Against the New England Patriots, the Atlanta Falcons offense consisted of Tony Gonzalez and Jacquizz Rodgers. Stephen Jackson was injured. Jason Snelling could not put a run together. Roddy White was an injured decoy. Julio Jones was double-teamed the entire night. As a result, the Falcons barely managed 23 points in a loss to the New England Patriots. Things are not looking much better for their upcoming Monday night game against the New York Jets and they know it.
The fact is the Atlanta Falcons are reaching dangerous territory. They are 1-3 and the New Orleans Saints are undefeated. A loss to the Jets and fans can essentially say goodbye to any postseason dreams. The Falcons are trying to rely heavily on their depth after injuries have run rampant in the starting lineup. Jets cornerback Antonio Cromartie is not discounting any of the Falcons players despite their slow season.
"They have great and talented guys in the skill positions from Matt Ryan to the running backs like (Jason) Snelling to Julio Jones and Roddy White," Cromartie said, via the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "What I'm seeing from them is just their guys being playmakers."
Cromartie is easily the best defender on the Jets roster and he will be tasked with taking on Jones all night. Aqib Talib was on that assignment last Sunday and succeeded at shutting down Jones while other teams have resorted to double-teaming the league's top receiver. Jones currently leads the NFL with 481 yards and leads the NFC with 33 catches.
"You see Julio Jones, who's being double-covered, still averaging over 100 yards a game," said Cromartie. "It just shows you what kind of guy he is and what kind of talent (he has)."
The respect between Jones and Cromartie is mutual. Jones understands that with White injured, he is drawing the most attention from the defense during games and it will be a challenge every week. Jones told Atlanta media that he trusts Cromartie will be one him a lot, but he must do a better job of delivering in the redzone, no matter how many players are covering him.
The MVP of the wide receiving corps for the Falcons could be Harry Douglass. White has suffered a setback with his high-ankle sprain, noting that things are not any better with the injury than they were a few weeks ago. With that, Douglass has to step up and is proving a reliable target for Ryan. Douglass has 213 yards off 14 catches so far this year. Expect that number to increase as Ryan will test the Jets' young cornerbacks.
"You've got to play it respectfully and understand that Matt Ryan does get the ball out quick and you have to understand that there are going to be chances for us to make plays," Cromartie said. "We just have to be sure that we go out and capitalize when we can."
