Flowery branch, Georgia - snow forced the Atlanta Falcons to practice indoors all week was almost thawed by Sunday.
It takes much longer to burn their last game to melt away.
A regular season of sleep became a nightmare once the Falcons made the playoffs, ruined by another dynamic interpretation of Aaron Rodgers and what could be worse shown by Atlanta from its current regime that in 2008.
NFC team top seeded was one fact, amazingly blown by Green Bay Packers 48-21 on Saturday night, leaving a city which had been giddy about their prospects of Super Bowl with a giant hangover.
Falcons coach Mike Smith spent great part of the Sunday interview output with its players, a task that no one in the organization hoped that be doing so soon. He began to try to find out what happened.
"This football team expectations have grown since I came here three years ago", Smith said, referring to general manager Thomas Dimitroff and himself. "When there are expectations, you are not necessarily speaking already the regular season." You are talking about the second season. This is something that we have gained as a football team and organization. "We address this issue because we plan to be again very soon in this situation."
Dimitroff and Smith don't want to judge the season based solely on the way in which ended with Rodgers throwing for 366 yards to send to the Falcons to the worst defeat in playoff in franchise history.
Atlanta (13-4) did so many things right during the regular season - and so many things wrong against Green Bay, looking totally out of character with four losses of ball (Dimitroff-Smith was most) and a season high five sacks of quarterback Matt Ryan.
"The sky has not fallen, I can assure you that," Smith said. "We played a very poor soccer match yesterday at night." We have trained to a very poor football match. Everyone in this room is the owner of that and starts with me. But I don't think that we can approach. ... "We have to make decisions in the calm after we have been able to take the excitement of it."
If nothing else, the loss to the Packers exposed a defense of hawks that advanced in the past three years, but still has work to do.
With nickel back Brian Williams marginalized by a knee injury, high school seemed completely surrounded. Defensive line also appears in the need of an update after waste many opportunities to bring down Rodgers.
Offensively, there could be important gaps in the offensive line, which includes a possible agent free unrestricted (Tyson Clabo) and two others (Justin Blalock and Harvey Dahl) which would be eligible for restricted free agents under the current labor agreement.
But the issue is the future of 34-year-old tight end Tony Gonzalez, which did not say for certain if it will be a season 15.
The likely Hall of Fame came to Atlanta trying to make a career in their first Super Bowl title in two years. Instead, yet you are looking for their first playoff victory. While watching the seconds tick off another postseason, everyone could think was "here we go new."
"A great, great, great season." Incredible. A lot of fun, very successful for this team and this city. Many people shared in it and it's fun. A fun ride, "Gonzalez, said." "Just finished sharply." "Do not expect it in this way and definitely not in the style that made him".
Gonzalez had 70 catches another Pro Bowl season.
"I'm not going to think about that right now", he said. "I'm going to go home and enjoy myself, but I think it is great physically." I am fine. I am a 30 years old. "I will only go home and relax and kicking my feet and enjoy my family a little bit... and my decisions."
If returned or not, González feel good about hopes for the next Falcons season and beyond.
"Going to be one of the glamour teams in the NFL for the next five or six years, I assure you," he said. "Definitely gonna regret my decision of whether I".
The Falcons have no question of his field marshal. Ryan has become one of the best in the NFL, winning his first Pro Bowl appearance to 3,705 yards and 28 touchdowns and 9 interceptions.
But Ryan has struggled in playoff one and make two appearances, they committed six ball losses and addressing safety.
"We did many things well this year and we have the opportunity to develop some of the things we did this year", said Ryan. "We have a lot of people who become, very talented, and certainly hope to be right back in this position next year and get a different result".
2011 Of copyright by the associated press
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