In the 101 football axiom class, it is taught that blocking is fundamental and that it is very hard to win the game when you can't block the other team.
The Falcons found that out as the offensive line got shoved around the Mercedes-Benz Superdome Sunday in a 24-9 loss to the rival Saints.
The Saints, playing without their star quarterback Drew Brees and top cornerback Marshon Lattimore, shut down the Falcons' running game and unleashed a relentless pass rush.
Playing without their star receiver Julio Jones for most of the game, the Falcons sputtered about and were held out of the end zone. Ryan was under duress and there was no room to run as the Saints' defensive linemen regularly won their battles up front.
The Saints, who are trying to win a fourth-straight NFC South title, improved to 8-2 on the season. The Falcons, who had won three of their past four games, dropped to 3-7.
New Orleans' backup quarterback Taysom Hill completed 18 of 23 passes for 233 yards and no touchdown passes or interceptions. He finished with a passer rating of 108.9
While Ryan was sacked eight times and hit on 11 other dropbacks the Falcons were held to 52 yards rushing. Atlanta, averaging 396.8 yards per game for fifth-best in the league, was held to 196 yards until adding some garbage yards with 59 seconds left to play.
Here are the five things we learned from the loss:
