QB passes a huge test

ATLANTA -- His one career start before yesterday's game was a loss to the Saints last season. So when Falcons backup quarterback Matt Schaub faced an early deficit against the Patriots, few knew how he would respond. His 17-for-41 performance last year against the Saints indicated it might not be pretty. But that was last year.

Falcons coach Jim Mora made the decision yesterday morning to sit Michael Vick, his sprained knee not ready to face the defending Super Bowl champs. That left Schaub, the second-year quarterback from Virginia, in charge of rallying the Falcons back into a game Tom Brady and his tight ends threatened to make a blowout.

According to Mora, Schaub didn't know until game day if he would be starting.

''That's part of being a backup quarterback, I guess," Schaub said. ''You never know when you're going to play. You have to be ready in a moment's notice, you're always one play away, and that's my approach."

Schaub was 18 for 34 for 298 yards and three touchdowns. He brought the Falcons back from the 28-13 advantage the Patriots held after three quarters, eventually evening the score at 28.

The fans at the sold-out Georgia Dome would be forgiven if they thought the only quarterback on the Falcons' roster capable of keeping up with Brady and the Patriots was on the sideline wearing a visor and shorts. But with each completion to his big tight end, Alge Crumpler, and each toss downfield to wide receiver Brian Finneran, it became apparent Schaub was, at the very least, a capable replacement.

Trailing by 8 points in the fourth quarter, Schaub started a drive at Atlanta's 38-yard line with a completion to Michael Jenkins for 18 yards. He finished it when he found Dez White wide open for a 14-yard touchdown. His 2-point conversion fade to Finneran tied the game.

Finneran said he wasn't surprised with Schaub's performance.

''Matt's been confident since he showed up here, he's had control of the huddle, in practice, in training camp. In the games he's played in, he's always been confident in his ability," said Finneran, who finished with five catches for 103 yards.

Schaub got his chance because Vick sprained his right knee in last week's game against the Vikings.

The team was optimistic of Vick's return against the Patriots when an MRI early last week showed a mild sprain of his medial collateral ligament. But as the week went on, Schaub continued to take most of the snaps in practice. By the weekend, Vick was downgraded to questionable, making the Vick vs. Brady matchup unlikely.

''He wasn't ready to play," Mora said. ''He simply wasn't healthy enough to go out and play today. It was an easy decision. When a player is not ready to play, you are not going to put him out there in harm's way. This team felt confident that we could perform with Matt Schaub, and I think that we proved that to be true."

Vick worked the sideline, waving his arms to raise the noise level in the Georgia Dome, and was one of the first to smack teammates on the helmet when they returned to the bench after a score.

He also grabbed Schaub and pointed out things he noticed in the Patriots defense, but for the most part, the two-time Pro Bowler stayed out of the way.

''Mike stayed near me, when I came off, he gave me some words of encouragement," Schaub said. ''More or less on game day, he kind of kept his distance from me. If you have a lot of guys talking to you on game day . . . you just want to go out and play."

Finneran said it wasn't difficult adjusting from the scrambling, lefthanded throwing of Vick to Schaub's pocket passing and softer touch. It helped, he said, that the team got a week's worth of practice with him.

White said Schaub is a natural fit for the offense. ''We know whenever he steps in there, nobody loses a beat and we expect him to do the same things that he does every week in practice," White said after the game. ''He's a different quarterback than Mike."

That difference was no more apparent than during Schaub's scramble with 8:13 left in the game. On third down, Schaub needed 5 yards to extend the drive. He rolled right, sprinted toward the sideline, and dove for the first-down marker. Teammates came to celebrate the play, until they saw where the ball was spotted. Celebration quickly became an argument as referees said Schaub went out of bounds before making the first down.

Mora threw the red challenge flag, hoping for a replay, but it wasn't a play that could be reviewed. The Falcons had to punt.

''I felt I was inbounds; I tried to make sure I got my foot on the ground and dove, making sure to stay inbounds," Schaub said. ''The official called me out, so I can't really do much about it."

Vick he is not, but yesterday he might have served notice to quarterback-hungry NFL teams that he's ready to lead his own team.

''He's a big player in this league, and when his contract's up, it's going to be interesting to see what happens with that guy," Finneran said.