This season the Atlanta Falcons are 8-0, yet many experts and fans still have yet to fully embrace the team as the best in the NFL.
The team feels it hasn't gotten the respect it deserves and on Wednesday wide receiver Roddy White said that the Falcons have "the pedigree" to finish the season unbeaten with a 16-0 record.
"I think we've got the pedigree to do it," White said. "Offensively and defensively and how we are as a team. The locker room is very, very united right now. We go into every week expecting to win. ... We've still got to be consistent, don't turn the ball over and get turnovers. That's been the key to winning games all over this league. If we continue to do that, we'll be just fine."
The 1972 Miami Dolphins are the last team to go through the entire season and win a championship without losing, while the New England Patriots are the only team to make it through a regular season with a 16-0 record.
The Patriots of course lost the Super Bowl to the Giants, leaving them with an 18-1 record through the regular season and the playoffs.
Atlanta has never started 8-0 in franchise history and according to ESPN Stats & Information, "the Falcons are the 20th team to start 8-0 in the Super Bowl era and the 31st team to start 8-0 in NFL history. Of the previous 19 teams to start 8-0 in the Super Bowl era, 12 reached the Super Bowl and eight of those teams won the NFL title."
One reason the Falcons haven't earned the respect of some around the league is because the team has played a weak schedule and will continue to do so for the rest of the season, apart from a handful of games.
According to ESPN.com, "the remaining opponents on the schedule are a cumulative 17-24 (Atlanta still has two games left with division rival Tampa Bay). Four of the last seven games are at the Georgia Dome, where the Falcons have a 30-7 record since Mike Smith took over as coach in 2008."
Also, in some of those games against weak opponents, the Falcons barely were able to win. During the first half of the season the Falcons beat the Oakland Raiders and Carolina Panthers by a combined give points and only beat Dallas last Sunday 19-13. But in the NFL, wins are wins.
"We can," center Todd McClure said without a hint of hesitation when asked if the Falcons can finish 16-0. "There's no reason we can't. If we play our game, go out and do what we're supposed to go, we can. The sky's the limit for this team. Is it going to be hard? Yes. Will it be hard this week? Yes. But, if we approach it week by week, it's definitely possible."
In the second half of the season the Falcons biggest challenges will come this Sunday and on Nov. 29 against the New Orleans Saints and a Dec. 16 matchup against the New York Giants. Obviously all games in the NFL are tough, but the Falcons have a favorable schedule the rest of the way.
The biggest weakness for the team has been in the running game. The Falcons are ranked only 25th in rushing yards with 98 per game and are allowing the 8th most rushing yards on defense to opponents.
"We're only halfway there," said right tackle Tyson Clabo. "Statistically, the chances of that are really slim. I mean, we base our game plans on statistics. Statistically, this what's going to happen, so we're going to do this. So I don't think we should deviate from our entire mindset based on this big, golden cow that everybody thinks we should try to get to."
Matt Ryan has been fantastic for the Falcons this season, passing for 2,360 yards and seven touchdowns, but he has yet to translate that success into playoff wins. Ryan has taken the Falcons to the playoffs three times since 2008, but has lost all three games. The most recent loss came last season when the Falcons visited the New York Giants and were dominated 24-2.
The Falcons haven't been to the Super Bowl since 1998 and have never won a league championship. The team's last playoff win came against the St. Louis Rams in 2004
"At this point, we have so many other goals that are more important than" going 16-0, Clabo said. "Like winning the division. Like trying to get a game in the (Georgia) Dome in the playoffs. We have a whole bunch of things we have to do before we even worry about doing that other thing."
This Sunday the Falcons will take on a Saints team that is coming off of a big 20-13 win against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday night.
"We've got an opportunity to do something nobody's been able to do this year, and that's beat Atlanta," Saints offensive lineman Jahri Evans said. "I'm kind of glad that they're undefeated."
New Orleans has won three of four games and has rebounded from a 0-4 start this year.
"That doesn't make a difference really," linebacker Jonathan Vilma said. "It would be great for the fans. I know Saints fans would love that, but for us, we can't get caught up in all that hype and hoopla. They're a good team. They're 8-0 for a reason. It's not by luck that they're 8-0, so we have to understand who we're facing."
