Falcons Fourth Quarter Finishes a Testament to Arthur Smith's Program

The Atlanta Falcons have flipped the switch on fourth quarter comebacks this season - and coach Arthur Smith's cultural improvements are a key reason why.

When Arthur Smith accepted the job as Atlanta Falcons head coach in Jan. 2021, he knew about the franchise's reputation for close losses.

Of course, everybody was aware of the collapse in Super Bowl LI, but Atlanta's issues ran much deeper, with the previous regime ultimately succumbing due to its inability to close out games.

Smith's first year showed that he could turn the tide, as the Falcons went 7-2 in one-score games. The problem is that Atlanta's other seven games were all losses by at least two possessions, an indictment of that roster's lack of talent.

Nonetheless, winning close contests with a team largely patched together was encouraging - but Smith couldn't carry the momentum over into his second campaign at the helm.

The Falcons mustered just a 5-8 record in games decided by eight points or less last season while coming just one match shy of tying the league record for most one-score games played.

So, two years, two different results.

But this year, given a much-improved roster, Smith's Falcons have shown up late in games, out-scoring opponents 27-0 en route to the franchise's first 2-0 start since 2017.

“I think it says a lot," Smith said. "There’s a lot of things we pride ourselves on and the way we want to operate. It just speaks to the conditioning and the way our guys want to operate, and the way we want to finish games, adjust and be that team in the fourth quarter.”

In Week 1, Atlanta entered the fourth quarter tied at 10 with the Carolina Panthers before reeling off 14 unanswered and securing its first Week 1 victory in six years.

The challenge was more difficult the following week, as the Green Bay Packers held a 24-12 lead during the final frame, but the Falcons soared back, taking a 25-24 win following Younghoe Koo's go-ahead field goal inside the final minute.

This prompts the question - why are the Falcons suddenly so dominant late?

Sure, it's a small sample size ... but Atlanta starred in the fourth quarter of the season opener and doubled down the week after, impressing throughout all three phases.

The answer is simple - just ask around the building.

“Couple of things – our conditioning and how we practice," defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen said. "Strength and conditioning program, mindset of our players, the ethos of the program – finish, toughness."

Added offensive coordinator Dave Ragone: “I give a lot of credit to the way coach Smith sets up practice. The way that he talks to the players and for us as assistants to carry along the message. It’s the way we train, it’s not just lip service."

This feeling stretches beyond the coordinators and into assistant head coach/defense Jerry Gray, who singled out Smith and strength and conditioning coach Thomas Stallworth as the key pieces to the puzzle.

Many know Smith, but few are familiar with Stallworth, who joined the Falcons in Feb. 2021 after three years with the New York Giants. He previously held the same title at the collegiate level via Western Kentucky and Fresno State.

The Falcons entered free agency with the second-most cap space of any team. As such, they added considerable depth to a roster in great need of it, which has allowed smoother rotations with less drop off, particularly on the defensive front.

There's certainly more talent at both the top and bottom of the roster, which only helps the equation - but the way that Stallworth has brought the team together in the weight room has ultimately made a decisive difference.

"Those guys do a really, really good job in the strength and conditioning part," Gray said. "They really do strain in there. Every time, it’s like, ‘Hey, what are you doing here? We’re going to the weight room,’ and everybody’s bought into it. So, when you’re stronger in the fourth quarter, that’s only going to make you better.”

Nielsen believes that being better conditioned allows players to think instead of reacting, which enables them to be ahead of the opposition.

The 27-0 fourth quarter margin confirms this belief, but so does Atlanta's body language; Nielsen noted that he didn't see a single player tired on the sideline, and after the Packers game, several players brought up the high level of energy that existed.

Several factors play into this, including the Falcons' offense maintaining possession for 11 minutes and 41 seconds during the fourth quarter and a loud, supportive home crowd inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

Really, each of these came together to give Atlanta its biggest comeback win since Week 2 of the 2015 season ... and it all goes back to the way the Falcons stressed finishing throughout the offseason.

“It’s been a big emphasis every single week, winning the fourth," Nielsen said. "I thought our guys’ conditioning, where they were mentally at the time - they stuck together, they hunted together.

"They were in the right mindset and the right place mentally to go out there in the fourth quarter, make the stops when we needed to, played team defense and help us come away with that team victory.”

The foundation of this finishing culture was set early in Smith's arrival with a number of veteran additions who'd been around winning environments and passed down positive work habits to the younger faces.

Last season, Smith mentioned tight end Lee Smith, safety Duron Harmon and outside linebackers Brandon Copeland and Steven Means as just four of several players on the 2021 roster who fit this description.

The 2022 iteration of the Falcons was much younger; there were more players aged 26 or younger than anybody else in the league, and the Week 1 roster was the second youngest in football.

This year's team isn't far behind, as it's the fourth youngest, but the youth on last year's team now knows not only how to win, but also what it takes to get over the hump.

It doesn't hurt that Atlanta added strong leadership in free agency, with Smith routinely praising safety Jessie Bates III, outside linebacker Bud Dupree and defensive linemen Calais Campbell and David Onyemata for what they've brought to the table.

Again, there's more talent and depth ... but there's also an understanding of what needs to be done to realize the consummate goal of taking the Falcons back to the postseason for the first time since 2017.

The Falcons targeted players who fit their ethos, first and foremost, and have watched their locker room flourish; many describe it as open-minded and player-led, two of the most important attributes to have.

These traits have shown up under adversity thus far - but in large part because of how focused Smith and the team's leaders have been on holding a high standard in practice.

Ragone, who had a brief stint as a professional quarterback after a star-studded college career at the University of Louisville, believes practice performance is the biggest reason behind Atlanta's fourth quarter improvements, reiterating Nielsen's thoughts about the mentality that's been fostered within the building.

"You’re trying to give them the looks you think you’re going to get," Ragone said, "but you’re also trying to challenge the players and give them looks and say, ‘Hey, if we have this look, which they have shown, how are you going to react to it?’ From the way that it’s structured, the way that we practice ...

"Ultimately for us, it’s just making sure the players understand the mentality in which we want to go play football.”

The NFL is known for close games. Check the box scores on a Sunday afternoon and it's likely that most contests are still up for grabs entering the final quarter.

But that's where teams separate themselves - who rises to the occasion when the pressure is at its highest?

For years, it wasn't the Falcons. Even last year, Atlanta struggled to put games away or make the play at the end of close games.

But that was then, and this is now.

Smith and general manager Terry Fontenot set out with the intention of building a roster that was not only talented but wired the right way and had leadership in key spots.

Yes, it's early - but the early returns have been highly encouraging, and the 2-0 record speaks volumes as to just how far the Falcons have come.

"It’s just the mentality from top down," Ragone said. "Coach Smith does a great job of making sure the players understand - it’s not just come out strong; you start strong, you finish strong, and you practice that way, and that’s how practices are set up."

Atlanta's attention has shifted to its first road game against the Detroit Lions (1-1), with Sunday's 1 p.m. kickoff at Ford Field hosting two teams with playoff aspirations.

But the Falcons aren't thinking about January right now. As Bates III said earlier this week, they're working through the gritty Wednesdays and Thursdays, putting their best foot forward and leaving the last two weeks in the past.

And ultimately, that's all there is to do. Outscoring opponents 27-0 in the fourth quarter is tremendous, but Smith wants to see more of it - preferably for the next 15 games and beyond.

That's the culture that Smith and Fontenot have delivered; no ego, no quit, no distractions ... and a well-conditioned team that carries a noticeable confidence when the going gets tough, showing just how far it's come since the days of routine collapses.

“It’s really a credit to how (Smith) runs the program,” Ragone said.