ATLANTA — On Sunday, the Atlanta Falcons endured the bittersweet experience of crushing the Arizona Cardinals at home, but being eliminated from the NFC playoffs soon after that.
On Monday, another batch of bad/good news come to the surface, with the Falcons placing rookie tailback Ito Smith on injured reserve.
On the plus side, though, head coach Dan Quinn said Smith's knee injury from Sunday wasn't an ACL tear. (He'll be slated for surgery in the coming days.)
As such, this war of attrition now leaves the Falcons with just one of their top three tailbacks (Tevin Coleman, who rushed for 145 yards vs. Arizona) to close out December, with Smith joining Devonta Freeman (foot, groin) on the sidelines.
Smith acquitted himself very well in Year 1, accounting for 467 total yards (315 rushing) and four touchdowns, off only 117 touches. Within that modest success, Smith posted a stellar catch-to-target ratio of 84 percent for the season.
The Falcons (5-9, tied for last in the NFC South) will conclude the regular season with a pair of intra-divisional road outings (Carolina, Tampa Bay).
