'd be facisious or something.
Guilty as charged, unless this Summerall av is bleeding into my brain.
What, you doing some spying on the sidelines?
If the old Y1J was doing this, he'd call it "The best gift...Eh-Eh-Eh-EVEAH!!!"
Um...game over.
And the Falcons are imploding right in front of our eyes.
Mike Gandy's birthday, hunh?
What did they get him?
Given LT's injury, shouldn't he be advertising a standard definition television?
LT is fast, very fast.
(Unless he has a groin problem we don't know about. His own, you hope.)
"Whenever they needed a big play, they'd come from the backside." - Collinsworth
...and later from Hammond: "A lot of the players are slipping on the field."
Robert Van Winkle much?
and we get Vanilla Ice as we come back from commercial.
And now they're going to be taunting...
Arizona will dominate the NFC West forever and ever and ever.
I'm so angry now.....
Chris: "He gave him a couple of bucking bronco rides, but the third and fourth was too much".
Matty Ice just gotrozen!
Matty Ice looked like Suge Knight was holding him over the edge of a building.
Or in English, Matty Ice just got frozen...
Arizona got penalized for Homo-erotic Celebration In The End Zone.
If Jim Nantz were here, it would be: "Matty Ice Melts in the Arizona Desert".
+1 to Jay.
"Foxworth grabbed him by the ankles." - Hammond missing the nearly obvious near horsecollar tackle.
And another +1 to Mal for the melting anology.
From PFT on Millen's presence / Madden's future:
http://www.profootballtalk.com/2009/01/03/millens-presence-will-fuel-madden-rumors/
It says there is a clause in MAdden's contract that it can be reevaluated after three years, and Madden may take a job in Raiders front office. Collinsworth would be analyst on SNF, and Millen would replace him on FNIA.
Why don't we all just take +1. We've done a darn good job tonight.
As I said on my O Files Live Blog, "The Diet Soda Sarah Palin Bridge To Nowhere Between Games Show..." Or something like that.
As a Giant fan, I'd like to say GO VIKINGS for tomorrow.
Playing Arizona at home would be the equivalent of a 2nd bye week going into the NFC Championship game.
@jg: So glad Millen has an opportunity to make money after his release from "football prison."
Why don't we all just take +1. We've done a darn good job tonight.
I've been more annoying than Nathan Brice.
Playoffs? You kidding me/
Best. Soundbites. EVER!
No, RJBO. Nathen Brice is annoying on another level of trolling.
@ James Craven - It could also include the Bill Clinton - Al Gore Bridge to the 21st Century.
Mal, the Clinton - Gore Bridge to the 21st Century is so 20th Century.
"Looks like they're going to mark it just short..." - Hammond reminding us that the yellowline is unofficial.
@RJBO
If Millen was in football prison, he was in charge of its construction, or he had some serious blackmail on the Fords.
dont remember if this was in the 2nd half or not, but did Cris really suggest Tillman should be in the HOF?
Seriously?
An exhibit in the HOF? sure.
inducted into the HOF? Only a few hundred people more deserving.
That's like the 15th offsides on Arizona, yet only 3 or 4 have been called.
Can we go on now and crown Arizona's ass now?
Zzzzz....oh, they're done telling us about Matt Ryan's brother now? Seriously, that story stretched for far too long.
Rod Roddy White!
I've got Bermanitis....
@jg: Matt Millen's wife made the "football prison" line.
...and we have a game.
As I posted the comment about Ryan's brother, who do they cut to on the screen? Ryan's brother.
New drinking game. How many times will they say "Matty Ice"? So far it has been enought to make me hate a player that I had liked before today's kickoff.
Chris Crocker just called.
"LEAVE THE $5 FOOTLONG ALONE!"
It's not like the love affair the camera had with Chase Daniel's parents, Anon 7:26.
The gal in the purple blouse in the Subway commercials looks pretty good.
Damn, they're using O.A.R.'s "Shattered" at the stadium. And O.A.R. has officially been ruined for me now...
Okay, maybe not ruined but...it's just not the same now that everyone thinks that "Shattered" is great.
Did anyone remember last year's Golden Globes ceremonies?
Oh, wait. It was a press conference.
@ James Craven - Best. Golden Globes. Ever.
Stick a fork in the Falcons, they're now officially done!
Dabney Coleman just called and said that Warner had "balls as big as church bells".
Breaston is still a waste of a player.
/Kirk Herbstreit
Uh, Mal. Writer's strike, sarcasm...
If a press conference is good enough for the Nobel Committe, it should be good enough for the Hollywood crowd to congratulate themselves.
How many times will they say "It's Mike Gandy's birthday"?
Fixed.
Three kneel downs coming. Meadowlands play.
JC - I knew that. No Golden Globes was better than having another self important awards show for hollywood phonies.
The only thing worth watching in those award shows is the cleavage on parade.
OK - What time do the Golden Globes start? I need to set my tivo.
And less debacuchary in Hollyweird, Mal?
Leave it to cleavage...That's what I missed last year!
Act like you been there before Arizona. Seriously, a Gaterade Bath?
With my luck we'll get the motivated Philly team next week instead of the "happy to be here" Arizona team.
It's Mike Gandy's birthday?
Act like you been there before Arizona.
They've been there before?
Hey, they've won TWO playoff games since the Cowboys last won one....
Touche, Stephen.
If Chris Johnson doesn't win the Diet Pepsi ROY, will he call this award 'bogus' too?
Patrick: "Clarence Clemons could've taken that back for a TD."
Bermanitis: We must wipe out this disease in our lifetime.
Chuck in 3D? Awesome. Yvonne Strahovski in 3D!!! Set my tivo for that one too.
Bermanitis: We must wipe out this disease in our lifetime.
I'll donate a couple of sheckles...
Tom: One of the Falcons' goals was ball possession.