OU’s Robinson ready to come home

I personally would like to see the Falcons take Darius Butler, the CB from UConn. He can play zone and man to man and the Birds need DBs… or Peria Jerry from Ole Miss, but I’m not sure he fits the Falcon’s scheme. He’s certainly not a John Henderson or Marcus Stroud type body.

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The birds should take matthews at 24 and then take jones the safety from alabama with 55th pick. 2 solid defensive players who could both play as rookies and help! they could take a TE in round 3 or 4, then continue to build defense all the way through the draft. We must address safety in early part of the draft, and i could live with us taking delmas with the 24th as well. Guys we have the offense to score on anybody and ryan will only get better, so we will be a force on offense. All we need is the defense to contend for a super bowl. I think we should have signed a cb in free agency, but i guess they consider having grimes back as a big pickup? 2 more weeks!!!!!

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I agree with Mountain_Jim….

Bring on the draft, its getting a little tiresome talking about it.

Also – Nice blog – I like the song lyrics when they play a part in your blog, as DOB’s often do – nice touch. Let the good times roll…

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I don’t think the Falcons would go after Robinson even if they are able to trade out of the first round. First thing as DOB explained, he’s a guard. Who would have to go? Dahl or Blalock? Both are fairly young and don’t have a lot of miles on them. Dahl signed a $1 million+ tender and Blalock is still under his rookie contract. Second, if neither Blalock or Dahl is going to be traded or released then you don’t spend a high second round pick on a backup. I think the Falcons are doing their due diligence on a good player. If he happened to fall to the bottom of the second round or even to the third (very doubtful), then he would be a great value to pickup. The Falcons have more urgent needs than OL.

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What is this, American Idol, to early of a pick to go away from D, outside of TE. Peria Jerry!

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We could have Deion Sanders, Darrell Green, Ronnie Lott and Brian Dawkins in our defensive backfield, but if our front 7 can’t generate any kind of pass rush, we still couldn’t get opposing offenses off the field. I look for TD to trade down and pick up a big body, play disrupting defensive tackle with one of the 2nd round picks that we end up with. I’m starting to believe more and more that Tony Gonzalez will be a Falcon come draft day too, thanks to another one of those 2nd round picks.

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After perusing TOM WAITES on another AJC blog its refreshing to see some MOTOWN songs – something I relate to. Keep it up DOL. I like it.

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Row3 – I would love to have Jenkins, but Vontae Davis is too much of a head case. Gil Brandt from NFL.com described him as “like Deangelo Hall, both on and off the field.” H to the E to the Double L NO! Given the choice I’d take Moore over Johnson, but would be happy with both.

Kurt – agree with you on trading down, but only if the right players are gone. If any of the following are available, grab’em(IMHO): Cushing, Matthews, Pettigrew, Maybin, Jerry, & maybe English. All gone, then I agree witch’a.

Edward – smart man my friend. OL can wait for a FA pickup after roster cuts or 6th round.

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If we give up our second for Tony Gonzalez I’ll be very, very confused. Second round picks are like gold – good players at a great price. Old tight ends are nothing like gold.

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I just think the Falcons have far too many holes on defense to even consider an offensive palyer at Number 24. Now Brandon Pettigrew, as slow as he is, may be the one player on offense worth taking at #24 if he slips that far. But why would he slip? A starting LB or DB has to be taken at #24. To trade out of the First Round would mean bringing in inexperience as your backups.

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kdbanks, I agree wholeheartedly. but if we trade out of the first round and end up with multiple 2nd and 3rd rounds picks, I wouldn’t be surprised at all if the trade with KC happens. I’m not saying that I would be crazy about it, but, I know that Gonzalez is already 10 times better than any tight end we can draft and will be a force from the first snap of the first game. No learning curve needed.
I, like most everyone else on here, would prefer that we use all of our picks on our D, but, you have to think that Mularkey is licking his chops at the thought of giving his prize pupil (Ryan) another weapon such as Gonzalez. And I have to believe that he (Mularkey) is in Mike Smith’s ear pleading his case that this one little addition will complete his offense and make them nearly unstoppable.
But, that’s just my opinion.

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Kevrock/Smarty Jones:

It’s a horse race, I get it. You don’t get the last place schedule unless you finish there.

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Kevrock – agreed on the schedule. SB champs with the 4th easiest schedule, is that a joke? Gotta depart from you your assessment of Pettigrew. For our scheme we don’t necessarily need a burner. Pettigrew would be more in the mold of a Witten, tough as nails blocker, 3rd down conversion machine, & red-zone threat. We already have our burners in Norwood, White, & HD, and maybe even T-Brown. Like Delmas and Butler a lot, but not first round worthy, IMHO. LB’s might be a dime a dozen, but they have the highest grade of top-end talent in the draft and that’s what you gotta look for so late in the round. Particularly, I like Cushing and Matthews work ethic. We saw what an outstanding work ethic as a rookie did for us last year in Matty Ice. Saw a little Jenna pre-film work, eh? Wowsers.

Kurt – I’m with you on TG. Honestly, I’ll be happy either way. Getting TG for 2 to 3 years or just finding a TE in this year’s deep class. Either way works for me.

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our o-line did a good job last year – but after the schedule was announced all I can think about is playing haynesworth, demarcus ware, osi, kris jenkins and all the great defenses we’re going to face this year…

it sure would be nice to have a little blocking help – even a big tight end would help. It sure would be nice to pick one up around the 2nd round… wait a minute…. isn’t there a TE we can trade for with 10 consecutive pro bowl appearances on the trading block?

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D3 and Kurt I agree, if we can get TG or a good tight-end in the first round I would be okay. If you really look at the schedule, New England and the Saints are the only offenses that strike any real fear when considering the state of the defense. Offensively, there are a mass number of very good defensive teams on the schedule. Complete the offense if the opportunity is there, continue to develop the defense with the remaining picks. The last thing the Falcons need is a QB that gets shell-shocked by the defenses he will face this year, finish the offensive puzzle by giving Ryan a security blanket and giving the offense more consistent blocking on the perimeter, this schedule will allow a young defense to develop if they can recover psychologically after the beat-down that they will surely take after visiting New England. That game will make or break the season even though its early in the season, if the young defense can take the bull by the horn and grow after getting massacred, the defense will get better as the season goes on, if their youthful thoughts gets in the way of understanding its a marathon not a sprint then the birds will be in trouble after that game.

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I gotta be honest WR, I’m not gonna think for one minute that our defense is gonna take a beatdown and get massacred in New England. They are good, no doubt, but our Falcons are different than the Falcons of old. This will be our second year in Coach Smith’s system and will have gone through 2 drafts and free agency periods managed by TD. I’m thinking we’ll do OK. We may get beat, but I kinda like our chances. I guess you could say that I may be a tad bit inebriated from drinking so much of the TD and Mike Smith Kool-Aid. That’s OK though, I’m a believer until he signs a Hartwell or drafts an Aundrey Bruce or Bruce Pickens or Jimmy Williams or…..well, you get the picture.

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Ken, I’m with you. My thoughts exactly. Have you seen the draft value for the 24th pick? It looks to me like it will take a couple of 2s and maybe a 3rd, depending on who we traded with (if we traded). That would be sweet, even if one of the 2nds is for next year. It’s pure genious. I swear I think the man (TD)has a clue about this whole football thing.

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“THE FALCONS DON’T APPEAR TO NEED AN OFFENSIVE LINEMAN?”

Wow, this is the last column of yours that I will ever read, sir. Try doing a little research and look at what the yds/cry number was against teams with winning records last year.

It should take about 15 minutes, and you could probably do it from the golf course if you were so inclined, but you obviously aren’t, Mr. Ledbetter, so enjoy the sunshine, and when you come back keep telling every idiot fan with a Falcons jersey what a huge impact a receiving tight end will make on our offense.

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hate hate hate

in DOL defense, we are DEEP at o-line. now, quality is another subject all-together…

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Quick Hit @ Lunch:

Ken – I agree with a trade scenario to get TG, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re not enamored with a certain draft pick possiblity, just that they’re looking at all options and doing they’re due diligence. Personally, I think the TG trade is dead, but that’s just me.
Agreed on schedule. This stuff get’s waaaaaaay overblown. If you wanna be the best, you gotta beat the best. I’m looking forward to the test honestly. Who in the H— thought we would go 11-5 at the beginning of last year?

Steven – nice vitriol brother. I’d say we need some depth help, but our OL did a pretty nice job helping Turner be second in the league in rushing. They struggled a few times, granted, but we can’t be liontamers all the time.

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wow, you are from Mars

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Mars: Applause for getting creative. While I don’t think that Jax would necessarily see Shockley as an improvement over Garrard, whom they are already paying a lot to play this year, I do think the idea of moving up may be worth talking about. I think that the only defenders who would make a big impact for the Falcons will be gone by 24, or long before, and as much as I like the idea of trading down, the idea of trading up is worth a spin. (Someone who has an idea of what the draft ‘point’ values are will likely correct me here, because I have no idea what it says picks are worth.) But if Raji is clean, and the drug test rumors are false, and he’s still there at #7-10, which he might be, would the Falcons pull the trigger? What about trading into the 15-20 range for Robert Ayers? Who knows how much the price would be for these, but someone might be game. As has been said by others more knowledgable than I, the Falcons are looking to get some compensatory picks next year for their FA losses, and while they can’t trade those picks, knowing that they have them might free them up to trade some of their regular picks coupled with their #24 in this year to move up a few spots, or maybe even into the top 10. it would at least give the Falcons a shot at one of the few potential defensive game-changers out there; as much as I like Matthews and Cushing, I think they’re going to be just good players, at best, while Raji and/or Ayers might be great.

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THAT 4-GAME ROAD STRETCH SANDWICHED WITH DALLAS AND THE GIANTS HAS GOT TO HURT – “OUCH”.

SURELY THE “NEW FACE OF THE FRANCHISE” WILL GET THAT 1ST PLAYOFF WIN BEFORE 2015

MAYBE THIS PRESEASON THE NUMBER 3 (BEST QB ON ROSTER), YOU REMEMBER HIM, D.J. WILL FINALLY GET A START IN THE PRESEASON. I MEAN WHAT DO THE FALCONS HAVE TO FEAR?

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Do whatever it takes to get TG-he will help keep our defense off the field by keeping drives alive-unless he scores a quick TD which i could live with also!

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Yeah, maybe Keith Zinger is ready to step in at tight end instead of Hall of Famer Gonzalez.

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BULLSEYE,

That one sack that Dorsey had was one more than Jamal Anderson,
So that must have made him worth the 4th pick in the draft!
HA!

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If we could trade our #24 and a 5th or 6th for Gonzo and get their 2nd and 3rd that would be incredible. Whats the difference between the #24 and a second rounder. It’s all chance at that that point. Also any word about signing another Free Agent? Harrison maybe to a a vet and some help on D.

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nice story. keep it coming

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Do you think it is a disadvantage for a team not coming off a bye to play a team coming off a bye week? Well they are 26-55 over the last three years. I don’t know what the NFL has against the Falcons but they have handicapped them by scheduling them to play 4 teams coming off their bye week when the Falcons don’t have a bye week. No other team has more than 2 such games and 10 teams don’t have any such games at all including some NFL “bluebloods” like the Bears, Patriots, and Steelers. I have long felt there were two sets of rules in the NFL-one for the haves and one for the have-nots. There is no way in hell the NFL would let Jay Cutler go to a have-not. Now the “blue blooded” Bears have 5 prime time games and didn’t even make the playoffs while the Falcons have only 2 prime time games. And on their little NFL Network, if a Cowboy or Giant farts they expound on it endlessly. It is nothing but a bully pulpit for the favored ones. You tell me why the Falcons have to play 4 opponents coming off a bye. Does someone want them out of the playoffs. NO team in the “clique” would get f–ked like the Birds did in Philly.

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Package TG and G Dorsey for J Anderson and our first round pick.

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Good evening gents! Listened to Buck and Kincaid on the way home and got some snippets from TD, Chris Mort, and Smitty was coming on next before I got out of the car. Mortensen gave a lead that the Falcons are eyeing one player in particular, but didn’t give it up out of respect to TD & Smitty. That golf tournament sounded like a fun party @ the golf course. And TD evidently’s a pretty good golfer as well.

Ken Strick – right on with an English or Maybin pick. I would love for the Falconies to get their hands on Maybin, even though several experts project him more as a DE than an OLB. There are some mocks having him drop. Would be nice.

Sam Canada – agreed on OLB, especially since this OLB class is so deep. I’m a big fan of Matthews as well, but the knock on him is that he might be the best nickel LB in the draft, but will have trouble on 1st & 2nd downs. But his work ethic alone proves that he’ll correct it, if he struggles. Depart from you on Laurinitus. Just not a big fan of his.

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Reno 911- Moving up to the 7-10 range would cost us our 1, 2 and 3. But the 15-20 range would be plausible.

Bryan- KC traded their #2 to NE, so that trade would not work.

TD is the one pushing for the trade. I think that the thought process behind this trade is that an established TE like Gonzales would do wonders for Ryan’s game vs. trying to develop a young TE on the field during his maturation. Think about this trade scenario… Trade our 2(#55) for Gonzales. Trade our 1(#24) to the Bengals for their 2(#38), 4(#106) and 5(#142). This trade might be plausible. Especially if they don’t get an OT with their #6. Cincy has a slew of picks and could really use some help all over their roster.

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What’s up my brothers in blog city? We knew that the “09 schedule would be a challenge and it will be. K Strick is going with 11 wins agin this season. I respectfully disagree with my borther. We will be very young this season, even more so than last. 9 wins is what I see this season and a second place finish in the division. The process will continue. As far as the draft D3, I heard Mort’s statements as well. I have noticed that there is a erry quiet at the Branch given all the talk about the Gonzalez deal. It seems that perhaps TE is getting more attention than we thought. But given it all, I think the pick will be Matthews, DJ Moore, or Vonte Davis. Davis and Moore are considered the closest things in this draft to “shutdown” corners and we may want to add that. Both are also noted as physical against the run as well. GO FALCONS!!

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Points, what the heck? This is the NFL. Drafting is hit or miss, leave it to TD and he will do the right thing. He has a plan.

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You are indeed right about the points Ed, but a trade has to be feasible to both parties. Besides, most teams don’t use the standard chart. They use their own charts to evaluate trade value. While I would love to see a straight up points trade like yours, most teams just will not give up that type of value. I wouldn’t say 3 for 1 leaves us short, seeing as how we could use depth at a few different positions.

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Little slow tonight boys, eh? Guess we had information overload last night with the schedule talk Still working on this GD paper. The worst, biggest bunch of BS I’ve ever written. Pretty bad. Anyway…

Just browsing the Mock Drafts and I got a real kick out of this one. The first three go through pretty good taking 1)Robert Ayers 2)Fili Moala and 3)Jared Cook. Ok, understandabls so far, but get a load of some of the other picks: Scott McKillop(?) ILB & Ian Johnson (RB). They also have Brian Cushing going to the Bengals @…#34, WOW. And Pettigrew dropping to #42. I do appreciate the effort, even though they probably were throwing darts while drinking Red Stripes in the 6th and 7th rounds. Rest of draft.
http://www.nfldraftsite.com/

DOL – heard TD was The Man at golf. You guys call that work? JK. Listening to Buck and Kincaid, it sounded like it was a good time all-around. Mort gave a snippet of the Falcons zeroing in on a certain draft pick, but wouldn’t spill the beans. How ’bout you? Great work, especially lately. You had us shuckin’ and jivin’ trying to post on two blog posts the other day.

Reno – don’t see us moving up. We need depth, depth, and more depth, so I see us trading back if anything.

Seminole – what’s brother-man? I’m dying to know who “that draft pick” is. Pettigrew, Matthews, or someone else. Right on Matthews; I think DJ Moore’s a reach in the first, and when Vontae Davis was described by NFL.com’s Gil Brandt as “almost exactly like Deangelo Hall both on and off the field,” that would be a big, fat NO! JMVHO.

Make no mistake that the schedule is not tough, but Smitty has the boys ready play week in and week out. Is there one game last year where we didn’t come to play?

Have a good night boys, see you on the flip side, and on that note……….

9 DAYS, 11 HOURS, AND COUNTING!!!!!!!!

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D3,

I got to thinking. The Gonzalez trade may or may not be dead. It could end up being a draft day trade. In fact, that may actually be the smartest thing to do: conduct your trade when some of the picks have already been made, and your board looks a lot less confusing that it has up until then.

I mean, I don’t know how that works for certain, but that’s how I’d do it. Pull the trigger when you have less gambling to do. After all, on draft day, all the free agency and general trade stuff is all over with. Trading for Gonzalez this early might be too soon, tipping off where we might be going in the draft. It could be that TD is simply playing a very tight game.

As to Pettigrew, don’t let people get you down on that. Everybody wants to talk about his slow 40 yd dash times, but we both know that running the 40 is not all it might seem to be. Besides, as you say, we don’t need him to be an absolute burner. His blocking is paramount; that much we MUST have. Being a big, sure-handed target is a close second. Two things on 40 yard dash times: 1)I don’t recall Alge Crumpler being a speedster, and 2)Jerry Rice consistently ran a 4.6 in the 40. Yet he was always running away from the pack when he got the ball…..

I don’t know what we’ll do about the TE position. And I don’t know if we’ll trade out of the 1st round. If we do, we need any pick(s) we get to be HIGH in the second round. That’s a must.

KEN STRICKLAND,

I like it when VS2 comes around. He brings us so much luck with his predictions! Like he did last year!

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LISTEN PEOPLE ESPECIALLY THIS KEN .S. GUY THE FRIGGIN NFL SCHEDULE IS MADE OUT 10 YEARS AHEAD OF TIME,IT HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH HOW BAD IT WAS FOR THE FALCONS 2 YEARS AGO,THE FALCONS WILL DRAFT DEFENSIVE THE FIRST PICK,IT WILL BE A LINEBACKER,OR A SAFETY,BUT THE FALCONS HAVE MORE PROBLEMS THAN THAT GETTING THE BYE INTO WEEK 4 THAT WILL DO A YOUNG TEAM IN THIS YEAR,AND THE SCHEDULE THEY WILL NOT WIN ALL GAMES IN THE DOME THIS TEAM WILL WIND UP 7-9 0R 6-10 THIS TEAM IS NOT THAT GOOD YET I CANT WAIT TO BET AGAINST THEM,especially the patriots game, and the bears have not forgot how ryan completed that pass, i guarantee that wont happen this year.

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also a first next year,that would not be wise because the falcons will get a good player next year a top 5 player.

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Willster: You’re an idiot! The draft is not made up 10 yrs in advance. Did you skip elementary school when they taught english and grammer? You draft logic is hillarious. I bet you made a fortune betting against the falcons last year. I cannot wait for your highly trained IQ on derby picks!

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jerry: thanks, I meant the schedule. I’m still on my first cup of coffee. Sorry D3, it’s really hard not to take the bait when such idiots spew their logic.

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Good A.M. Gents! I swear these last couple of days have been the longest EVER. The Draft has always been one of my absolute favorite events of the year, but after great discussions with you guys, there’s not a whole lot of players that we won’t have heard of when their name is called. I think I’ve finally narrowed my choices for or first pick down to four. And, unfortunately, I have no order of preference but here it goes……Pettigrew, Matthews Jr., English, or Jerry. I just added Jerry to the list for fun, because I’m pretty sure he’s not dropping past the Bucs. And after looking at many O’ mock drafts, it also appears that Matthews looks like a good fit for NE’s 3-4. If someone held my dog for ransom and asked me who the pick would be today, I would have to say…..Pettigrew (yep, I said it Stirg!).

It appears that Philadelphia is the only legitimate team that might take him before us, but if Moreno is there I’d be shocked if they passed. He’s the perfect fit for their OFF. Buffalo WILL NOT be spending their #11 on Pettigrew. If all three are gone, right in line with Ken, I say they take English. He gives us a one for 2 punch. He can put his hand down on obvious passing downs and learn under Peterson at the SAM, allowing Nicholas to move back to his original position of WILL.

Big Ray – what’s up my man? That was my question: how many great TE’s ARE burners? Witten(no), Gates(somewhat), Gonzalez(not really), Winslow(somewhat, I guess), Dallas Clark(not really). Even though it wouldn’t be a D pick it would set us on OFF for years and years. Just imagine: Pettigrew, Roddy, Jenkins, HD, Turner, Norwood, TBrown, & another young WR we’ll draft. No need to mention that Matty Ice will be running the show with those young weapons. WOW! Nice examples of Crump & Rice.

marko – good point about reaches. Personally, if English is on the board, then I would think that Sintim is a reach, but like you said, they know a lot more than I do, especially when it comes to fit and schemes. If we pick Sintim, then we’ll have to put in some money for DOL for the Men’s Wearhouse, so he can pimp out some new bow-ties. I’m usually a Kiper critic too, but he pegged Matt Ryan the whole way to us last year, even with all the Dorsey obsession(throw myself in that mix, unfortunately).

JJ- its all good brother. Sometimes the hate bait is too juicy and tempting to pass. Especially non-sensical, fatuous arguments that you can take to the woodshed.

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Even if it is true, There are some young Up and comer Center’s ( Woods, Caldwell) in the Draft and dont forget we signed Romberg from St Louis Last year.
I like McClure but remember he is undersized, and just think if you had a big Anchor in the Middle that could push the line around…
Remember Smitty Likes big Olines and Dlines.. Not undersized Centers who want more money close to retirement age.

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Just finished getting caught up from yesterday. It’s been good to read the logical and meaningful posts and the worthwhile contributions.

Willster, the only thing I’ll say to you is this….”if illogical, ridiculous and baseless statements were a ship, you would certainly qualify to be a fleet”!!!

D3, what’s up my man? Finished that paper yet? Don’t stop working, it will pan out in the end…trust me!!! I also read your post regarding Mortensen’s comment about TD/Smitty locking in on their man. This adds more intrigue, anxiety and anticipation to our blogs. I was sold on the TG trade and it may still go down. However, be that as it may I think we will take a DE/OLB at #24. Unfortunately Maybin will not be there unless something really untoward happens which I doubt or unless the Dynamic Duo do the unthinkable and un-NewEngland-like move and trade up which I also doubt. I am not sold on English, not because of his ability but his dur”ability”. Correct me Ken if I am wrong but are there health issues there to consider? If the DD take him then I will accept that the due diligence has been done by the medical team. I also think Matthews Jnr will be gone by #24. He will be taken by Houston or even New England.

If we do like we did last year and draft what most of us thought was an apparent 2nd rounder in the 1st round (a la Sam Baker), and take like a Clint Sintim, then we will all realize how much we know that we don’t know!!! In any measure it contributes to great excitement and will climax in 9 days!!!

Go Falcons!!!!

One love….Nuff respect everytime!!!

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I haven’t personally seen either of the TENNESSEE STATE players, but have seen both SIDBURY and TOLER numerous times each.

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Ken Strick: Unfortunately, Willster is mostly correct, in that 14 of the Falcons’ opponents are, indeed, set in stone. Divisional opponents are set in stone far in advance, seeing as how each team plays all four teams in two divisions, and six against there own division. The previous season’s result ONLY determines which of the remaining two intraconference teams they play. So the Falcons result last year only determined that they’d play the Bears and the 49ers, both of whom finished second in their respective divisions. The rest of the opponents (six games in the NFC South, four against the NFC East, and four against the AFC East) are, indeed, determined years and years in advance. That can’t be a source of a gripe. It’s just reality. What can be the source of frustration with the league schedulers, however, is the number of teams we play coming off of bye weeks (4), which is a definite disadvantage to the Falcons. Statistically, we’d be lucky to win two of those four. So, yes, the Falcons got screwed by the scheduling of bye weeks, but not in the teams we’re scheduled to play, which can’t be helped. It all comes around. Last year Atl got lucky by playing eight games against the crappy western divisions. This year unlucky, playing both of the much better eastern divs.

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Now, as to the scheduling, I’m fairly confident that the league schedulers quickly eliminate the variations wherein the Giants, Patriots, Steelers, or Cowboys are loaded with opponents coming off of bye weeks. Do you think the commish signs off on a schedule where the hometown Giants have the sked with that many teams coming off byes? Hell no. There are definitely teams that are to be protected, and teams that, if necessary to make the overall schedule work, it’s ok to screw over. I think we all know which group the Falcons fall into. But the Pats were in that group 10 years ago, too, so it’s fixable. If the Falcons can go 5-5 through week 11, they can finish 9-7 and have a chance at the playoffs, and after another year or two, they’ll be one of those teams that, when the schedule lands on Goodell’s desk, he’ll pay attention to how it’s arrayed for the Falcons. We just gotta make it there. Whether we like it or not, the franchises that don’t get screwed with four opponents off of byes have, at least economically, earned it.

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Welcome to the family WILLSTER. They keep talking about last year. It’s a new year and new season. Falcons you better get game one against the Dolphins or your looking at a 0-4 start.

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I don’t give a flying fluzzie fart who the Falcons play! The coach will make sure the team is ready. Bigeasy830 go to a Saints board and drop your trash there. I’m sure the players are not in the corner of their lockers in the fetal position crying about the schedule!! GROW UP AND BE MEN!! 11-5! GO FALCONS!!!

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Ditto JJ…… that he is , 10 years ago huh?……….the texans were’nt even in the league 10 years ago, do your research dude. Butler might be a slight reach at pick 24 but I think he should be wearing a falcons jersey next year. Watchn film of the guy i like him morre than DJ Moore, A.Smith,Sean Smith etc……….. Im okay with a Cb at 24 as long as we take care of the D line and OLB in the following rounds

We need sum horses up front…….DL guys i like include….. J Gilbert,R.Miller,Sidbury,T Taylor

SPACE EATERS APPLY HERE……………….

D3- U are everywhere my man…. keep it going good info

Whats up – KS, RAY,RICHBRAVE, BOW TIE etc…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………I.MUS IS THE FUTURE…………………………………………………………..

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OBVIOUSLY 2009 IS A REALITY CHECK. MY QUESTION IS:

WHO GETS BLAMED FOR THE 2009 FAILURES UPCOMING. INTERESTING INDEED.

ONE THING JIM MORA DID DO WAS TAKE A TEAM TO THE CHAMPIONSHIP GAME IN HIS FIRST SEASON IN ATLANTA – WHAT DID THE GREAT SMITH AND GM DO? “1 AND DONE”!

I GUESS MORA AND MCKAY HAS THAT ON THEIR RESUME :

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Hey,
What is the Name of the Team that Vick plays for now? oh that is right, He doesnt.

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Roddy White and Michael Jenkins statistics when Vick was throwing the football: Neither over 40 catches, neither over 500 yards.

Roddy White when anyone but Michael Vick was throwing the ball: 80+ catches, 1200 + yards

Michael Jenkins when anyone but Michael Vick was throwing the ball: 50+ catches, 500+ yards.

Number of receivers Vick could throw to: 2 (Finn and Crumpler)

Number of receivers Ryan can throw to: 5+ including Peele

I loved Vick when he was quarterbacking as well VS2, but Ryan is FAR from a bust, and frankly, I’d trade highlight reels for wins any day of the week.

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If we want a Championship AARON CURRY.
What ever we have to do .

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Come on guys, please do not let a few malcontents allow us to lose focus. This is a Falcons blog that has cleaned it’s act up. Please do not let it get back into the gutter. Most of us are genuine Falcon Fans who enjoy the banter about our beloved Falcons.

D3, finished your paper yet bud? Keep to it!! You won’t regret it in the end.

I am leaning towards the hybrid OLB/DE in the 1st round. Was almost convinced about the Pettigrew pick (D3, Stirg, I think you guys are leaning that way). I still think we are going to pull the trigger on that deal for TG. Perhaps TD is doing some more negotiating.

I know we won’t be able to get our hands on Maybin and I am a little skeptical about English, not about his ‘ability’ but rather his ‘dur-ability’. If we pick him then I have to assume the due diligence by the medical staff will have been done. Who is to tell we may do the same thing we did last year i.e. pick who most of us thought was a 2nd rounder in the first round (Sam Baker) and maybe pick Clint Sintim. Then we will all realize: 1) Sintim may be better than we all think or 2) we know now that we don’t know everything about these players and how good they maybe.

One thing we need to remember, do not trust everything you see on film. To the naked eye a player may seem a poor prospect, but to a well trained coach’s eye he may see a player with a fixable flaw and sometimes that is all it takes to turn a decent player in college into a very good NFL prospect. That is why you need the Scouts to spot the “diamonds in the rough”

To all the naysayers and doom and gloom preachers……..if irrational, baseless and ridiculous statements could be a ship, you guys would make a very big fleet……

Go Falcons!!!!

Nuff respect everytime…..!!!!

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OK, gentleman….little disappointed here. This blog has reached a new level by not taking the hate bait. No need to respond to rudimentary, incipient arguments whose sole purpose is to distract and agitate. By feeding into their line of reasoning, you are acknowledging that their arguments have merit, and we all know that not to be true. But, hey, sometimes you can’t help it. Let’s get back to some good, intelligent football talk…….

The schedule is what it is. We knew we were gonna have a harder schedule, just didn’t know where they would fall. Men, this is what we want. We want the chance to see how good we are against the best. I think expectations should be tempered somewhat, but remember, all of our NFC South enemies have roughly the same schedule. There will be some learning curves for sure, but to be the best you gotta beat the best, period. If New England is the class of the league, than I look forward to seeing how we stack up, even if we don’t win. 10-6 should win the division. The most important thing to do is to “Defend the Dome,” which we did D— good last year. 7-1, could have easily been 8-0 if not for our D’s last minute collapse. Which will be improved this year for sure.

Keep the good positive vibes rollin’ and ignore the non-sensical arguments. More draft talk later…..

In the meantime, check out Marko Mitchell WR from Nevada. 6′3″5/8, 218, 4.47. Good, soft hands.

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Question,
With this hold out by McClure, Can we trade him for a Second or Third Round Pick?
Maybe pickup Woods or Caldwell, and hope they can start?
I would love to get some young talent in there with Ryan to grow with him and have the same connection that Manning and Jeff Saturday have…

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RICHBRAVE-no I don’t know anyone in the Falcon organization, but you can bet your life if any of us are aware of these players, TD and Smitty are definitely aware of them.

BIGEASY-birds of a feather flock together. Haters like you, WILLSTER and MV2 seem to go out of your way to avoid talking about last yr’s success. It’s so painful for you to accept the REALITY of the Falcons success last yr, you go overboard engaging in WISHFUL THINKING and focusing your energies on the predictions and the IMAGINARY failures of the Falcons upcoming season. I GUESS IF ONE LACKS THE KNOWLEDGE, INTELLECT AND/OR INSIGHT TO ENGAGE IN INTELLIGENT DISCUSSIONS ABOUT FOOTBALL, ONE THROWS STONES.

RENO 911-thanks for the info and the corrections.

Everyone seems so willing to write the Patriots gm off as an automatic loss for the Falcons, so I did a little research and guess what I found out. The Patriots schedule was just as weak if not weaker than ours. They played only 4 teams with winning records and one of those, the Jets, were 9-7. Two opponents, the Rams and Chiefs, were 2-14. Two others, the Seahawks and Raiders, won 4 and 5 gms respectively. With a weak schedule like that, the mighty Patriots could only manage the same 11-5 record as the Falcons.

Then I decided to look at the records of the teams on next seasons schedule. The all mighty Cowboys 9-7, the Giants 12-4(lost 3 of last 4), Redskins 8-8(lost 6 of last 8), Bears 9-7, Bills 7-9(lost 6 of last 9)49ers 7-9, Jets 9-7(won 1 of last 5), Eagles 10-6 and Dolphins 11-5. After our bye week, we had no trouble handling the 3 teams within our division, Tampa Bay, Carolina and New Orleans. If this is the NFL’s 4th toughest schedule, the Falcons will have no trouble repeating last yrs 11-4 record. GO FALCONS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Irvin- agree that it’s possible to beat the Pats in NE, but it’ll have to be with a good pass rush generated by the front four (using the Giants’ model from the SB). Not sure if we have the four that can generate the necessary pressure. I’m a Falcons fan, but I’m not too optomistic. Frankly, I think that unless we get some more beef in the middle that can also provide a decent pocket push against the pass I think the first half of the Falcons’ schedule will be painful. Shoot, maybe Trey Lewis will come back playing like a monster. Who knows?

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The most interesting theory I’ve heard (here: http://www.walterfootball.com/mattblog090415.php, plausible or not) about the Jax pick at #8 is that they will take Mark Sanchez, if available, because the owner wants to sell and/or move the franchise to LA. That’s total conjecture, but it’s interesting fodder. Like I said yesterday, once you get past pick #15-18 or so, there aren’t anymore “gamechanger” or “cornerstone” defenders left in this draft. It’s worth the Falcons thinking about if Raji slips past 5-7, I guess. The price might depend on whether Sanchez is still on the board by then. Price is always set by demand, and if that guy’s still there at 8, there will be a lot of demand (Broncos, Jets, Bucs, maybe even the Panthers).

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Continuing where I left off. I sent out the following ad…..Wanted….Hybrid with exceptional athletic ability and speed. Can be cross-trained. Must be able to rush the QB and if necessary drop into coverage and be stout against the run.

Guess who responded to the ad? I’ll delay that until the end. After I saw the application I remembered what we did in last year’s draft. The Dynamic Duo pulled one on us. They got a player who most of us thought would be drafted in the second round, Sam Baker. A lot of us thought he was a”reach” and barring injuries he had a pretty respectable season.

So Falcon Fans I will now reveal the applicant to you. D3 you mentioned TD and Smitty are already locked in on their man…that man is CONNER BARWIN!!!

With the 24th pick the Falcons select …..CONNER BARWIN!!; 6-4; 256;4.59 40;40 1/2″ vertical; 10′ 08″ broad jump.

He’s the pick folks.

Go Falcons!!! Nuff respect everytime!!

Stirg, booyaka!!! booyaka!!!

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Question for Ken. If JA is moved from DE to DT as of now how do you think our D Line would line up and if JA cannot handle DT who do you think would be the starters?

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Barwin’s lack of snaps on defense really concern me, and we all know it takes a beast to play defense in the NFL. But at the same time, you just can’t help being intrigued by this guy. So confused.

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Supes – thanks for the props, bro’. I’m like a attention-deficit order kid in a candy store due to all this draft/schedule/TG talk. Getting close to the week mark. I’m gonna need some methadone to help my withdrawals after the buzz of the draft has subsided.

WHAT? – no need to feed into that BS negativity, because if nothing else its just boring. No stimulation, same argument over and over. You’re better than that brother.

JG – is this McClure holdout official? As we’ve learned from the TG trade, until we see it on NFL.com or ESPN NFL, than there’s little reason to buy into whole-heartedly. We’ll see.

Ken Strick – nice NE opponent research. Everybody’s afraid of NE and assume its a loss, but I can’t wait for that game. How do we truly measure up to the “class” of the NFL? Can’t wait to find out.

Reno – you’re definitely justified in being a little apprehensive about the first 5 games. That definitely will probably be a bell-weather of sorts, but we play the role of underdog well. And despite some love from several pundits, the Falcons are just assumed to take a ‘huge drop simply because we have a ‘harder’ schedule. I say to the pundits: keep the doubts coming, it’ll only inspire our ‘boys.

Stirg – interesting scenario, but I’ll have to take a big ol’ pass on that. Moving from #24 to #8 would take heaven and earth and Raji is not worth it, IMHO. Many ‘experts’ even mention how much he benefited from your boy Ron Brace taking up double teams allowed him to dominate. If anything, I say trade down, but if Pettigrew, Matthews, Cushing, Maybin, or English are there, I say grab’em.

Nookah – what’s up my brother? Have you tried some fresh brewed Labatts? Check it out if you get a chance. I told you there was a blog eating monster roaming through the shadows on this blog. It literally ate like 4-5 of my posts one night. WTF?

As always great arguments all around. I was completely sold on Matthews, but just a sliver of doubt creeped back in when I watched Mike Mayock break him down. Said he will have to improve his run support ability, which was one of our big weaknesses. So I got you there. Maybin most likely will be gone, but I’ve seen a few of him slipping. Just depends. If he drops past the Broncos and Bills, he may slide to us. English’s stock is rising in my draft world. Dudes a beast and could learn under Peterson for a year and drop his hand down as a DE for different looks. MJ would be worth a 2nd pick, not a 1st, IMVHO. He probably will be a beast at some point, but his hybrid ability will be limited in a 4-3, and you would think he stole Mayock’s cat the way he slams him. Mayock’s a tape junkie, and evidently MJ had a TON of bad tape and takin’ plays off. Hey, I’m sold on Barwin. The guy’s abilities are off the chart and you just can’t pass on a guy like that. Great reference on Sam Baker. That pick got crucified by pretty much all the ‘experts,’ and he rocked it out as True Rookie Left Tackle in the League. I like it. But, if Pettigrew or Matthews there, I still gotta go with my top 2. Me thinks that Matthews might go right before us. If its Barwin, I’ll send you Red Stripe gift certificate.

Can you taste the brew and anticipation on Draft Day? For you beer conisseurs, check out Sierra Nevada’s Torpedo Ale. A little hoppy, but finishes clean. And on that note…………

8 DAYS, 16 HOURS, 44 MINS, & COUNTING!!!!!!!!!!!111

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MOSS—-BRADY—–TAYLOR

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Quick Comedy: been thinking this for awhile, but had to finally put it up. Anyone ever noticed that BJ Raji looks A LOT like the dude from “Lost” in the face? Obviously try to get past the skin pigment, maybe I’m high on sleep deprivation. See for yourself:

BJ Raji
http://cache.boston.com/resize/bonzai-fba/Globe_Photo/2009/01/23/1232769189_1497/539w.jpg

Dude from ‘Lost’
http://cimg2.163.com/ent/2006/10/4/20061004140911fd66f.jpg

New Mock from Draft Countdown has our boy Pettigrew going to Bills…..D—it!

http://www.draftcountdown.com/sub/Mock-Draft-A.php

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Our old buddy Steve Wyche has finally come around……Pettigrew it is!

http://www.nfl.com/draft/story?id=09000d5d80fcaea2&template=with-video-with-comments&confirm=true

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Sorry, but Eben Britton, Arizona, would be FIVE times a better pick than Duke Whoever Robinson.
With Britton on the right and Baker on the left, the Falcons would have one of the premier O lines in the NFL for the next 8 to 10 years.

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I HOPE D.J. GETS TO START AT LEAST 1-PRESEASON GAME THIS YEAR. SINCE THE NEW FACE HAS ALREADY BEEN GIVEN THE STARTING JOB, THERE SHOULD BE NO THREAT OF D.J. OUT PERFORMING HIM THIS PRESEASON.

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Yeah D3, I’ve had the Labatts. Pretty good brew. A’int nothing like an Ice Cold Red Stripe and an NFL Draft (no pun intended).

D LED, don’t listen to the rumour, I am not a sales rep for Red Stripe, just proud of my heritage!!!

GO FALCONS!!!!

Nuff respect everytime!!!

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Oh I should also tell you guys we’ll get a backup DT in the later rounds….Roy Miller from Texas it is.

Nuff respect!!

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Good one, Reno 911. They did enter Sanchez’s name into the equation. That’s what made Jacksonville entertain any trade offers. There is a sudden big buzz over Sanchez and pundits are mocking him as high as number four to Seattle. Otherwise, Jacksonville would consider Jeremy Maclin for their number eigth pick. It seems, without Sanchez available, Jacksonville will consider any and all trades.

Irvin, like how you think. Run defense, especially on Anderson’s side, will fix itself. Although pass defense does need improving, I think our book ends, Abraham and Anderson, will prevail. I made an entry, some weeks ago, regarding the maturation of a defensive end. Enter Michael Johnson here. I don’t think Johnson would last to the second round but he’d make a great pupil to replace Abraham in the coming years. From that research I did, we know that this may be the year that Anderson (and Abraham, again) serves us 10+ sacks. Lets not forget Davis; that’ll contribute to your solution of two-gap tackles. Move Anderson inside, on passing situations, and swing Davis to the end.

D3, once again, you’re on point. Thanks for reminding me of that tandem. It was I, even, that suggested Raji may be overrated because of Brace’s contribution. Still, D, you can’t deny what Raji brings to the table. Even with Brace in the consideration for Raji’s performance, why is he still being mocked in the second round? Seems to me, if he’s that good, he should be marked within a few picks of Raji (sort of like the USC linebacking corps’ scenario). Again, if you want a prosperous company, you recruit the best employees. If Raji is available for the taking, I say pull the trigger. …And Pettigrew is finally your mocked “24″; you’ve come around. Did I have anything to do with that?

marko: Rosie O’Donnell, nose tackle; good one! LMAO

Nookah, so you like Conner Barwin, yeah. I must admit, I’m not to familiar with the cat. Do you like him for the position more than you like Michael Johnson? Let me know something before I start campaigning for either one. I’m rolling with your suggestion; I trust your judgement. I always trust a man that shares a Red Stripe.

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Stirg, did you see my 6:06 post? This is what I said about MJ……Johnson has all the attributes but can he really be the hybrid and is he cross-trainable as Smitty loves his players to be. However, certainly if we want a pure pass rusher, he’s our man……….

I gave Barwin the edge even though he’s just played defense for 1 year but I think he has the attributes and high upside, just what the Duo is always looking for. TD/Smitty likes fast, athletic, heady, versatile and high character guys. He has been described as a Mike Vrabel clone and that’s not a bad compliment. Believe me, I too like MJ but I am giving Mike Mayock the benefit of the doubt. He’s closer to the info than I am. However, if we picked him, I would not complain as I have faith in this management team but my pick is Barwin.

Oh, by the way I know nothing more than you do just doing my research and trying to think out of the box. Remember TD put’s up a lot of smoke screens.

Go Falcons!!!

Nuff respect!!!

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I like that, Nookah; I like that. We ought to express more confidence in TD’s decision making and settle for whom he decides that best fits our scheme.

I remember a few weeks ago, I researched New England’s draft picks during TD’s tenure as Director of Scouts. I wanted to get a feel of what kind of players fit “the Matrix” and what players prospered since his pickings. Y’all remember that?

I was just over Fox Sports and John Czarnecki, a Pro Football Hall of Fame selector, ranked each team in the same manner as I did New England. Czarnecki covered the time period 2003-’08 (the period TD would have been in New England). For the most part, most of the teams averaged C’s. Detroit and Jacksonville both failed with a D. Incidentally, Atlanta graded a B+. He was very stingy with grading teams with an “A” but the exception belong to the Cardinals, Cowboys, Colts, Steelers, Chargers and Giants. There was only one team that made the grade of an A+. You guessed it, the New England Patriots.

Say what you want, fellows. Despite all our mock(ery), Thomas Dimitroff (I can’t believe I’ve learned to spell his name without looking it up) will make the right choices and decisions for the betterment of our team.

Check out the review: http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/9453994/Draft-review:-How-every-team-ranks-from-2003-‘08?gt1=39002

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I think that as long as we find a good run stuffer to help with rotation that we will be okay on the interior. Your right on about the DT position Big Ray. To echo on that thought, Brace isn’t quite as good at penetration as Raji is, so he would never get the same kind of consideration. On a good year for DT’s he would probably only get third or fourth round consideration.

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Ken Strickland, I don’t know that much about Connor I don’t care much for small school athletes. at least not in the early rounds. We should always temper this stuff a bit because Jerry Rice and Walter Payton came from small schools, and I don’t think that they turned out that bad.

The other thing that turns me off Connor is his limited resume. One year at the position, and stats produced at a lower level of competition don’t inspire tremendous amounts of confidence.

On the plus side he’s a big kid that runs 4.5’s all day long. Non stop motor, I wish I had a copy right on that phrase, Academic honor roll And a red zone threat at tight end. When’s the last time you saw a player record two sacks in the first half and catch a touchdown in the second? I suspect Dimitroff might be impressed by that kind of stuff.

I ran across him because he’s on the radar at New England. He’s called a Mike Vabrel clone, and a perfect fit for their system.

Does he fit our system? What is our system? All I know is that New England wants him with their first second round pick. I’m starting to think that if they want him badly they need to start thinking first round.

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Some people never fail to amaze me. If you are going to get Reshad from Alabama.. fine… but dont go drafting a corner or a linebacker. We can make due with what we have. Get some hogs up front first so we can get in the backfield. If teams would not be able to push our line around, then the corners would look a lot better. Plus we have a corner coming off an injury Von, and though short Brent Grimes plays 5 times bigger, so lets leave the corner position to next year and build from the line up… We have corners and linebackers, plus there will be plenty coming out next year. (which will be much better than the choices this year)

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Ken, do you want me to handle your light weight? Its been a long time since I been to the “Big Easy” (Saints v. Falcons, ‘01) and I roasted a few then. Its been almost ten years but I’d sure like to eat some crab right about now. Just let me know; I’ll get him.

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I HAVE JOINED THE BIG EASY AND VS 2 FAMILY. THE FALCONS ARE GOING TO HAVE A MISERABLE SEASON. MATT RYAN IS GOIN TO BUST LIKE A CHAMPAGNE BOTTLE ON CONCRETE.

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While I wait for Led’s lateast mock; here’s another one from me.

#24: Maybin OLB
#55: DJ Moore CB
#90 Barnes CB
#125: Taylor DT
#138: Taylor FS (LSU)
#143: Maiva OLB
#176: Pascoe TE

The defense should have a real chance with thesee addtions. I know that puts alot of CB’s on the roster, but quality at a key position is vastly upgraded with two big, fast CB’s. Losing the weakest link wouldn’t be a bad thing. LB would become a team strength. Maybin has power and speed and Maiva could be a very quick OLB. Taylor is a big run stopper. He would definately help the Babs/Lewis and sometimes Andersen DT rotation.

#138 is a toss up. I’m tempted to look for an OL with this pick. A FS really completes the D though.

Add an OL FA and it seems the team is ready to roll.

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After perusing the new schedule, I must say I don’t understand what the fuss is about. I really don’t see anyone that appears overly intimidating. I was much more worried last year at this time. Schedule seemed a lot more daunting. All this is based on the assumption that we won’t start making stupid decisions like drafting tightends in the first round and other such nonsense.

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Mornin’ boys! Great to be alive on a friday morning, especially one week out from the draft. That’s one thing about the draft that makes it so much fun for me, is that there’s so much build-up, talk, and anticipation for when actually does come its the good stuff. Great convo’s going on this morning. You guys brought your A games today, eh?

DOL – can’t wait for the new mock. You gonna follow your boy Steve and finally take Pettigrew for Stirg & I?

Stirg – I’d definitely say Raji would be an amazing addition, just depends on how far he falls. I’ve seen going as high as #4 to Seattle, but not dropping past Denver @ #12. Maybe a few had him slipping past the Broncs’, but not many. The package would be to great IMO to move up and give up picks past, say 18 or so. Good thought-provoking question as always. Will DOL finally pull the trigger and go with our boy?

Nookah – agreed on your analysis of MJ. I think he has the ‘potential’ to be great, but is so raw still. Some people probably don’t, but I put a good bit of stock in Mayock’s comments because he’s a tape fanatic, and that’s the thing he always brings up is the massive pile of tape that MJ just didn’t show up. I’d say only way to take him in 1st is if we move J.Anderson inside permanently, and that does not appear to be in the plans. Absolutely, Red Stripe over Labatts anyday. Can you shed any light for me on Red Stripe light? Sold in Jamaica, but evidently not in the US.

irvin – true points on Anderson. As Stirg research a while back, DE’s usually have a 2, but more likely 3 year learning curve. So this is definitely put up or shut up for Jamaal Anderson. Love the C.Davis signing, because he might just beat JA out. The dude just makes plays when he’s on the field. Key to big Trey is health. Two knee injuries in a year and a half. Gotta draft for depth and competition regardless.

Big Ray – what’s up my brother? Great minds think alike. LB class is it this year. And the draft is so volatile when you pick so late, you gotta be flexible and I believe that, as you mentioned, DT, S, & CB are all needs for us, but either have top-end talent and a huge drop-off (Raji-DT’s/Jenkin-CB’s) or not worthy of a first round pick (S’s). If any of following are available, I don’t see us passing on ‘em: Cushing/Maybin/Matthews/English. The lone exception is Pettigrew. I’m consumed way too much Pettigrew grape kool-aid because he would COMPLETE our OFF for years to come.

Got myself some brats to grill, and can’t wait to try Sierra Nevada’s new Summerfest. Jonesin’ boys, jonesin’.

8 DAYS, 0 HOURS, 30 MINS, & COUNTING!!!!!!

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There was a time when I posted regularly on the these blogs. I stopped because they became so negative and hateful. Venomous racism running rampant on both sides. Now it appears that real football people are posting. Some of the old regulars still have not come back, but we have some great new posters giving excellent insight. Ken is still hanging in there I see and continues to write well thought out, informative posts. I just want say, keep up the good work guys. It is a pleasure to read you comments.

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I’ve really come around on Pettigrew. Our greatest need is defense, that’s for sure. But if TD’s scouting evaluations say that the drop off between the best defensive player available at 24 and someone we could take in the second round, and Pettigrew is a safer, better pick, then Pettigrew should get taken. After all, it’s pretty unlikely we’ll get as luck as we did last season with our draft picks becoming immediate impact players and a dynamic offense could really take some pressure of the young guys we bring in to play D.

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Normally I say don’t take the hate bait, but Ken just put a smack-down @-whoopin on the board. Cool off bro: game, set, match.

larry w – welcome back my friend. I would be considered one of those new guys I guess, but this is my new favorite hobby. I try to get the ‘boys on here to not take the hate bait, because if nothing else it is not mentally stimulating. Same repetitive arguments over and over gives us true football fans nothing. Well-thought out, intelligent, and respectful arguments are a lot of fun and mentally engaging.

intramural – I know. The Pettigrew orange kool-aid finally seeped into my pores and brain. I’m sold. The only big problem is this after listening to Sirius NFL Radio this morning:
-The Bills will most likely not spend their #11 on Pettigrew, but if they trade T Jason Peters to the Eagles for their #21, than you can kiss Pettigrew good-bye.

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Very concerning that Matthews would display poor judgement, but when former teammates of race in question publicly come out supporting him, it might actually be an inside joke. However, the severe lack of judgement is really stupid.

Football player Sedrick Ellis sent Gopaul a message explaining that “White Nation” is an inside joke on the team and that Matthews is not racist.
“My goal was that the picture and group be taken down,” Gopaul said. “Even though you have this inside joke, it shouldn’t be brought to Facebook because people will see it who aren’t in on it.”
Gopaul said she then received a message from Matthews.
“At first, Clay Matthews sounded a bit upset with me, and understandably so,” Gopaul said. “But he was very nice in his second letter once I explained my intentions and actions to him.”
Matthews said that another person posted the picture, and he was unsure of how to delete the group, Gopaul said.
He also wrote a formal apology to the members of “Clay Matthews (USC football player) expresses anti-black sentiment.”
“He told us that he immediately went online to explain it and apologize, and to say this is not indicative of his or the team’s attitude,” said Tim Tessalone, director of sports information.
“We talked to him about how something done without serious intent could be perceived in a negative light and he agreed; he felt badly for his poor judgment, and he quickly moved to correct it.”
A source from the athletic department said Matthew’s apology said he was sorry, and that the group was not serious and had no racist intent. He also said his roommate and best friend are black and said that it was poor judgment on his part to create the group

Entire Article:
http://www.dailytrojan.com/news/facebook-group-lands-usc-football-player-in-hot-water-1.206854

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FIRST KEN NAME CALLING IS CHILDISH. YOU CLAIM TO KNOW SO MUCH ABOUT YOUR BELOVED FALCONS. FIRST OF ALL MATT RYAN IS SO DAMN OVER RATED IT IS PATHETIC. YOU HAVE NO DEFENSE AT ALL. YOU NEED MORE THAN A TE TO WIN IN FOOTBALL JUST ASK THE COWBOYS. SECOND YOU GUYS CANT EVEN WIN A PLAYOFF GAME LET ALONE A SUPER BOWL. MIKE VICK WAS THE NEW FACE OF YOUR WACK FRANCHISE. HE TURNED YALL INTO WINNERS. YOUR TEAM NEEDS ALL THE LUCK IT CAN GET. NOW BE A GENTLEMAN WITH YOUR RESPONSE CUZ I AM 2 GROWN FOR NAMES OR GAMES.

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“FALCONSHATER2009″ – YOU HAVE TO UNDERSTAND SOMETHING ON THIS BLOG. THOSE INDIVIDUALS THAT USE NAME CALLING IS QUITE SIMPLE. THEY ARE NOT CAPABLE OF HAVING INTELLIGENT DISCUSSIONS BECAUSE THEY LACK THE CAPACITY.

SOME OF THEM WRITE LONG WINDED AND BORING NON-SENSE ABOUT HOW MUCH MORE THEY KNOW ABOUT FOOTBALL. MY ADVICE TO YOU – LET THEM TALK. YOU SEEM LIKE AN INTELLIGENT GUY, AND YOU JUST LIKE EVERYBODY THAT KNOWS ANYTHING ABOUT FOOTBALL – THE FALCONS SUCKED BEFORE AND AFTER VICK.

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Ken Strickland, it amazes me how you left out a few facts. The Saints ranked first in offense last year but almost last in all defensive catagories, the addition of a proven defensive coordinator will definitely improve that standing and make the Saints a very tough team in 2009. Eventhough both the Falcons and Dolphins had the same reecord, the Falcons were merley a playoff team that was one and done. The Dolphins won their division last year. They can lay claim to being the best in the AFC East. Before the rest of you Falcons fans chime in, how many years did you say at least the Brave won the East, ok enough on that. Tony Gonzalez did have a very good year last year, I never said he didn’t and he has been one of the best TE in the game for a while. But, last year he had 96 catches on a on a very bad 2-14 team. That’s like having a 25 point scorer in the NBA on a 13 and 69 team, but irregardless of that, the fact is Tony Gonzalez is 33, that is aging in any sport especially the NFL. An now to the subject of your main man Matt Ryan. He did play surprisingly well for the most part in the first 13 games, But in December when the Super Stars really start to shine, he played very poorly. He looked more like Danny Wuerfell than Tom Brady. He played like Tony Romo in the big games, choke, choke choke. Michael Turner really bailed the Falcons out in the last few regular season games. Those last 3 games, they did not win because of Matt Ryan, they won inspite of his play. Now you can disagreee with that assesment, but to call it “Uninformed” is a bit over the top even for you. But the most important point of them all is this, the Falcons were 11-5 last year and I have given them credit for a good year. I even acknoledge that after they beat Chicago last year at that time they were 5-3 and as Bill Parcells said “You are what you are”. But that was last year, 2009 is a new year and a new season, “Wishful thinking” is you expecting the football Gods to smile on that team again, but hey you are a Falcon’s fan and you should have “Happy Thoughts” about your team. But you can’t gut the the team of veteran players two years in a row and now face the 4th toughest schedule in the league and expect Lovie Smith to call a squib kick and Tampa to fall apart at the end of the year etc… and then dance into the play-offs. If your team goes 8-8, I have posted this before, just 8-8, I will stay off your blogs next season, because as long as Arthur Blank own the team, I would not cheer for them if my Granddady played QB for them and my Grandmother was the nose tackle.

Fresh for 2009, You…….

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irvin, read the entire post, or better yet, I don’t know how long you have been on these blogs but this goes way back. I don’t think the Falcons will win more than 5 or 6 games, I actually believe they will go 4-12, but I posted if they go 8-8 I will stay off the Falcons blog. And, why is it “our” blog, it’s free country irvin. What, you can’t handle someone disagreeing with you, “It’s just Healthy Conversation” irvin. Why do you think the AJC reports MV7’s every move, to spark that dialogue. So if you don’t like what i post now irvin, you will really hate me once the season start. I have been somewhat dormant during the off season. I have been playing in the big sandbox in SW Asia all winter. But, I will be home soon and OTA’s are just around the corner. So VS, VS2, new family members WILLSTER and FALCONSHATER2009, its time to rise up. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Fresh for 2009, YOU SUCKERS!!!!!!!!

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Bills to trade LT Jason Peters to Eagles for their 28th overall, a 4th and an undisclosed 2010 pick. WOW! We may be out of the running for Pettigrew. Eagles may take him at 21 or Bills may reach now at 11.

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Robert Ayers had a visit with the Falcons. Thoughts?

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IF “JOE FLACCO” COULD DO IT – WHAT HAPPENED TO THE ROOKIE OF THE YEAR.

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well irvin i cant let u come at my boy like that. just face the truth the falcons will be a mediocre team. yeah last season was good for you guys but this season the falcons wont even make the playoffs. matt ryan is like a one hit wonder

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MATT “RYAN LEAF” IS THE BUST I THOUGHT HE WAS – HE SHOULD GIVE MICHAEL TURNER AND RODDY WHITE HIS SIGNING BONUS MONEY.

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ok ken to come at you directly the falcons suck ok. u talk reality but u r living in a lala land buddy. so what the falcons went 11-5 last yr. when was the last time the falcons had back to back winning seasons. oh by the way i cant stand the patriots either. micheal turner carried the falcon offense last yr matt ryan was just there enjoying the show. and who brags about have an alternate in the pro bowl. all that means is he is a replacement.

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Ken Strickland, the cold fact is this. You keep holding on to your warm and fuzzy memories of last year. As I stated in my my post on this blog, 2009 is a new year and a new season. They strap on the Rydells in September. By November 1, you will be sitting at home singing along to Barbera Streisand song “Memories of the way the Falcons use to be, in 2008 they were Lucky,That’s the way they were”.HAHAHAHAHA

Fresh for 2009, YOU SUCKERS!!!!!!!!!

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Ken you are the dumbest guy on the planet to call someone ignorant. last season is done with. thats all u talk about is last year and what yall did. we r in 2009 not 2008 so plz wake up before its 2 late. yall have no answer for the Brady-Moss combo man. so what u had one good season. yall not ready to compete wit them yet sorry

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Ken Strickland you keep bringing up 2008 stats, you are living in the past bud, you are the one in denial. It’s 2009 Ken, New Year, New Season. This is your quote Ken “Everyone is aware of the fact that IGNORANCE AND STUPIDITY ARE MAJOR FACTORS WHEN DEALING WITH DENIAL”, seems like you are the one in denial that 2008 is in the past. The Falcons were 11-5 in 2008 and a play-off team, thats great, now if they are truely an elite franchise the schedule will mean nothing and they will make the play-ofs again in 2009 and be a serious contender for the Super Bowl, lets see if they can build from last years success that is what the championship franchises do. I believe that The Ravens will be a contender again. i think Joe Flacco will have a much better season than he did in 2008. I think the games against the tough defenses he faced last year will make him a much better QB. Flacco improved as the season progressed and he won 2 play-off games. Your boy Matt Ryan regressed and was the reasoon the Falcons lost that play-off game. You Boy MattRyan played against a cup cake schedule and his success aginst those bad teams have given you Falcons fans a false sense that he may be great. But, the reality of it all Ken is this, whenever he had a bad game last year you people said that it was because he was a rookie. What excuses will you have this year. Now if your Falcons are really good and last season was not a fluke then they should be able to win at least 11 games this year. I say they will win nor more than 6 but probably go 4-12. That is my prediction for 2009 Ken, 2008 is in the past, I know you are happy about the success of your team from a year ago, but championship caliber franchises like the Steelers and the Pats that all you Falcon fans want to model and compare thisfranchise after live in the here and now.

Fresh for 2009, YOU SUCKERS!!!!!!!

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HE’S REALLY GOING TO CRY NOW

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NOW I AM CERTAIN HE IS GOING TO CRY

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“BIG EASY” – GOOD JOB

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Ken stop callin people stupid and all this ignorance u showing. YOU A BANDWAGON FAIRWEATHER FAN…… u just to dumb and blind to see it. bigeasy this dude is crying his eyes out right now. hey ken you need a tissue. Your life is like the falcons IT SUCKS……………

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OK KEN WHAT IS YOUR QUESTION U WANT ANSWERED SO BADLY THAT U GOTTA FEEL IMPORTANT.OH AND U DA CLOWN CUZ U ROOT FOR A TEAM THAT JUST SUCKS

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IT’S OFFICIAL – HE IS CRYING

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If there were no strip clubs Mars, you would have never met your wife and your mom would be unemployed.

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[...] Falcons | ajc.com – [...]

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