Roddy White battles Saints and Dilfer via Twitter (Final update: I hope)

The Falcons' Roddy White never fails to entertain -- and here he goes again.

(2 p.m.: OK. this has officially mutated. The first update below includes Roddy White’s latest Tweets. The second update includes a selection of sanitized-for-your-protection Tweets from readers to @RoddyWhiteTV. I can’t reprint many but you’re free to do a search from your Twitter account, if you have one.)

(7 p.m. I’ve accumulated most of what’s below and put it together for a print column, which I’ve pasted below. The only real new bit of information is a statement from the Falcons. I also chuckled when I just read Roddy’s most recent Tweet: “Can the AJC gave[sic] me a great Christmas present this year and stop posting my tweets I would luv that.” I believe we need to have a discussion.)

In the old days, this was called bulletin board material: a player or coach saying something that ended up in a newspaper story and, literally, was pinned to a bulletin board in the other team’s locker room. (And yes, I’ve seen it.)

But now, we’re more likely to have Twitter wars.

It’s fairly mild so far, but things are heating up between the Falcons’ Roddy White and the New Orleans Saints, who come to the Georgia Dome Monday night.

This actually started after ESPN analyst Trent Dilfer, took to a video blog to compare the Falcons to the 2003 Kansas Chiefs, who went 13-3 and then were bounced in the first-round of the playoffs. Dilfer said the Falcons “are not indestructible” at home and he went on to say the Saints could very well win Monday night’s game, then come back and beat the Falcons again in the playoffs in the Georgia Dome.

Here’s the video:

White responded via Twitter, @RoddyWhiteTV: “No chance in hell the Aints come into the dome and win once trent dilfer”

White, who’s been known to talk some smack on his amusing video blog site, RoddyWhite.TV, also Tweeted: “The aints fans are so rude … we shall see monday night.” And: “Yall [New Orleans] fans keep talking making it worst for those guys tht got to guard me cause yall don’t. lol.”

Will Smith, the Saints defensive end, responded on Twitter and it was subsequently re-Tweeted by Reggie Bush: “Wondering how @roddywhitetv has the audacity to call us AINT’S.” And he attached this photo:

UPDATE: Here’s the latest Roddy White Tweets. OK, now he might be taking things a little too far:

11:48 a.m.: “I don’t know why everybody mad for the saints I made a comment on wht trent dilfer said on tv it had nothing to do with them”

12:03 p.m.: “The grace of god gave them tht championship so tht city wouldn fall apart now and now they think they hot [bleep] in … http://tmi.me/4ugiT“

12:04: p.m.: “The first time we played them their coach gone say after we won the game thts a good win for yall like the saints are the colts”

12:05 p.m.: “The saints win one championship and want to go crazy well yall [bleep] aint winning this year we gone make sure tht doesn’t happen.”

UPDATE II: Here’s a selection of comments Tweeted directly to @RoddyWhiteTV (not fixing typos, just taking out profanity):

@fleurdelele: Among the comments: “Lemme see your [rear] go thru what we in Nola went thru after Katrina…then try & talk [crap] about us!”

@ goodolcharlie: @roddywhiteTV dude you talk more crap then ocho well this monday the saints are going to shut you up.

@Menunderwearlov: You better tighten your jockstrap for the game, cause @sharper42 gonna knock your [bleeping] block off. #headbetterbeonaswivel

@KevincPhipps: Thank you @roddywhiteTV for reminding us how much we despise the falcons #RoddyWhiteHasn’tWonAnything

@Bonapatel: @roddywhiteTV to all the [bleep] talkers out there…I say: We’ll talk when all is said and done, until then let’s get em! GO FALCONS BABY!

@Monedula: @roddywhiteTV how many superbowl rings do you have?

@Peytonshead: Saints fans goin crazy over @RoddyWhiteTV talking trash. You need to just say “Roddy, until you win a SB, #ICantTakeYouSeriously.” Done.

@Doucette2003 @roddywhiteTV yeah we still got ONE MORE championship ring than you!!!!! You had a good year but we not having it Monday night #whodat!!!!!!

@ Clint_Money: The funny thing about @roddywhiteTV tweets is that they are borderline unreadable. #collegeisgood

@RickyT105: How many you got Roddy? How many rings you wearing?

@ Haxorize: Man, @roddywhiteTV is making me hate the Dirty Birds even more than I do. It is so on. #geauxsaints

@ StephanieBengal: Hey you’ve been playing light outs but when has a WR ran his mouth @roddywhiteTV equalled into playoff victories and Superbowl titles?

@ Matt Olivier: listen chump!!Don’t think you can say all that [bleep] bout N.O. We WILL hand y’all that first lost at home believe that #WhoDat

@ Claddagh41: @roddywhiteTV its okay that you can’t understand what our team did for our city. Maybe Dr. Phil can help you work out your ring envy issues.

@ Blmaniscalo: Just for all your ignorance, God is going to make sure you NEVER win a Championship. Jamarcus Russel will win one before you.

@ Donareilly: This @roddywhiteTV diarrhea of the mouth has to be the dumbest stuff. He spewing a bunch of bs. Lets see what he’s saying tuesday morning.

@ Kralph97: @roddywhiteTV trash talking is 1 thing but trying to undermined the people of the N.O. is a diff game. You’re whack.com for that.

@ RuRu69: Roddy…GET OFF TWITTER AND GO STUDY FOR THE GAME!

@ Nader723: Sean Payton is in the locker room right now with @roddywhiteTV picture on the board saying this [bleep] gotta get SMASHED Monday

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I realize none of this constitutes a burning building. But it is amusing to see athletes take their smack talk to the electronic world when they’re often so careful about what they say in front of their locker.

Also this: Is something Trent Dilfer says really worth getting upset about?

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Print column

Athletes and celebrities complain all the time about the 24/7 media world today, and they certainly have a point. If you are, say, Roddy White, you can’t go anywhere in public without running the risk that some guy, excessively fueled on Budweiser and Jack Daniel’s and carrying a flip-cam, is going to bait you into saying or doing something stupid.

Two minutes later, we have the latest YouTube sensation.

But there’s another side to the instant media world and we’re witnessing it this week. Athletes and celebrities are fascinated by Twitter. What they wouldn’t dare say in front of their lockers, they don’t hesitate to bang out in 140 characters or less.

In their work environment, athletes often have an automatic filter between their brain and their mouth (though sometimes it comes in the form of the team’s public relations director standing next to them during interviews). But when they’re at home on the couch, they have no filter between their brains and their finger tips.

Which brings us back to Roddy White.

Dude: Do yourself a favor. Take your hands off the keyboard. Better to use them for catching something other than flak.

White, warming up in his own special way for the Falcons’ game against the New Orleans Saints Monday night, ignited a Twitter war Wednesday. White is an amusing and entertaining guy, and it’s not the first time he has engaged in a little smack talk on his Twitter site (@RoddyWhiteTV) or on his video blog (RoddyWhite.TV). But he jumped the rails a bit this time.

This actually started after ESPN analyst Trent Dilfer, in a commentary, compared the Falcons to the 2003 Kansas Chiefs, who went 13-3 and then were bounced in the first-round of the playoffs. Dilfer said the Falcons “are not indestructible” at home. He went on to say the Saints could win Monday night’s game, and then come back and beat the Falcons again in the playoffs in the Georgia Dome.

White took to Twitter for his response: “No chance in hell the Aints come into the dome and win once trent dilfer.”

No real harm, right?

Then it got fun. Saints defensive end Will Smith responded on Twitter: “Wondering how @roddywhitetv has the audacity to call us AINT’S.” And for punctuation, he attached a photo of his Super Bowl ring. (That was re-Tweeted by Reggie Bush.)

Still no real harm, right?

Then White sent out the following three Tweets (not cleaning up the typos or grammar here):

“I don’t know why everybody mad for the saints I made a comment on wht trent dilfer said on tv it had nothing to do with them.”

“The grace of god gave them tht championship so tht city wouldn fall apart now and now they think they hot [bleep] …”

“The first time we played them their coach gone say after we won the game thts a good win for yall like the saints are the Colts.”

That second comment was by far the most inflammatory because it invoked the city of New Orleans. It touched off a flurry of comments to White’s Twitter account. Some came from Falcons’ fans supporting him, but most were from angry Saints, many including profanity.

Among the comments: “Lemme see your [rear] go thru what we in Nola went thru after Katrina…then try & talk [crap] about us!”

White was not available for comment Wednesday, which was a players’ day off for the Falcons.

Reggie Roberts, the Falcons’ vice president of football communications, e-mailed a statement, saying only: “We simply think this was a case of one of our guys having fun on his personal Twitter account. The fact of the matter is that Monday night’s game will be played by two of the NFL’s better teams and the outcome will be decided on the field.”

I realize none of this constitutes a burning building. But it is curious how athletes take their smack talk to the electronic world when they’re so careful about what they actually say.

Oh, and there’s this: Is something Trent Dilfer says really worth getting upset about?

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Last 3 posts, now in high-def

– Richt looking forward to putting Dogs’ season behind him

– NFL MVP race: Vick and Brady are even (Ryan, White close behind)

– Site says Georgia No. 21, Tech unranked going into 2011

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