The Atlanta Falcons tried hard, but couldn’t move past the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday. The Falcons and Colts traveled to Berlin, Germany, for their Week 10 matchup, which resulted in a big show for German fans.
It took a Jonathan Taylor’s overtime touchdown to give the Colts the final lead after the Falcons took the best team in the league to extra time. This was the Falcons’ fourth consecutive loss, which worsened their situation and put them farther away from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-3) and the Carolina Panthers (5-5) in the NFC South division.
While they put up a good fight, it wasn’t enough against the Colts, and some think their head coach was responsible for their shortcoming.
Raheem Morris was criticized by commentators during Colts-Falcons game
Raheem Morris’ clock management has been under scrutiny this season, and Sunday’s game wasn’t the exception. The NFL Network crew commenting the game raised questions when the Falcons were 14-13 up late in the first half.
“The Falcons opt not to take the timeout,” said Adam Amin. “The Colts are happy, now, at third-and-long to let the clock move down a little bit, but Atlanta did not use a timeout.”
After safety Jessie Bates III intercepted a Daniel Jones pass with 21 seconds left, the Falcons only had eight seconds to try to score. Bates was then flagged for taunting, and the team was moved back to its 23-yard line.
Amin noted that Morris could have managed the clock better, noting that the coach has been criticized over that since he arrived in Atlanta.
“If you take that timeout, the clock was at about 30 seconds plus when Kaden Elliss got that sack,” Amin said. “You could’ve used that timeout. If there is one criticism that’s been hanging around Raheem Morris over the last year plus as the head coach of the Falcons, it is clock management. It feels like it could’ve been an opportunity there.”
The Falcons have been one of the most inconsistent teams this season, and the issues appear to stem from their coaching staff.