Dan Quinn owes Deion Jones big time after his linebacker bailed him out for one of the worst decisions we’ve seen in a long time.
Quinn nearly handed Thursday night’s game to the New Orleans Saints by declining a penalty call in the final two minutes.
Quinn’s Atlanta Falcons were leading the Saints 20-17 with under two minutes to go. The Saints had the ball in a 3rd and 1 situation at the Falcons 24 with 1:55 left and threw an incomplete pass. However, New Orleans was called for holding, which could have pushed them back to a 3rd and 11 from the 34.
Guess what happened? Quinn declined the penalty, giving New Orleans a 4th-and-inches situation. Sean Payton of course chose to go for it, and Drew Brees converted with a quarterback sneak. The Saints quickly moved the ball to the 11 and looked like they were going to take the lead and potentially win on a touchdown, but Brees was intercepted by Jones in the end zone on an incredible leaping catch.
Quinn seemed to be expecting Payton to kick the field goal to tie the game. Maybe he had confidence in his defense to get a stop in case the Saints went for it. Expecting the Saints to kick made little sense given the situation. Not only is Payton an aggressive coach, but with so much time left for Atlanta’s offense, kicking a field goal would have given the Falcons too easy of a chance to win on the final drive. Going for a touchdown and the win made all the sense in the world there. Quinn is the only one who didn’t seem to see that. He’s lucky Jones made the play of the game to save him.
