Victory formation hits different now — just like the Atlanta Falcons defenders undoubtedly will next time they face the New Orleans Saints.
That’s the fallout of backup quarterback Jameis Winston going rogue during mop-up duty and leading New Orleans to a rub-it-in touchdown Sunday against an unsuspecting opponent that was really undeserving of such shenanigans.
Defying his coaches’ call for a couple of kneel-downs near the goal line following an interception with about a minute to go and the Saints up by 24 points, Winston put it to a vote, then handed the football to running back Jamaal Williams, who hadn’t reached the end zone since joining the team as a free agent in the offseason after rushing for a league-leading 17 touchdowns last season in Detroit.
Was one TD against air really that much better than none?
All it did was two things:
a) leave coach Dennis Allen to answer for his players’ insubordination and
b) transfer the embarrassment from the vanquished to the shameless.
Falcons defensive lineman Calais Campbell said that while he understood the Saints players wanting to get a touchdown for Williams, he took issue with the way New Orleans deceptively lined up as if to take a knee.
“I wish they would have lined up in run formation,” Campbell said. “Don’t look like you’re going to take a knee and then run the ball.”
That’s the crux of the matter: if you’re going to try to score, then do it against a defense trying to prevent you from scoring. Then, if you do cross the goal line, it may be piling on but at least it’s not a cheap shot, a sucker punch or even a lowdown, dirty slap in the face.
Arthur Smith’s final act as Falcons head coach before his midnight firing a few hours later was to angrily confront his counterpart as Allen tried to apologize for his players’ dereliction.
“They did that on their own. That’s not acceptable,” Allen said later, adding that he understood Smith’s anger.
The Saints found themselves with the ball at the Atlanta 1 after Tyrann Mathieu’s late 74-yard interception return. Instead of running out the clock by taking a knee after a couple of snaps as instructed, Winston told the offense in the huddle that he would hand off to Williams if they all agreed to defy their coaches’ instructions.
Apparently, nobody spoke up to quash the defiance.
“The question was posed in the huddle about what we wanted to do on the play, and we had received our instructions and went against them,” Saints tight end Foster Moreau explained. “Right or wrong or indifferent, it’s just kind of what happened. Jamaal had no touchdowns on the year. He bleeds and fights just like the rest of us — awesome, awesome dude. I’m glad he got in the end zone.
