It certainly seems as if it should be an issue for the Falcons and a break for the Giants. But the Giants maintain they do not care.
“That’s not our problem, our problem is to go out and win games no matter what the situation is,’’ Jason Pierre-Paul said. “That’s their problem.’’
What “their problem’’ might be for the Falcons is a severe lack of cohesion on the offensive line, which will be a jumble of new starters for Sunday’s game at MetLife Stadium.
The Giants know all about what Matt Ryan can do to them; the last time they faced him he was doing anything he wanted in a 34-0 victory in Atlanta late in the 2012 season.
“The last time I saw him, he beat the hell out of us,’’ defensive coordinator Perry Fewell said.
But for Ryan to beat the hell out of anyone he needs a pocket to stand in and he heads into this game with a reshuffled offensive line as the only buffer between himself and some fire-breathing defenders.
“We can probably take advantage of it. … They might not always be on the same page,’’ defensive tackle Johnathan Hankins said.
“You want to take advantage of that, but you never know,’’ added defensive end Damontre Moore. “I feel like I can do good against anybody, no matter who it is, a guy who’s been starting for 13 years to if it’s a rookie. Whoever my opponent is I’m gonna humiliate him and I feel like nobody can beat me until they actually beat me.’’
It is a nearly totally rebuilt line in front of Ryan, who could have sued last year for non-support when he was sacked a career-high 44 times and pressured an NFL-high 203 times.
The left tackle was supposed to be Sam Baker, but he blew out a knee in the preseason, forcing rookie Jake Matthews, the No. 6 overall pick, to move from right to left tackle, immediately thrust into the role of Ryan’s blind-side protector. This week, center Joe Hawley and right tackle Lamar Holmes were put on season-ending injured reserve after injuries they incurred in the loss in Minnesota. Their replacements, Peter Konz and Gabe Carini, are former NFL starters but they were backups this season for a reason and there’s no doubt playing on the road will not help this patchwork group figure things out on the fly.
It could get even worse; left guard Justin Blalock hasn’t practiced all week with a back issue. Blalock has started 102 consecutive games, and if he can’t play, the alternative is Harland Gunn, just signed off the practice squad. Gunn has played in three NFL games and not started any of them.
“We understand very recently how hard wins are to come by,’’ defensive end Mathias Kiwanuka said. “We don’t take anybody lightly, everybody we’re playing against they’re all professionals and we understand that. Yeah, there might be some matchup things we want to take advantage of but we’ll never take anyone lightly.’’
It is one thing to dismiss a possibly overmatched opponent, another thing to inflict plenty of damage on the field. The sacks have not been flowing but the pressure from the defensive line has helped produce seven interceptions the past two weeks. Expect the Giants to apply as much pressure as possible to see if the Falcons offensive line will break down.
What is certain is Ryan can take apart any defense if he’s given the time to do so. Antrel Rolle admitted he grew tired hearing so much buildup for Kirk Cousins in the days leading up to what became a 45-14 rout of the Redskins.
“That’s what we kept hearing about all week, how good Kirk Cousins was and this, that and the other and I took that personal,’’ Rolle said.
The hype around Cousin’s was short-lived, but accolades for Ryan are real and time-tested. He’s at the controls of the NFL’s top-ranked offense — the league bases the rankings on total yardage, and the Falcons average 444 yards per game — and he’s second to Andrew Luck with 1,263 passing yards. He’s thrown five interceptions but he’s got 10 touchdown passes and an array of big-play targets in Julio Jones, Roddy White and his newest weapon, a rejuvenated Devin Hester, who is averaging 16.3 yards per catch.
It only works, though, if Ryan is provided the time from his ramshackle offensive line.