The last time the Falcons were in the Georgia Dome, there was plenty of hustle and bustle to be done as the Falcons’ home field had to be turned very quickly into the host field for the SEC Championship game between Georgia and Alabama.

As soon as the clock hit all zeroes at the end of the Falcons’ 23-13 win over the Saints on Thursday, Nov. 29, Dome staff got right to work converting the field over for the SEC title game, which was played two days later.

Watch the video above for a great time lapse video from the busy few days.

Below are the playing time percentages and number of snaps each of the Falcons played in Thursday’s game. (ST = special teams)

Playing Time Percentage
Offense
G Justin Blalock – 58 snaps offense, 5 snaps ST (100% offense, 18% ST)
T Tyson Clabo – 58 snaps offense, 5 snaps ST (100% offense, 18% ST)
T Sam Baker – 58 snaps offense, 5 snaps ST (100% offense, 18% ST)
G Peter Konz – 58 snaps offense, 5 snaps ST (100% offense, 18% ST)
WR Roddy White – 58 snaps offense (100% offense)
C Todd McClure – 58 snaps offense (100% offense)
QB Matt Ryan – 58 snaps offense (100% offense)
TE Tony Gonzalez – 56 snaps offense (97% offense)
WR Julio Jones – 49 snaps offense (76% offense)
RB Jacquizz Rodgers – 31 snaps offense, 4 snaps ST (53% offense, 14% ST)
WR Harry Douglas – 24 snaps offense (41% offense)
FB Mike Cox – 22 snaps offense, 4 snaps ST (38% offense, 14% ST)
RB Michael Turner – 20 snaps offense (34% offense)
RB Jason Snelling – 11 snaps offense, 16 snaps ST (19% offense, 57% ST)
TE Michael Palmer – 11 snaps offense, 15 snaps ST (19% offense, 54% ST)
G Mike Johnson – 9 snaps offense, 15 snaps ST (16% offense, 54% ST)
WR Drew Davis – 1 snap offense, 20 snaps ST (2% offense, 71% ST)
TE Chase Coffman – 1 snap offense (2% offense)

Defense
LB Stephen Nicholas – 77 snaps defense, 9 snaps ST (100% defense, 32% ST)
S Thomas DeCoud – 77 snaps defense, 7 snaps ST (100% defense, 25% ST)
S William Moore – 77 snaps defense, 3 snaps ST (100% defense, 11% ST)
LB Sean Weatherspoon – 77 snaps defense, 3 snaps ST (100% defense, 11% ST)
CB Dunta Robinson – 76 snaps defense (99% defense)
CB Robert McClain – 75 snaps defense, 14 ST (95% defense, 50% ST)
DT Jonathan Babineaux – 66 snaps defense, 3 snaps ST (86% defense, 11% ST)
CB Chris Owens – 60 snaps defense, 17 snaps ST (78% defense, 61% ST)
DE John Abraham – 60 snaps defense (78% defense)
DT Corey Peters – 59 snaps defense, 3 snaps ST (77% defense, 11% ST)
DE Kroy Biermann – 50 snaps defense, 20 snaps ST (4765 defense, 71% ST)
DT Vance Walker – 44 snaps defense, 9 snaps ST (57% defense, 32% ST)
DT Travian Robertson – 18 snaps defense (23% defense)
LB Akeem Dent – 14 snaps defense, 9 snaps ST (18% defense, 32% ST)
DE Cliff Matthews – 13 snaps defense, 16 snaps ST (17% defense, 57% ST)
CB Asante Samuel – 3 snaps defense (4% defense)
LB Mike Peterson – 1 snaps defense, 6 snaps ST (1% defense, 21% ST)

Special Teams
P Matt Bosher – 17 snaps ST (61% ST)
RB Antone Smith – 16 snaps ST (57% ST)
LB Robert James – 14 snaps ST (50% ST)
WR Kevin Cone – 14 snaps ST (50% ST)
LS Josh Harris – 11 snaps ST (39% ST)
DE Jonathan Massaquoi – 10 snaps ST (36% ST)
S Chris Hope – 10 snaps ST (36% ST)
K Matt Bryant – 5 snaps ST (18% ST)
CB Dominique Franks – 4 snaps ST (14% ST)

Two years ago, Chris Owens’ name was like a four-letter word for a contingent of the Falcons’ fanbase. Part of a crop of young cornerbacks, Owens was still learning the NFL when he was thrust into a nickelback position the Falcons need him to become reliable in.

He struggled at times, and in turn, he caught the ire of fans.

The 2011 offseason was no different than any other, but it signaled another year under his belt. The 2012 offseason did, too.

That experience for Owens, he said, has been invaluable.

“The biggest thing is the experience. Adjusting to the NFL from college, people belittle that process,” Owens said after the game. “It’s a major process. Some guys develop better, faster or slower than others. The past two years, with the experience I had, the coaching, the offseasons — it all just sums up to where I am now.”

During the biggest game of the year for the Falcons to this point, we saw just where Owens is now.

With Asante Samuel banged up and trying to tough through a shoulder injury that’s clearly painful for him, Owens’ number was called just a few defensive plays into the game when Samuel — who was questionable coming in Thursday night — came off the field.

Owens said he didn’t notice Brees trying to test him at all, but when a player whose nickname is “Pick Six” comes out of a game, you have to imagine the quarterback will gravitate toward throwing to that side of the field.

When Brees did, he was met with not a whole lot in the way of breathing room for his passes. Owens blanketed receivers, taking away some of Brees’ biggest options in the passing game.

“Tremendous, man. I came in after the game and gave him a big hug,” cornerback Dunta Robinson said. “That was great to see him come out here in this type of atmosphere, not knowing how much he was going to play, thinking he was just going to be a special teams player, Asante goes down and he comes out and plays tremendous.

“It’s a testament to the way we believe. No matter who’s in, we believe everybody can step in and get the job done.”

Owens did just that, especially on two particular plays. Both times in one-on-one coverage, Brees looked to Owens’ side, but Owens wasn’t having it.

The end result was two pass breakups. On another play, Owens was in great position to make an interception but the ball was overthrown.

“He’s definitely coming into his own,” safety Thomas DeCoud said. “He’s doing a hell of a job on special teams, and now he’s having his number called on defense and he’s doing a hell of a job.”

Owens, as DeCoud said, has been a crucial part of the Falcons’ special teams. If you recall last year, Owens may have saved the Falcons a win over the Vikings when he chased down a kick return and prevented a touchdown just in the nick of time.

On defense, it would seem, that 2010 campaign is on its way to becoming a distant memory. Owens vaguely remembers the criticism and he says it never helped drive him toward the growth he’s experience, but it taught him how to put the adversity aside and just do what he needs to do.

“I don’t want to say it goes in one ear and out the other, but it kinda does. You’ve got to ignore the media and just fight through it,” Owens said. “There’s going to be ups and downs in anybody’s career, anybody’s game.

“You’ve just got to fight through it.”

The Falcons, whether they wanted to openly admit it or not, came into Thursday night’s game wanting to exact some revenge for their only loss of the season.

They got that and more with a 23-13 win over the Saints, plus putting an end to Drew Brees’ consecutive touchdown pass streak of 54 games.

The Falcons weren’t focused on the streak. In fact, many didn’t even know about it until the media began asking about it in the locker room after the game. But the Falcons did know that being in the driver’s seat heading into the weekend was on the line.

Even with all that, they didn’t try to change anything too much.

“We have to come in and play well no matter what — streak, no streak, whatever,” cornerback Dunta Robinson said. “We just wanted to come in and play well. We’ve been on the bad end of some games against Drew Brees. We just wanted to come out here and try to dominate this football game tonight.”

The Falcons did that against Brees, and then some.

On top of halting the streak, the Falcons rattled Brees most of the night with pressure and picks. The Falcons finished the night with five interceptions — a career worst for Brees. His passer rating was a paltry 37.6.

Brees broke the streak previously held by Johnny Unitas. Brees’ streak began in Week 4 of the 2009 season.

“That’s all fine and dandy. He’s a great quarterback,” safety Thomas DeCoud said. “He had a really great streak going. We knew, as a secondary, we had the guys to match his receivers in tight coverage and make him make the perfect throw and if he doesn’t, we can get the ball back.”

The hopes were high once Asante Samuel was announced as one of the Falcons’ 46 active players for today’s game, but the excitement ended quickly as Samuel returned to the sideline with the same shoulder injury that has been a problem for him since the Cardinals game two weeks ago.

Samuel started the game, but went out after a few plays when he walked off the field, holding his arm and wincing in pain.

He was announced in the press box as questionable to return to the game. We’ll have more when we hear it.

It took just less than four minutes Thursday night, but Michael Turner became the Falcons’ all-time leading touchdown scorer with a 3-yard run up right guard against the Saints.

Turner came into the game tied with WR Terance Mathis for the team record at 57 total touchdowns. The record now stands with Turner alone at 58 (57 rushing, one receiving).

Turner now holds nine Falcons records by himself or tied with another player.

We keep saying that the Falcons are focused on a different Bowl at the end of the season, and now that we’ve gotten that out of the way again, it’s time to take a look at some Falcons who are getting a good amount of fan votes so far.

Remember, it’s a huge honor for these guys to be named to the NFC Pro Bowl roster, which is why — even though you hope the Falcons are busy with another game at that time of the year — you should vote as much as possible for your favorite players. And, clearly, you have been, because the number of players in the top 5 of fan voting is beyond impressive!

Take a look at where the Falcons rank in fan voting at their respective positions, and keep up the voting!:

• Matt Ryan, QB – third
• Roddy White, WR – fifth
• Tony Gonzalez, TE – first
• Sam Baker, T – fourth
• Justin Blalock, G – second
• Todd McClure, C – fourth
• Jonathan Babineaux, DT – fifth
• William Moore, SS – fourth
• Thomas DeCoud, FS – second
• Matt Bryant, K – fifth
• Matt Bosher, P – fifth

During Sunday’s win over the Bucs, Biermann was spotted wearing red contact lenses. Take a look at the shots below.

Since the preseason ended, rookie defensive tackle Travian Robertson had been waiting for his next opportunity. With starter Peria Jerry out against the Bucs with a quad injury, Robertson was more than ready when his number was called.

Playing 16 snaps against Tampa Bay, Robertson didn’t light up the box score, but defensive tackles are like offensive linemen — their impact is never judged on numbers. Head coach Mike Smith saw enough of Robertson on Sunday to determine the Falcons’ seventh-round pick in 2012 filled in well when he was needed.

“He did a nice job. That was his first time of extended play,” Smith said Monday. “He was in certain packages and I thought he did a good job.”

Robertson — having been inactive for several games so far this year — said he felt comfortable out there, despite the game speed being ridiculously fast for rookies.

With the Falcons’ three defensive tackle look that defensive coordinator Mike Nolan has instituted in recent weeks, Robertson was needed to spell some of the starters and give breathers where needed, and without trying to get too fancy or do too much, Robertson played his role and felt good about the first play of his NFL career.

And with Jerry missing three practices this week with the same injury, Robertson could quickly get a second taste of play Thursday night if Jerry is still limited by the injury. Jerry is listed as questionable for Thursday’s game.

“I’ve just got to work on fundamentals, staying low, but I feel good about going out and being able to be the next guy that, when my number or name is called, I’m ready to go,” Robertson said. “I’m just going to play my part and go from there.”

The Atlanta Falcons Cheerleaders will be a part of six metro Atlanta sports organizations participating in the Atlanta Ballet’s opening night of “Nutcracker” on Dec. 9 at the Fox Theatre.

The Falcons cheerleaders will be joined by the Atlanta Dream, Hawks, Silverbacks, Gwinnett Braves and former NFL players Solomon Brannan and Dewey McClain, who played for the Falcons from 1976-1980, at the ballet to sign autographs and take photos with fans.

“It’s a treat for us to bring some of the city’s greatest athletes to our turf to see Atlanta Ballet’s own superb athletes,” said Arturo Jacobus, executive director of Atlanta Ballet. “In addition to sharing a great night of ballet, it’s our way of showing appreciation and support for the fellow home teams and acknowledging the work they do on and off the field and court. Despite our perceived differences, we all share a commitment to strong community involvement and, of course, a love for the city of Atlanta. We look forward to this year being a success and making it an annual part of our Nutcracker tradition.”

Atlanta Ballet is also offering a 50 percent discount for all walk-up patrons wearing their favorite team’s jersey. Tickets start at $20 and are on sale now.

Tickets can be purchased by phone at 855-ATL-TIXX, in person at the Fox Theatre Box Office and the Atlanta Ballet Box Office, or online at www.atlantaballet.com. For groups of ten or more, call Atlanta Ballet Group Sales at 404-873-5811 x 207.

Running back Michael Turner burst into the end zone on Sunday against Tampa Bay in the second half and, in turn, burst to the top of yet another record in the annals of Falcons history.

His touchdown Sunday marked the 57th of his career with the Falcons — significant because it’s tied for the most touchdowns ever with the franchise with wide receiver Terance Mathis. It’s a virtual certainty that the record will fall completely into Turner’s possession by the end of the season, if not by the end of the week, putting yet another stamp on an impressive five-year career in Atlanta.

Whenever Turner’s career ends in Atlanta, he’ll leave with his name above the all-time great running backs in franchise history. William Andrews, Gerald Riggs, Jamal Anderson and Warrick Dunn have all had team records fall to Turner.

It’s not something he’s thought a lot about, but he knows one day he’ll be able to take it all in.

“I never thought I’d be up there,” Turner said Tuesday. “I just kept working every year, just trying to get better and just do my job.”

And his job translated into etching his name into the record books.

Turner holds eight distinguished records in those books by himself or with another player, and it looks soon to be nine.

Turner has the following records:

• Most rushing yards in a game: 220 vs. Detroit on 9/7/08
• Most career rushing touchdowns: 56 (Riggs is second with 48)
• Most career 100-yard games: 27 (Riggs is second with 25)
• Most points scored in a game: 24 (tied with TJ Duckett; Turner’s 24 points came against Carolina on 11/23/08)
• Most touchdowns in a season: 17 (Anderson is second with 16)
• Most rushing touchdowns in a game: 4 (tied with Duckett; Turner’s four TDs came against Carolina on 11/23/08)
• Most touchdowns in a game: 4 (same as rushing touchdowns in a game mark)
• Most consecutive games with a touchdown: 7 (2009)

“It’s unbelievable,” said center Todd McClure, who has blocked for Turner, Anderson, Dunn and Duckett. “It just shows the type of work ethic he has and determination. When we get down there and get it close, he’s going to get it in. It’s just unbelievable, and I’m glad to be a part of it.”

Aside from the records, Turner has been an integral part of the movement of the offense in the past five seasons.

Coming in during quarterback Matt Ryan’s rookie season, Turner dominated in the run game with 1,699 yards that year (good enough for third all-time behind Anderson and Riggs) and his record-setting 17 touchdowns.

The pressure that took off the young quarterback can’t be overstated.

“Mike’s been huge in my career,” Ryan said. “He’s been a staple of our organization for the last five years. Especially early on in my career, having that running game, knowing that you can turn around and hand the ball to him and he’s going dominate games, that’s been huge. He’s a great teammate; very unselfish, and a guy that brings great energy to the locker room every day.”

In total, on top of the soon-to-be nine records, Turner is on the list for:

• Most yards gained in a career (fourth behind Riggs, Andrews and Dunn)
• Most yards gained in a season (third behind Anderson and Riggs)
• Most 1,000-yard seasons (tied for second with Dunn and Riggs)
• Most yards gained in a game (he holds the top two spots in this category)
• Most rushing attempts (fifth behind Riggs, Dunn, Anderson and Andrews)
• Most rushing attempts in a season (third behind Anderson and Riggs)
• Most 100-yard games in a season (third behind Anderson and Riggs)
• Highest average gain in a career with a minimum of 750 carries (second behind Andrews)
• Highest average gain in a season with a minimum of 150 carries (second behind Dunn)

With the record he’s most proud of looking to be on the edge of shattering, Turner is more tuned in to how the team is performing, but the importance of this one record and what he’s meant to Falcons history in his five seasons so far is something that he will carry with him.

“It’s going to be a great feeling,” Turner said about possibly becoming the Falcons’ all-time touchdown leader. “I just can’t think about it too much. I’ll just go out there and keep doing what I’ve been doing every week and when it happens, I’ll look back on it later.”

Limited Participation
T Zach Strief – Groin (Questionable)
CB Corey White – Knee (Questionable)
TE David Thomas – Knee (Questionable)

Full Participation
CB Elbert Mack – Concussion (Probable)

TUESDAY
Did Not Participate
T Charles Brown – Knee
DE Junior Galette – Ankle
S Isa Abdul-Quddus – Concussion
WR Courtney Roby – Shoulder/Ankle
DT Tom Johnson – Back

Limited Participation
T Zach Strief – Groin
CB Corey White – Knee
TE David Thomas – Knee

Full Participation
CB Elbert Mack – Concussion

MONDAY
Did Not Participate
T Charles Brown – Knee
DE Junior Galette – Ankle
S Isa Abdul-Quddus – Concussion
TE David Thomas – Knee
T Bryce Harris – Ankle
WR Courtney Roby – Shoulder/Ankle

Limited Participation
T Zach Strief – Groin
CB Corey White – Knee

Full Participation
CB Elbert Mack – Concussion

The Falcons are in great position to earn a playoff spot or clinch the NFC South title this week as they head into Thursday night’s game against the Saints.

Here’s how the Falcons can clinch by Sunday:

Falcons clinch the NFC South title with:
1. ATL win + Tampa Bay (at Denver, 4:05 p.m., Sunday) tie OR
2. ATL tie + Tampa Bay loss

Falcons clinch a playoff spot with:
1. ATL win + Seattle (vs. Chicago, 1 p.m., Sunday) loss or tie OR
2. ATL tie + Seattle loss + Minnesota loss

Here are the rest of the clinching scenarios for Week 13:

NFC
None

AFC
HOUSTON TEXANS
Houston clinches a playoff spot with:
1. HOU win or tie OR
2. MIA loss or tie + PIT loss or tie OR
3. MIA loss or tie + CIN loss or tie OR
4. PIT loss + CIN loss

BALTIMORE RAVENS
Baltimore clinches AFC North division with:
1. BAL win + CIN loss

Baltimore clinches a playoff spot with:
1. BAL win OR
2. BAL tie + CIN loss + MIA loss or tie

NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS
New England clinches AFC East division with:
1. NE win

DENVER BRONCOS
Denver clinches AFC West division with:
1. DEN win OR
2. DEN tie + SD loss or tie OR
3. SD loss

Asante Samuel is one tough son-of-a-gun.

Bothered by a clearly painful shoulder injury the past two games, Samuel has fought through it to make some big plays and set a great example for his younger secondary counterparts with his display of toughness.

He came out of the game for a few plays Sunday but returned to make the biggest pass breakup of the game on the final play as the Bucs tried to win it all with a Hail Mary pass.

Samuel was listed as “did not participate” in Monday’s Piedmont Healthcare Injury Report, and head coach Mike Smith said after the walkthrough Monday night that the plan is to get the cornerback as much rest as they can in the short turnaround to Thursday.

“Asante has been battling through the shoulder injury the last two weeks. He missed a few snaps in this ball game and missed more in the previous game, but he’s a really tough guy as far as his pain tolerance,” Smith said. “We’re going to get him as much rest as we can over the next couple of days and get him as healthy as we can get him to play Thursday night.”

Make sure to stay in your seats during halftime Thursday night as Ludacris will perform during a show presented by Verizon.

Much more than an entertainer, Ludacris has positioned himself to reach the top of various business platforms. With 17 Grammy nominations, he has had the honor of winning three of them. Ludacris has sold over 19.5 million units in the United States, and approximately 7 million overseas.

He is tied for having the most Billboard Hot 100 number 1 songs as a rap artist. He also has 32 singles in the Top 10 over the span of his career. Ludacris’ 8th studio album, Ludaversal, is highly anticipated, and is sure to stick to the successful tradition he has established.

It’s another Throwback week for the Falcons — their second of the season — and that means the team will be wearing red helmets, black jerseys and white pants for Thursday night’s game against the Saints.

The Falcons wore the uniforms during a Week 4 win over the Panthers and have only lost once in the uniforms — last year against New Orleans in the Georgia Dome.

During the game’s most crucial punt return Sunday, the Falcons’ go-to returner was on the sideline. Wide receiver Harry Douglas trotted onto the field and got settled in at the position while Dominique Franks stood by.

Head coach Mike Smith explained Monday that the decision was a product of feeling like Douglas would give the Falcons the best chance at good field position for the game’s biggest drive.

“We felt like we wanted to give Harry an opportunity to catch the punt,” head coach Mike Smith said Monday. “It was a backed-up punt situation. We wanted to get as many yards as we can. We’re not, in our mind, in a position to have Harry as a full-time punt returner. He’s done it in the past, and we felt like it gave us an opportunity to get the most yards on the return.”

Douglas returned punts for the Falcons in 2008 before a knee injury kept him out in 2009, but hasn’t held the job since. Franks was originally part of the Falcons’ final cutdown to the 53-man roster, but was re-signed after Tim Toone — who was slated to return punts — was injured during the first week of the season.

Douglas didn’t net any yards on his one return. Franks caught two punts Sunday — one for a 9-yard return and the other was a fair catch.

Franks, Smith said, will remain as the Falcons’ full-time punt returner.

Head coach Mike Smith said during his Monday news conference that he’s confident that he’ll get linebacker Sean Weatherspoon back into the mix on the field this week.

Weatherspoon has been out since suffering an ankle injury during a win over the Eagles in Week 8. He has missed the past two games with the injury.

“I am optimistic,” Smith said. “Sean’s worked extremely hard. He will get an opportunity over the next 48 hours to do some field work and hopefully we’ll see where he’s at and get him on the field on Wednesday, but he’s done a nice job in his rehab.”

The day after a win tends to be pretty quiet around Flowery Branch as players are given the day off, even though a good majority of them do decide to come in and work out.

The day after a loss is even quieter, even though the entire team is in the building.

Suffering their first of the season Sunday — a 31-27 decision at the hands of NFC South rival New Orleans — the Falcons went right back to work Monday, intent on learning from the mistakes of a game that allowed an unbeaten season to slip away.

“We have a veteran football team. We’ve won games, we’ve lost games. It’s all about the way you bounce back,” cornerback Dunta Robinson said Monday. “One thing I know about this team, in the years that I’ve been here, is that we’ve always bounced back after a loss and I don’t expect anything different. We’re 8-1, you know what I mean? You can’t be too down and you can’t be too disappointed about that.

“Did we want to win that game yesterday? Of course, and we should have won that game, but we didn’t get it done.”

Robinson’s comments were echoed around the locker room Monday morning. The Falcons, while quiet and reflective Monday, won’t stew on things for long and will work to fix the mistakes of Sunday’s game.

Tony Gonzalez said after Sunday’s loss that the confidence the Falcons have in themselves and their outlook for the rest of 2012 doesn’t change because of what happened in the Superdome. They’ll just take it as an opportunity to build on the confidence they already have in place.

“I don’t think we needed a wake-up call. There’s areas every Sunday that you can improve in, whether you win or lose,” center Todd McClure said. “This team wasn’t asleep. We worked hard last week; we just didn’t execute like we should have on Sunday. It’s tough to win a game on Sundays every week, much less nine in a row. Would we have liked to have won it? Yeah, we would have liked to have been 9-0 right now, but we’re not. We’ve still got a good football team — a lot of confidence in this locker room, and I think it’s going to take us a long way this year.”

Below are the playing time percentages and number of snaps each of the Falcons played in Sunday’s game. (ST = special teams)

Playing Time Percentage
Offense
T Tyson Clabo – 74 snaps offense, 5 snaps ST (100% offense, 17% ST)
G Justin Blalock – 74 snaps offense, 5 snaps ST (100% offense, 17% ST)
T Sam Baker – 74 snaps offense, 5 snaps ST (100% offense, 17% ST)
G Peter Konz – 74 snaps offense, 5 snaps ST (100% offense, 17% ST)
QB Matt Ryan – 73 snaps offense (100% offense)
C Todd McClure – 73 snaps offense (100% offense)
WR Roddy White – 67 snaps offense (92% offense)
TE Tony Gonzalez – 70 snaps offense (96% offense)
WR Julio Jones – 45 snaps offense (62% offense)
WR Harry Douglas – 41 snaps offense, 1 snap ST (56% offense, 3% ST)
RB Michael Turner – 33 snaps offense (45% offense)
RB Jacquizz Rodgers – 30 snaps offense, 12 snaps ST (41% offense, 40% ST)
TE Michael Palmer – 22 snaps offense, 13 snaps ST (30% offense, 43% ST)
FB Mike Cox – 17 snaps offense (23% offense)
WR Drew Davis – 14 snap offense, 17 snaps ST (19% offense, 57% ST)
RB Jason Snelling – 11 snaps offense, 15 snaps ST (15% offense, 50% ST)
G Mike Johnson – 9 snaps offense, 11 snaps ST (12% offense, 37% ST)
RB Antone Smith – 4 snaps offense, 20 snaps ST (5% offense, 67% ST)
TE Tommy Gallarda – 2 snaps offense, 3 snaps ST (3% offense, 10% ST)

Defense
S Thomas DeCoud – 62 snaps defense, 10 snaps ST (100% defense, 33% ST)
LB Stephen Nicholas – 62 snaps defense, 8 snaps ST (100% defense, 27% ST)
LB Akeem Dent – 62 snaps defense, 8 snaps ST (100% defense, 27% ST)
S William Moore – 62 snaps defense, 5 snaps ST (100% defense, 17% ST)
CB Dunta Robinson – 62 snaps defense (100% defense)
CB Asante Samuel – 61 snaps defense (98% defense)
DT Jonathan Babineaux – 56 snaps defense, 5 snaps ST (90% defense, 17% ST)
DT Corey Peters – 48 snaps defense, 1 snap ST (77% defense, 3% ST)
DE Kroy Biermann – 46 snaps defense, 19 ST (74% defense, 63% ST)
CB Robert McClain – 32 snaps defense, 20 ST (52% defense, 67% ST)
DE John Abraham – 32 snaps defense (52% defense)
LB Mike Peterson – 30 snaps defense, 8 ST (48% defense, 27% ST)
DT Vance Walker – 29 snaps defense, 7 snaps ST (47% defense, 23% ST)
DE Ray Edwards – 20 snaps defense, 5 ST (32% defense, 17% ST)
DT Peria Jerry – 17 snaps defense, 3 ST (27% defense, 10% ST)
CB Chris Owens – 1 snaps defense, 25 ST (2% defense, 83% ST)

Special Teams
LB Robert James – 17 snaps ST (57% ST)
S Chris Hope – 15 snaps ST (50% ST)
P Matt Bosher – 14 snaps ST (47% ST)
DE Cliff Matthews – 10 snaps ST (33% ST)
DE Lawrence Sidbury – 10 snaps ST (33% ST)
LS Josh Harris – 8 snaps ST (27% ST)
DE Jonathan Massaquoi – 5 snaps ST (17% ST)
C Joe Hawley – 5 snaps ST (17% ST)
CB Dominique Franks – 5 snaps ST (17% ST)
K Matt Bryant – 5 snaps ST (17% ST)

There will be no panicking. There will be no whining. As far as Tony Gonzalez is concerned, the only thing that changed Sunday was that the Falcons now have a straight number in the loss column.

A hard-fought 31-27 loss to the New Orleans Saints in the Superdome after going unbeaten up to that point has all the potential to bring the Falcons down off a great high they’ve experienced all season.

But Gonzalez won’t let that happen, as if he needed to step in and keep it from happening. The Falcons are still a great football team, he said.

“This is football. No one’s gonna go around crying. No one’s gonna go around panicking or anything like that,” Gonzalez said in the locker room after the game. “We’re a good football team. The confidence hasn’t changed. Our scheme isn’t going to change. There is no magic answer I’m going to give you for why we lost or why they won. This is a typical football game — hard-fought, rivalry game. They came out on top of us today.”

The Saints have had the Falcons’ number as of late — the last time the Falcons earning a victory over the division rival coming in September of 2010, which was earned in overtime.

Despite that, Gonzalez — true to his stature as a team leader — doesn’t think that has anything to do with what happened Sunday.

“Every year is a new year. They’re up and down this year, but we’re a good football team,” Gonzalez said. “I don’t think they’re in our heads at all — at least, not for me. I can speak personally for me and I think I can speak for this team. They’re not in our heads at all. That was a good football game. Like I said, at the end, we had our chances and we didn’t capitalize at the end of it.”

He went into the locker room for part of the half and then returned to the sideline in uniform, but didn’t show many signs of coming back into the game.

UPDATE: Jones returned in the second half of Sunday’s game.

I’ve been on Mike Johnson all year about how, when he’s eligible, he’ll never see another pass come his way after Joe Hawley struggled earlier this season when Matt Ryan looked his way.

I’m find with admitting I was wrong after Sunday’s touchdown reception — yes, touchdown reception — by Mike Johnson in the first quarter against the Saints.

Ryan found Johnson for a 1-yard TD after Roddy White set the Falcons up with a 49-yard reception two plays earlier. No one was remotely guarding Johnson as he went out for the pass, even after the refs declared him eligible for the play.

That’s Johnson’s first NFL touchdown reception, his first NFL catch, his first NFL receiving yard and we can probably gamble the first ever for him in his whole life.

The reception was a 19-yarder from Matt Ryan.

Jerry Rice was the first to eclipse 1,200 receptions and ended his career with 1,549.

Trust might be the most important thing between offensive linemen in the NFL. It’s more important than that extra rep on the bench press or that 20 extra minutes of film study.

Gelling as a line is all about trust, and perhaps it’s one of the hardest things to attain. It’s the reason why offensive lines with new members struggle at times. Trust just hasn’t been established yet.

For one reason or another, the Falcons seem to be the exception to the rule. Despite a rookie lining up at right guard, trust runs very deep along the front five, and it’s because in his short time with the team, Peter Konz has earned that trust with the things he does on the field and off it.

Fellow linemen Todd McClure and Tyson Clabo don’t pull punches. They’re brutally honest. One a 14-year vet, the other a Pro Bowl right tackle, they know good when they see it.

So when each goes beyond lip service to rave about the newest addition to the offensive line, it’s enough to take notice.

“He’s done a great job. He’s really come in and played well. He knows the system,” McClure said. “He’s a smart guy so there’s not a whole lot we have to do. It makes it easier when you’ve got a young guy that can come in and he doesn’t have to have a pacifier in his mouth the whole time. He can just go out there and play, and he’s done a great job.”

The right guard position has been in flux since the end of the 2010 season when the Falcons lost Harvey Dahl to free agency. Since then, there have been some growing pains at the position. Garrett Reynolds was named the starter last season only to lose the job midway through the year. Joe Hawley took over the slot and even left tackle Sam Baker was put into the role for a few plays after he had returned from a back injury.

During the offseason, the Falcons had a dream land right in their lap as Konz — slated to be a first-rounder out of Wisconsin — fell to the Falcons in the second round. Pulling the trigger on a player that could play both center and guard was a no-brainer. It was all about the future as the team knew he wouldn’t have to be thrust into a starting spot right away and could take a couple of seasons to gell with his teammates and the system before then.

As Reynolds won back the position and played it very well during the first six games of the season, a back injury kept him out of the Philadelphia and Dallas games, and this week, landed him on season-ending injured reserve.

In his stead, Konz took over, much sooner than the Falcons had anticipated. His first game was against Cullen Jenkins of the Philadelphia Eagles — a huge challenge for any linemen, let alone a rookie making his first start.

For the man who would be to Konz’s right, however, there was a sense of comfortability in his presence.

“You know what? It hasn’t changed what I do one bit. Peter has done an excellent job so far,” Clabo said. “On the road in Philadelphia against Cullen Jenkins is a test, and I thought he passed the test. I anticipate that he will continue to do well because that’s about as tough as it’s gonna get.”

Clabo went on to mention the trust that he has in Konz already — an unusual prospect for a relationship between a veteran tackle and a rookie guard. Clabo feels completely at ease with Konz to his left.

That trust comes from knowing what Konz has done week in and week out to prepare himself and seeing exactly how he approaches the work he has to do off the field. Clabo knows that sometimes, it’s his job to let a defensive linemen cross his face, because the right guard is supposed to be there.

With hesitancy in that task comes a huge risk of not performing your own job as a blitzing linebacker can easily cross to Clabo’s outside and get to the quarterback if he doesn’t play his assignment. Having Konz to his left, Clabo knows that he’s going to be there when that needs to happen.

He also knows he’ll be there even when it doesn’t need to happen. Clabo was blocking a defensive linemen during a recent game when he noticed Konz had come over to give Clabo help he wasn’t expecting.

After the play, Clabo looked at Konz and said, “What were you doing?”

“I didn’t have anything else to do,” Konz replied, matter-of-factly.

While Clabo and McClure spend time raving about the rookie, Konz himself spends a lot of time being extra hard on himself. After an Eagles game when he all but blanked Jenkins, Konz thought he could have done a lot better. In fact, in the two games he’s played, he’s not only kept himself from getting negative attention, he’s made big blocks, like the one to spring Michael Turner, getting the running game going against Dallas, in the second half of last Sunday’s win.

Even with those glaring facts and performances, Konz still goes into the film room looking to answer the question: “What can I do better?”

“It lets you know what you have to work on. It makes you hungry for the next game,” Konz said. “I think that’s one of the biggest things to winning is keeping an edge, because if you feel like you’ve done something or that you’ve made it or you’re comfortable, that’s when losses happen. That’s when you start losing your way. So when I’m hard on myself, not only is it to make myself better, but it’s to give me an edge to play on Sunday.”

The rookie is about to be indoctrinated into a hated rivalry this weekend as the first chapter of his Falcons-Saints story begins Sunday.

It’ll be loud. It’ll be rowdy. It’ll be hostile. Certainly enough to rattle even the most tested veteran.

Still, the expectation of Konz is that he’ll be just fine.

“I know it’s going to be loud in New Orleans, and so that’ll be a test for him,” Clabo said. “But I think that he’ll be able to handle it.”

Trust.

For the second week in a row, linebacker Sean Weatherspoon will be held out of a game with an ankle injury, head coach Mike Smith said Thursday.

Weatherspoon suffered the ankle injury against the Eagles in Week 8 and sat out of last Sunday’s win over the Cowboys.

Smith had hope that Weatherspoon would be back practicing by the end of the week with the hope that he may be a game-time decision for Sunday’s 1 p.m. game against New Orleans at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.

“We felt like Sean would be a real, real stretch these first two weeks and feel like he’s making progress,” Smith said. “He’ll be looking to get back out here the first part of next week. We’ll keep him in the training room the rest of this week.”

LB Mike Peterson will likely take over for Weatherspoon in base defense and LB Akeem Dent will likely play for Weatherspoon in sub packages.

Smith announced that WR Kevin Cone would not play against the Saints, as well.

A couple of news outlets came out with their midseason reports this week and the Falcons are well represented.

Sports Illustrated’s Peter King has quarterback Matt Ryan and tight end Tony Gonzalez on his midseason All-Pro team, and he handed out his midseason MVP to Ryan and named head coach Mike Smith his midseason coach of the year.

ESPN’s John Clayton had Ryan as his All-Pro team quarterback.

Pat Yasinskas, of ESPN.com’s NFC South blog, has an All-NFC South team that’s riddled with Falcons. Yasinskas put 13 Falcons on his midseason team from the division and gave the Falcons plenty of love along the way.

On NFL.com’s midseason All-Pro team, linebacker Sean Weatherspoon earns a spot, while Ryan got snubbed for Peyton Manning.

NFL.com also ranked the Falcons as the fifth best team in the race for the Super Bowl title, ranking the Bears — who pretty much have the same strength of schedule as the Falcons and have one loss — as the Lombardi favorite. Hmmm…

Click here for the Falcons’ Piedmont Healthcare Injury Report

FRIDAY
Did Not Practice
DE Junior Galette – Ankle (Out)
WR Courtney Roby – Shoulder (Out)
RB Darren Sproles – Hand (Out)
T Zach Strief – Groin (Out)

THURSDAY
Did Not Practice
DE Junior Galette – Ankle
WR Courtney Roby – Shoulder
RB Darren Sproles – Hand
T Zach Strief – Groin

WEDNESDAY
Did Not Practice
DE Junior Galette – Ankle
WR Courtney Roby – Shoulder
RB Darren Sproles – Hand
T Zach Strief – Groin

Full Participation
LB David Hawthorne – Hamstring

There were plenty of battles during training camp that surely affected the Falcons’ 8-0 start to the 2012 season. But the battle no one talked about during training camp came at a position no one expected to be a battle at all.

With former fullback Ovie Mughelli gone after a year he spent most of on injured reserve, it was thought that rookie Bradie Ewing was going to take over the position. But when Ewing went out with a knee injury during the first preseason game of the season, the position got interesting.

The Falcons signed veteran Lousaka Polite and the battle was on between him and veteran Mike Cox, who had filled in with the Falcons the year before.

At the end of camp, however, Polite had done enough to earn the position, leaving Cox the odd man out.

Today’s news, however, changed all that with Cox being signed once again.

“I’ve been following the team throughout the time away, just because I love these guys being with them last year and throughout training camp,” Cox said Wednesday. “It’s fun to be in the locker room and see all the faces again.”

Cox spent much of his time away from the game working out and trying to remain in shape, but even looked into life outside of the NFL. Cox helped coach running backs the Camp Hill High School football team in Camp Hill, Pa., whose season recently ended.

Immediately, Cox has a working knowledge of the Falcons’ playbook under Dirk Koetter as he spent the offseason, training camp and preseason with the team.

“It’ll be easy,” Cox said. “I got right into meetings as soon as I signed this morning. It was like I never left.”

Here’s a look at what the Falcons were saying the locker room Wednesday:

• RB Michael Turner on winning with the run or the pass: “No, it doesn’t matter, as long as we win the game. We don’t care how many points we win by, how close the game is — we’ve just gotta find a way to win.”
• S Thomas DeCoud on the Falcons facing former teammate and Saints LB Curtis Lofton: “It should be fun. There was no bad blood when he left. We’re all good. Really close guys. We all came in together in ’08, so we were always hanging out together — him, Chevis (Jackson) and I. It’ll be fun. It’ll be great to see him. It’ll be weird to see him in black and gold, but it’ll be fun to go up and face him.”
• DT Jonathan Babineaux on not celebrating after making a big play: “I can dance. I can do a lot of things, but I choose not to. I choose to be professional about what I do and make sure I stay that way.”
• G Peter Konz on whether or not the Falcons can go 16-0: “If we want to. I don’t see any reason why — if we take every week seriously, every opponent seriously and we don’t sleep on ourselves and we prepare like we know how — we don’t have a shot in every game.”
• OG Phillipkeith Manley on if he’ll prepare differently being on the active roster: “Not really. It’s the same way I prepare. I really feel like I concentrate a little bit more to pick up on different tendencies so I can help the linemen out during the game on the sideline. I’ll pretty much stay more focused and try to contribute more.”
• T Tyson Clabo on keeping humble during the team’s success: “I haven’t seen anybody in here walking around with too big of an ego. Our hat sizes are pretty much staying the same and I think that we’ll just continue to do that, because we have a good group of guys in the locker room and I think that’s how you keep (distractions) from happening.”
• WR Roddy White on facing New Orleans: “It’s just a special atmosphere when we play these guys. It’s just intense. We wanna win. They wanna win. They’ve won the division the last two out of three years. We won it the other year, so for the last couple of years, it’s been us and them down to the wire, so I think that’s what it is, just the dislike for each other. I don’t like nothing about the Saints.”