Archive for September, 2009

Falcons QB Matt Ryan shook off his "illness" and was back watching film on Tuesday.

THE BRANCH — The Falcons contacted safety Brian Williams about 3

DB Brian Williams could turn the secondary upside down. He was part of a salary dump in Jacksonville.

p.m. on Sunday.

It was less than 24 hours after the team had to submit its list of final cuts for the 53-man roster.

Safety Jamaal Fudge, who had a good training camp, was the odd man out.

“Right now, I’m just here to embrace whatever role is here for me,” Williams said. “I want to help this team win games and do whatever I can to contribute.”

It’s not clear how Williams, or recently acquired Tye Hill are going to solve the Falcons’ cornerback issues.

“Brian Williams is guy who played all three positions for us in Jacksonville,” Falcons coach Mike Smith said. “He played corner, he’s played nickel and he’s played safety. Last season he started six games at safety and 10 games at corner.”

Williams became available …

Continue reading Falcons: Williams is secondary insurance »

D. J. Shockley (left) and John Parker Wilson (right) could both end up sticking with the Falcons. But one will have to end up on the practice squad. (CURTIS COMPTON/AJC)

In wake of another porous performance by the first team defense, the team was bending over backwards to make a point about the “progress” they made against Baltimore from the San Diego game.

Defensive backs Brent Grimes, Chris Houston and Erik Coleman all mentioned the “P” word after the game.

Head coach Mike Smith is apparently talking a “baby steps” approach

Chris Redman, Wilson and Shockley. (CURTIS COMPTON/AJC).

with the young defense. You know, the you’ve got be able to walk before you can run, type stuff.

“I saw some very good things,” Smith said. “I thought we played the run, for the most part, extremely well. I thought we showed improvement in terms of third down efficiency. Even though it’s not where we want it to be. We improved from the previous week. We were able to put pressure on the …

Continue reading Falcons’ secondary makes “progress” »

Is it time for Coach Mike Smith and Lawyer “The LawDog” Milloy to hold a reunion tour?

THE LEDBETTER HACIENDA/UPDATE FROM THE BRANCH — The Falcons made a trade for Tye Hill today.

He played well early in his career after being selected with the 15th pick of the 2006 draft. Folks in St. Louis told me that he lost his confidence and has been beset with injuries. Doesn’t sound like he can step right in and help, but we’ll see.

All last week, Falcons coach Mike Smith kept saying that the team “had a lot of work to do.”

Some of the cynical and sometimes skeptical media folks just thought it was some “coach speak.”

Turns out Smitty was just shooting the media straight.

In wake of the San Diego third-down air assault, it looks like the coaches have to regroup. They need a workable third down plan.

In the preseason, the Falcons have been trying to play a more aggressive and swashbuckling style of defense. We’ve seen blitzes, that funky 3-3-5 they flashed on

a few third downs and …

Continue reading FALCONS: No “LawDog”, it’s Tye Hill to the rescue? »