The Atlanta Falcons had their season derailed by injuries to a number of key players. Having reached the 2012 NFC championship game, the Falcons slumped to 4-12 to finish third in the NFC South and way off the pace of the Carolina Panthers and New Orleans Saints above them.
Below, Sports Mole looks back at their 2013 season.
Pre-season expectations
Having lost their Super Bowl decider to the San Francisco 49ers the previous season, hopes were high that the Falcons could simply pick up where they had left off and make the post-season again. Despite Sean Payton's return from suspension to coach the Saints, Atlanta were fancied to win the division once again. With future Hall of Fame tight end Tony Gonzalez reversing his decision to retire, hopes were high for the Falcons.
Highlight of the season
Despite the expectation, it really is tricky to pinpoint a high point in the Atlanta Falcons season. They registered just four victories all season, and only one against a fellow divisional opponent. On December 15 they registered their fourth and final win of the campaign at home to the Washington Redskins. During the match, Gonzalez surpassed 15,000 career receiving yards, giving the Georgia Dome crowd a rare something to cheer about.
Biggest disappointment
The 2013 season. In all seriousness, this is one that the Falcons will desperately want to put behind them. In previous years, quarterback Matt Ryan had Julio Jones, Roddy White and Gonzalez to throw to, which was a huge tactic for the team. However this season, injuries to Jones and White left Ryan with few options and their blocking wasn't good enough to allow a running game to be successful. Another injury, this time to running back Steven Jackson of course did not help. The Falcons were exposed as weak defensively too, and without a number of their key figures on offense to simply outscore their opponents, their struggles continued all year long.
Player of the season:
A bright spot of the season was the form of linebacker Paul Worrilow, who probably just edges out fellow rookie Desmond Trufant for this award. Undrafted free agent Worrilow was quickly snapped up and ended the campaign as the Falcons' leading tackler, with 127 total tackles, two sacks and an interception to his name. His figures saw him land a spot on Mel Kiper's All-Rookie Team on ESPN, as well as win the Atlanta Falcons State Farm Player of the Year award. Cornerback Trufant, meanwhile, proved himself as a very able deputy to the ageing Asante Samuel.
Unsung hero
Harry Douglas did at least provide a relatively strong receiving option for Matt Ryan this year, but the quarterback is the team's unsung hero for going about his job in his usual manner, despite the decimated squad. He did throw a whopping 17 interceptions, but he also managed over 4,500 passing yards and 26 touchdowns, totals which were higher than the likes of Andrew Luck, Eli Manning, Cam Newton, Colin Kaepernick and even Tom Brady. Not too shabby for a man with little help around him.
Off-season changes
Of course, every team will encounter injuries at some stage but the Falcons need to focus on getting their key men back fit and ready for the upcoming campaign. Coach Mike Smith's job was never in doubt after four years of winning seasons before this one, so he will remain to try and rebuild from the wreckage of this campaign. Importantly, they need to work on bolstering their pass rushing, with their 32 sacks the lowest across the NFL in 2013.
2014 prospects:
It's time for Smith to prove that this was a one-off campaign, and that wholesale changes are not what is required for the Falcons to get back to winning ways again. Just a year ago, we were talking about a 13-3, number-one ranked team which hosted the championship game, and there haven't been too many major changes to suggest that that cannot be the case again next season. It sounds simple, but key men staying healthy and the Falcons drafting well could see them bounce back when things begin again in September.
Joe McPhee
