The Falcoholic
In the final game inside the Georgia Dome, an all-time franchise great produced one of his greatest performances in arguably the greatest win in Falcons’ history.
The Julio Jones legacy series had to end here. It had to conclude on a stage that couldn’t have been more momentous for the Falcons. They were hosting the NFC Championship for the first time in four years. They were firing on all cylinders offensively, becoming one of the most terrifying units in the last decade. With Matt Ryan being the NFL MVP and Jones flourishing in the prime of his career, everything was aligning nicely for Dan Quinn’s squad, facing a wounded but super dangerous Packers team.
What made this matchup even more memorable was that it was the final game inside the Georgia Dome. It was a beloved stadium that deserved a special farewell for all the big games and events that took place there. Coming off a definitive win over the Seahawks in the divisional round, it was time for the Falcons to turn an extraordinary season into the greatest year in franchise history.
Jones was bound to have more big-play opportunities after squaring off with Richard Sherman in the previous matchup. Facing a Packers defense filled with question marks raised increased anticipation for what the 2016 first-team All-Pro can do against them.
Fans were aware of the last time Jones played in an NFC Championship game, where he put on one of the most incredible performances of his career against the 49ers’ vaunted defense. He would need to make his mark again in a potential shootout against a red-hot Packers offense led by Aaron Rodgers.
Unlike in his first NFC Championship game, Jones didn’t let loose on the first two drives. Two short catches helped the offense get into a rhythm. That helped the Falcons take a 10-0 lead into the second quarter. That’s where a one-sided matchup for the ages took place between Jones and LaDarius Gunter. The notion of relying on a second-year undrafted free agent to cover one of the most dominant players in the league is frightening. Having him shadow Jones at times during the game was ludicrous.
A 17-yard gain off a skinny post set the tone for what was a colossal mismatch. On the next play, Jones ran his signature blaze-out route on Gunter, where he fakes running a post and changes direction into a deep out. Gunter was left in a different area code as he was completely out of the camera view when the pass was completed. Jones made him fall for the fake so hard that safety Morgan Burnett had to run over to push him out of bounds for a 20-yard reception.
Jones was in takeover mode on the third drive, as he caught his third pass for 19 yards on third and ten. A clever play design by Kyle Shanahan had Mohamed Sanu and Taylor Gabriel running vertical routes inside, allowing Jones from the outside...
