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They showed us something. They showed the Saints something. They showed the nation something. But in the end they showed us both what they are and what they are not.

The Falcons are a pretty good football team. But they aren’t so good that they can throw two egregious interceptions on the road against the NFL’s best team and hope to win. They proved Monday night they can still run the ball and actually play a little defense, but they fell short of a famous upset because the famous Matt Ryan twice threw the ball to the wrong team at the absolute wrong moment.

And now, for all the skill and heart on display here, a sobering notion rears its head: What if Matty Ice isn’t quite as good as we thought he was? What if he’s a good NFL quarterback but not a great in the...