A look at Drew Brees’ passing accuracy during the New Orleans Saints’ 45-16 win over the Atlanta Falcons last Monday night. This weekly graphic breaks the field into six zones, depicting Brees’ hotspots and occasional rough patches.

Noteworthy: Brees broke Dan Marino’s 1984 record of most passing yards in a regular season on his last throw of the game, a touchdown to Darren Sproles. Brees has thrown for 5,087 yards this season, three more than Marino threw 27 years ago. Brees also threw his four touchdowns to a different part of the field.

Although the Atlanta Falcons failed to live up to the expectations their 13-3 2010 season brought upon them, they are still in the NFC playoffs and are still a dangerous team to play. The team possesses top ranked skill position players across the offense, starting with Matt Ryan and ending with rookie wide out, Julio Jones. The 2011 fantasy football season saw several Falcons players inserted into weekly lineups, but who are the biggest surprise and disappointments, and which star can say they were the Falcons 2011 fantasy MVP?

MVP – Matt Ryan

While quarterbacks are always critiqued on their playoff record (Ryan is winless), Ryan has continued to grow during the regular season and has become a top-tier fantasy quarterback. He has already surpassed his career high by more than 300 yards and needs one touchdown in the season finale to tie his career high. For the second straight season, the Falcons are relying on Ryan’s arm to get them to the playoffs, which is something Ryan doesn’t seem to mind.

Biggest Surprise – Julio Jones

The Falcons mortgaged their future to draft the rookie from Alabama and if this season is any indication of the future, they will be alright. Despite missing three games, Jones put together a great fantasy season for fantasy GMs who wanted to give him a go. If he gets another 113 yards in the season finale, Jones will reach 1,000 yards on the year, putting him in great rookie company this season in that club (Victor Cruz and A.J. Green).

Biggest Disappointment – Michael Turner

It’s hard to say that a man who rushed for more than 1,100 yards this season is a disappointment, but for Turner, that is the case. When you look at his numbers, they are on par or even less than what he has done since coming to Atlanta. That is the problem. He was expected to do more than 78 yards per game. Fantasy GMs were hoping to see 85-88 yards per game like they saw a season ago, but it didn’t happen. He has five more receptions this season than he did a year ago, but those 15 catches don’t make managers jump at selecting Turner in PPR leagues.

With most fantasy leagues complete following week 16, I have started my end of season reports prior to the end of the week 17. This notation is for readers to be aware that the statistics mentioned are not final.

For a closer look at All-Injury teams for all major fantasy positions, click here.

More from this contributor:

LeSean McCoy is Top Fantasy Running Back in 2011

Backup Running Backs to make Splash in 2011

Don’t Give up on These Players too Early

Drafting Individual Defensive Players?

Top 2011 Fantasy Football Rookies

Hobson Lopes has been playing fantasy football for more than 10 years and can be followed on Twitter @HobsonLopes.

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Coach Mike Smith has led the Atlanta Falcons to the playoffs in three of his four seasons.

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — Coach Mike Smith has led the Atlanta Falcons to the playoffs in three of his four seasons.

Right now, he couldn’t care less.

Smith spent Tuesday trying to find answers for major breakdowns following the Falcons’ blowout loss the night before in New Orleans.

A 45-16 defeat left him determined to fix these problems before the postseason begins in two weeks.

The Falcons (9-6) host Tampa Bay (4-11) in the regular-season finale on Sunday and will learn later that day where they will travel to open the playoffs.

But Smith has more immediate concerns after watching his team lose badly to the Saints.

“We did not match their physicality,” Smith said, “and I don’t think we played real smart either.”

Atlanta’s offense, which had scored a combined 72 points in the previous two games, was inconsistent:

n Before the score was lopsided, the Falcons had to settle for field goals on three red zone possessions and went three-and-out both times the defense picked off Saints quarterback Drew Brees.

n Running back Michael Turner, the NFL’s sixth-leading rusher, finished with 39 yards on 11 carries.

n Rookie receiver Julio Jones lost a fourth-quarter fumble that New Orleans’ Malcolm Jenkins returned for a 30-yard touchdown that put the game out of reach.

The Falcons’ defense was worse:

n New Orleans, which leads the NFL in third down rate, converted its first nine chances and finished 10-for-13 as Atlanta failed to match the Saints’ frenetic substitution patterns.

n The Falcons were a mess in the red zone, allowing four touchdowns in six opportunities. It seemed appropriate that Brees ended the night by setting the league’s single-season passing record with a 9-yard TD pass on second-and-goal.

n And after falling to 2-6 against New Orleans in his tenure as Atlanta’s coach, Smith was frustrated by his team’s inability to pressure Brees consistently. He was only sacked once.

“We had a couple of opportunities with blitzes in which we had some free runners at them and we did not make the play,” he said.

“But our pass rush was not what it needs to be. You can’t give that guy time if you’re playing matchup coverages, man coverages and if he gets time, those guys are going to get open. That was the case on a number of occasions.”

With so much at stake in the division, right end John Abraham never believed the Falcons would begin the night playing timidly on defense.

But even though a win over New Orleans would’ve given Atlanta the chance to win the NFC South and host a playoff game, Abraham wondered if his team was overly confident after beating Jacksonville 41-14 the week before.

“I don’t know why we came out a little sluggish, but we did,” Abraham said. “And in the end they got the momentum and held onto it.”

Whether the Falcons have some kind of identity crisis remains to be seen. They had won four of five since losing in overtime to New Orleans six weeks ago, but have just two victories this season over teams with winning records (Detroit and Tennessee).

Tampa Bay, which visits the Georgia Dome on Sunday, isn’t likely to give Atlanta much of a gauge. The Buccaneers have lost nine straight and are coming off a 32-point road loss at Carolina.

Smith promises, though, that he will keep his team focused on Tampa Bay and not on the playoffs. Atlanta is 0-2 in the postseason during his tenure.

“I can assure you that for our organization, our goal is not just to make the playoffs,” Smith said.

“Our goals are much higher than that, and we have a roadmap that you have to follow to get there, meaning that you’ve got games to play and we didn’t play very good last night. I think it is a humbling experience for all of us because we didn’t play Atlanta Falcon football like we know we’re capable of playing.”

Smith spent Tuesday trying to find answers for major breakdowns following the Falcons’ blowout loss the night before in New Orleans.

A 45-16 defeat left him determined to fix these problems before the postseason begins in two weeks.

The Falcons (9-6) host Tampa Bay (4-11) in the regular-season finale on Sunday and will learn later that day where they will travel to open the playoffs.

But Smith has more immediate concerns after watching his team lose badly to the Saints.

“We did not match their physicality,” Smith said, “and I don’t think we played real smart either.”

Atlanta’s offense, which had scored a combined 72 points in the previous two games, was inconsistent:

— Before the score was lopsided, the Falcons had to settle for field goals on three red zone possessions and went three-and-out both times the defense picked off Saints quarterback Drew Brees.

— Running back Michael Turner, the NFL’s sixth-leading rusher, finished with 39 yards on 11 carries.

— Rookie receiver Julio Jones lost a fourth-quarter fumble that New Orleans’ Malcolm Jenkins returned for a 30-yard touchdown that put the game out of reach.

The Falcons’ defense was worse:

— New Orleans, which leads the NFL in third down rate, converted its first nine chances and finished 10 for 13 as Atlanta failed to match the Saints’ frenetic substitution patterns.

— The Falcons were a mess in the red zone, allowing four touchdowns in six opportunities. It seemed appropriate that Brees ended the night by setting the league’s single-season passing record with a 9-yard TD pass on second-and-goal.

— And after falling to 2-6 against New Orleans in his tenure as Atlanta’s coach, Smith was frustrated by his team’s inability to pressure Brees consistently. He was only sacked once.

“We had a couple of opportunities with blitzes in which we had some free runners at them and we did not make the play,” he said.

“But our pass rush was not what it needs to be. You can’t give that guy time if you’re playing matchup coverages, man coverages and if he gets time, those guys are going to get open. That was the case on a number of occasions.”

With so much at stake in the division, right end John Abraham never believed the Falcons would begin the night playing timidly on defense.

But even though a win over New Orleans would’ve given Atlanta the chance to win the NFC South and host a playoff game, Abraham wondered if his team was overly confident after beating Jacksonville 41-14 the week before.

“I don’t know why we came out a little sluggish, but we did,” Abraham said. “And in the end they got the momentum and held onto it.”

Whether the Falcons have some kind of identity crisis remains to be seen. They had won four of five since losing in overtime to New Orleans six weeks ago, but have just two victories this season over teams with winning records (Detroit and Tennessee).

Tampa Bay, which visits the Georgia Dome on Sunday, isn’t likely to give Atlanta much of a gauge. The Buccaneers have lost nine straight and are coming off a 32-point road loss at Carolina.

Smith promises, though, that he will keep his team focused on Tampa Bay and not on the playoffs. Atlanta is 0-2 in the postseason during his tenure.

“I can assure you that for our organization, our goal is not just to make the playoffs,” Smith said.

“Our goals are much higher than that, and we have a roadmap that you have to follow to get there, meaning that you’ve got games to play and we didn’t play very good last night. I think it is a humbling experience for all of us because we didn’t play Atlanta Falcon football like we know we’re capable of playing.”

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Can a season turn on one play? The New Orleans Saints’ defense is making a case that it can. With one fourth down stop in overtime against the Atlanta Falcons, New Orleans’ defense seems to have found its groove. The change seemed to come from nowhere.

When the Saints traveled to Atlanta on Nov. 13, they were 6-3 and seemingly spinning their wheels a bit after going .500 over their previous four games. Still, there wasn’t much question the Falcons game would shape the NFC South race.

After dominating much of the afternoon, the Saints’ defense crumpled, allowing Atlanta to march 85 yards in 1:55 and kick a 27-yard field goal to tie the score. The letdown seemed magnified because, in a blunder typical of New Orleans’ secondary in 2011, safety Roman Harper dropped — on a throw right in his hands — an interception in the end zone that would have sealed the win in regulation.

“I think defensively, there’s a lot to be said for the confidence gained in a good goal-line stand or a short-yardage critical situation like that, and so you practice maybe that situation a dozen times during training camp, and during the course of the season you get into your short yardage defense and it might come up five times in a year,” Payton said. “And I think that it was certainly significant in regards to the outcome of the game.”

While Payton said he would be “guarded” about reading too much into one play, he did say the final outcome in Atlanta that hinged on the fourth-down stop was significant.

“I think a season can certainly turn with a big win,” he said. “And then you would say, ‘What contributes to a big win?’ And so our fourth and 1-yard stop in Atlanta was a big play for us that led to a big win.”

Most Saints defenders balked at the notion one play, however influential, can galvanize a unit for weeks. On the other hand, defensive coordinator Gregg Williams said plays like the fourth-down stop have a ripple effect in that they reinforce the confidence a unit needs to make future plays.

“I don’t know that you can point to any one particular play,” he said. “But (with) the psychology of an athlete, obviously success builds confidence. When those things happen I do believe it gives you the belief to pull the trigger faster. You’ve got to be able to live on the edge, get over the edge and go do that type of stuff. When those things happen it does make it easier to pull the trigger the next time.”

Still, there’s no getting around the fact that since the bye that followed the 26-23 win in overtime at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta the Saints’ defense has been, if not better overall statistically, noticeably better in the clutch.

The host Tennessee Titans failed to score 20 points against New Orleans, and got stiffed on a fourth down, then near the goal line with the game on the line in the fourth quarter. Host Minnesota did score 20 points against the Saints but barely clawed its way over the 200 yard mark in total offense.

At the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, where the Saints remain undefeated this season, the New York Giants and Detroit Lions topped 400 yards in offense, but both opponents gained much of that after New Orleans was cruising behind halftime leads of 21-3 and 24-7.

“It gives you the evidence that the ability is there, and we have the ability to make plays,” cornerback Jabari Greer said when asked about the fourth-down stop against the Falcons.

Greer, however, is in the camp that holds the unit has simply improved as the season grinds on.

There are those, however, who have faith in the transformative power of a huge play. Among them is linebacker Will Herring, whose interception against the Giants snuffed the first drive the Saints faced following the bye.

“I think so,” Herring said. “As a defense you always take pride in stepping up in key situations, and that overtime, fourth down stop was huge. Then when you win close games like we did up in Nashville, on the road against a good team like the Titans, with the defense on the field it does build confidence. Not every game is going to be a blowout.”

Although the Saints are hardly the kind of opportunistic bandits Williams would like, they have been winning the turnover battles. Part of that’s attributable to New Orleans’ offense protecting the ball, but part of it is the defense finally making plays, defensive end Will Smith said.

“That’s how we’ve always played,” he said “The naysayers that say, ‘When is the defense going to step up?’ It really comes down to when are we going to just catch the ball and get the turnovers? Because we’ve left a lot of turnovers out there, and that’s probably been the biggest thing. Now, playing hard, playing tough, making big plays — yeah, we could have made a lot more, but as the season has gone along it’s gotten better and better and better. It really doesn’t matter if we got a million and one turnovers in the beginning of the season and get none at the end. It matters what happens next week or this game. We are making more plays.”

Smith surmised, however, that turnaround is more the result of “heightened awareness” and newer players growing more comfortable in the system than the positive outcome of one specific play.

“It definitely gets you confident for the next time it happens — the next fourth-and-inches you feel like whoever you’re playing they’re not going to get a first down,” he said of the Atlanta stop. “But as for building our confidence? Not really.”