Here's a strange Super Bowl LI take from one member of the Atlanta Falcons:
"I don't want to make this no competition thing with me and my quarterback. I'm just talking about from based off that [Super Bowl] game. Let's [say] it like this: if I would have kept getting the ball, if I would have stayed in the game, I don't know why I got out of the game actually. But if I would have stayed in the game, I would have got MVP. I'm looking at my stats and I see my numbers didn't lie. Look at my numbers."
That's Devonta Freeman on Siriux XM Wednesday who, in a more practical moment, added that the new deal he's been hoping for is probably on the backburner for a few weeks because "people are on vacation."
But back to the Super Bowl, one which the Falcons have been tirelessly and admirably trying to get over since the moment the game ended. Freeman himself said on Sirius that "you can't dwell on the things that went wrong," though being the latest in a chorus of thousands to suggest that then-offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan should have kept the rock out of the air doesn't seem to be helping anyone.
Freeman was having a good game. He gained 75 yards on 11 carries with a touchdown. He had two more catches for 46 yards. But his point could also apply to Julio Jones, who had 87 receiving yards. It would have more than likely gone to Matt Ryan, who was the emotional favorite coming into the game. Ryan was 17 of 23 for 284 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Imagine if Shanahan's air raid strategy had paid off? Would there even be a question as to who the MVP would have been since it almost always goes to quarterbacks anyway?
I suppose this is a fun thing for people to debate during the summer months, but I wonder how much fun it is for other Falcons players to read. This subject is touchy enough already.
