More kudos for the Falcons: Is it all too much too soon?
It was just a year ago we weren’t sure the Falcons would win a game. Now they’re all the rage. From Mike Smith being ranked the league’s eighth-best coach by RealScouts to five Birds being listed among Peter Schrager’s top 99 NFL players on FoxSports.com to Roddy White being named the fourth-most indispensable player by Bill Barnwell of Football Outsiders …
And now this: Pat Yasinskas of ESPN.com rates the Falcons’ coaches the best staff in the NFC South. Which, given that Sean Payton has taken New Orleans to the NFC title game and John Fox has led Carolina to the Super Bowl, is saying something.
And part of me thinks it’s great. It’s been a while since anybody had nice things to say about this franchise, and the folks in charge are good people. But another part of me — the part that says, “You know, this organization still hasn’t had consecutive winning seasons” — wonders if it’s too much too soon.
The 2008 Falcons were a delight because nothing, almost literally, was expected of them. The Sporting News, as we all recall, picked them to go 1-15. (I picked them to go 5-11 and felt charitable.) They went 11-5 and made the playoffs. But now the forecasts are for bigger and better, and the schedule is much tougher and …
Loading ...Have we ever spent a summer getting excited about the Falcons only to wind up in the gutter along the boulevard of broken dreams? Only about a dozen times.
I’m thinking it won’t happen this fall. I’m thinking this organization is too sound and this roster too gifted. But honesty compels me to report felt the same in 1999, when a team coming off a Super Bowl went 5-11 after Jamal Anderson hurt his knee; and in 2003, when the giddiness of the playoff win at Lambeau was lost once Michael Vick broke his ankle, and in 2005, when Jim Mora’s NFC runners-up started 6-2 and managed not to have that second consecutive winning season.
My head tells me these Falcons are different. But my gut keeps growling and saying, “Yeah, but they’re still the Falcons.” And here’s where I reach for the Rolaids.
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149 comments Add your comment
What!!!
June 25th, 2009
3:28 pm
12-4. Real team with a real QB.
tree rollins
June 25th, 2009
4:19 pm
Our best defensive backs and linebackers from last year are gone. AND our top nose tackle. We still don’t have a kickoff or punt return game. I grant you I like the addition of Gonzalez on offense – that’s about all I can say in the way of improvements. So you take in these developments and thrown in a much tougher schedule and now we’re going to have a BETTER team than last year – how do you figure???
AJ
June 25th, 2009
4:30 pm
With this schedule we may have to play in some offensive games to cover our defense, but playing against some of the best teams will help them in the long run to get better with confidience,even if their were to loose some by 1-3 pts. becauce time ran out, that way they would know that their just as good and can beat them, like the Giants did vs the Patriots yr before last and beat them in the Superbowl,this is a season of reckoning.
VICK SUPPORTER 2
June 25th, 2009
5:02 pm
BREAKING NEWS!!
MIKE VICK IS NO LONGER THE FASTEST QB IN THE NFL
HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE YOU ASK? GOOD QUESTION! I’LL TELL YOU……….
NO CONTRACT!! ARTIE BLANK MISPLACED IT
AS OF NOW…..JOE FLACCO IS A FASTER NFL QB THAN VICK
AND HAS A CONTRACT!!
HOWEVER, THERE’S NO DENYING HE’S GOT TO BE THE FASTEST CONSTRUCTION WORKER IN THE HISTORY OF MANKIND!!
JUST REMEMBER……….SAFETY FIRST!!
What!!!
June 25th, 2009
5:18 pm
12-4! Real team with a real QB!
falcon fan
June 25th, 2009
5:30 pm
You sure terrance moore did`nt write this column?
VICK SUPPORTER 2
June 25th, 2009
5:38 pm
WHAT!!! – EXCELLENT POST!
The real What!!!
June 25th, 2009
5:45 pm
Everyone please forgive me, my trailer 5th wheel broke and my library card expired but I’m back now.
We have a real quarterback now, even though he choked against the 8-8 Cardinals.
I don’t care if his red zone average is in the 20s.
I don’t care that he didn’t make the pro bowl.
I don’t care it took him 5 years to read play books.
Call me stupid, but I don’t care.
Go Falcons!
VICK SUPPORTER 2
June 25th, 2009
6:25 pm
MISSING: MIKE VICK’S CONTRACT
HAVE YOU SEEN IT LATELY?
REWARD: A STOLEN WATCH, EXPIRED COUPONS, A DIME SACK, THE MIDDLE FINGER AND A PUPPY
Unca' Bob
June 25th, 2009
7:40 pm
AJ,
Please don’t sell our defense short just yet. No doubt there will be some games where our offense will rescue our defense. There will be games where our defense will rescue our offense. Our defense will hindge on our tackle play. Should our D-Line step up expect a very good year!
Barry
June 25th, 2009
8:16 pm
Hey Y’all:
Hey Bradley. Quit worrying about your gut. I know that you and others are not use to winning football in these parts, but these Falcons and the coaches they have around them are different. Hell, even us fans are different. WE ARE WITH THIS TEAM AND WHAT THE COACHES ARE DOING AND HAVE DONE. Therefore, you need to get on board and stop feeding us this “pessimistic rhetoric” regarding our Falcons before the season even starts. I am not going to have it. We Falcon fans are down with these birds until the end in “ONE HEARTBEAT!!”. Win or lose, we are here!! We know these Falcons are a knitty, gritty, nasty bunch of players who play in “ONE HEARTBEAT!! THey are not quitters. They are “PLAYERS WHO MAKE PLAYS”. They care and play for each other. They got each others back. The coaches cover for each other and work effecivelty in a coordinated manner in making sure these Falcons represent and play hard, nasty, creative style southern football. And we as fans have both of their backs. We are down with this in
“ONE HEARTBEAT!!!”. WE ARE ONE: THE TEAM, THE FANS, THE MEDIA, AND THE COMMUNITY. “WE” refuse to take no mess and negativity directed towards this team. We are still “mad as hell” from our being taken advantage of by teams in the leaugue when we were at our lowest level. We are “MAD AS HELL” and we are not going to take it anymore. We are continuing our “PROCESS” of getting to the SUPER BOWL and winning it. And win it we will in “ONE HEARTBEAT!!!” WE AIN’T PLAYING!!!!!!!!!
BOY, YOU JUST DON’T KNOW HOW READY I AM FOR SOME FOOTBALL!!!!!!!!
LET’S DO THIS!! LET’S DO THIS IN “ONE HEARTBEAT!!!!!!!
GO FALCONS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This is a SECRET from a FALCON FAN. TELL EVERYBODY.
……………………….”ONE HEARTBEAT, BABY!!!!!!”…………….
godawgs
June 25th, 2009
10:32 pm
ok i love my falcons but damn yall make us sound like JOE DIRT how bout this here LETSSSSSSSSS GO FALCONSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
tree rollins
June 25th, 2009
11:28 pm
Ok, so here’s my beef with this team – they’re too white! White owner, white GM, white coach, white quarterback. Was this Arthur’s gameplan all along – hard to tell. But some of us feel his abandonment of Michael, Alge, Rod, D-Hall and the rest was a bit too much!! Terrence is gone but in spirit we know he was right. I know he would feel like I do. Arthur’s trying to change the nature of this team whether he admits it or not. Even his marketing guy is a white guy from Home Depot. What gives?
The real What!!!
June 26th, 2009
1:12 am
“From the NFL Network”:
At the Wednesday round table, “Hall-of-Famers” were discussing what player they would pick to start a franchise. Below are the picks:
Marshall Faulk picked: Shawn Merrimann
Warren Sapp picked: Mario Williams
Jamie Dukes picked: Mike Vick
The analysists all picked defense, except Mike Vick.
Hmmmm oddly enough there was no mention of “The New Face” of the franchise. Not even Mannings, Favre, Brady or Cutler – just a mobile qb
http://www.ravens24×7.com/column_view.php?cid=81&id=3540&view=archive
Paddy
June 26th, 2009
9:06 am
You had better hope that Jamie Dukes is the owner of this new team he is starting and not the GM. If he is just the GM he just got fired.
Vick Supporter
June 26th, 2009
10:22 am
Tree Rollins thinks the Falcons are “too white!”. You are as ignorant and racist as all the redneck retards. How bout this, the old Falcons were too black… does that sound ignorant and racist? Considering there isn’t a single white starter on defense and defense is our weakness what does that say?
What!!!
June 26th, 2009
10:31 am
12-4! Real team with a real QB. Makes some of ya’ll mad!! Bwaa ha ha!! GO FALCONS!!!!
What!!!
June 26th, 2009
10:40 am
Jamie Dukes proves once again he’s an idiot.
FalconsFanLostInOhio
June 26th, 2009
11:18 am
Defense makes a champion. At this point, let’s not go crowning the Birds anything yet. The defense is very young, and the QB, while stinkin’ good for a rookie last year, is still young too. Its a tough schedule and high expectations. This year could go either way…
VICK SUPPORTER 2
June 26th, 2009
11:48 am
SHAWN MERRIMANN = NFL CONTRACT
MARIO WILLIAMS = NFL CONTRACT
MIKE VICK = NO NFL CONTRACT
MIGHT AS WELL BUILD MY TEAM AROUND MIKE BIBBY WHO HAS NO NFL CONTRACT EITHER
What!!!
June 26th, 2009
11:54 am
12-4…………….GO FALCONS!!!!
The real What!!!
June 26th, 2009
1:33 pm
Enter your comments here
What!!!
June 26th, 2009
1:36 pm
Sure Jamie Dukes was an NFL player.
Sure Jamie Dukes is a “paid” analyst.
Sure I’m stupid.
Sure I live in my mom’s basement.
Sure I hate knowing the truth.
Sure I love not winning playoff games.
Sure I love quarterbacks that don’t make pro bowls.
Sure I like quarterbacks that lose to 8-8 playoff teams.
Bottom line, I am just plain stupid
What!!!
June 26th, 2009
2:58 pm
12-4…………..GO FALCONS!! JAMIE DUKES…ha ha ha ha ha!! A has been who never realy was!!!
VICK SUPPORTER 2
June 26th, 2009
3:06 pm
DEAR GOD,
I’M BARELY HANGING ON!! I’M NOT THINKING STRAIGHT ANYMORE. CAN YOU BELIEVE I ACTUALLY WANT TO BUILD A FOOTBALL TEAM AROUND A GUY WHO DOESN’T EVEN HAVE A CONTRACT, MY GOODNESS!! VICK HAD A CHAMPIONSHIP GAME “APPEARANCE ONLY” FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!! 5 YEARS AGO!! WHO CARES IF VICK NEVER WON A GAME WHEN GOING INTO THE 4TH QTR TRAILING. WHO CARES IF HE WAS CAPTAIN NO COMEBACK. HE BEAT BRETT FARVE IN GREEN BAY OVER HALF A DECADE AGO!! I MEAN C’MON, MAN!! WILL SOMEONE PLEASE PICK THE GUY UP? WHY HASN’T ANYONE SIGNED HIM YET? I DON’T GET IT!! I HATE MATT RYAN! HE HAS SINGLE HANDEDLY RUINED MY LIFE!! WOULD YOU PLEASE JUST GIVE ME TONYA HARDING’S NUMBER AND I’LL TAKE CARE OF THIS MYSELF.
What!!!
June 26th, 2009
4:22 pm
Calling on all Vick fans please exit the building! True fans support the team not a player. I’ve been a fan since Bartkowski(sp), a fan during the Vick years and still a fan today. I’ve said before, if our current QB don’t cut it, then get another. It’s about wins to this fan reguardless who the QB is.
With that said, I believe this current Falcons team is the best from the GM down to the players this franchise has ever had.
GO FALCONS!!!
What!!!
June 26th, 2009
7:23 pm
“Don’t hate the player – Hate the game”
http://blogs.nfl.com/2009/06/26/tweeting-vick/
Still didn’t find Ryan on that list
it's me again
June 26th, 2009
11:13 pm
What……the player you’re referring to must be Vick. Who by his actions, must have hated his team, his coach, his owner, and his fans or he wouldn’t have done the stupid things he did. Goodbye to bad memories. Once he was figured out every team stopped the experiment.
virgil leonard
June 27th, 2009
4:02 am
im with you on this one MB. i want to believe too but i must remain cautiously optmistic. If we can get throught the first four weeks of the season with a 3-1 or 4-0 record then I’ll feel a little better but until the season actually starts all the noise is just that… noise
Harleyman
June 27th, 2009
7:52 am
It’s nice that Blank and Co. have turned things around, but he still looks the idiot in that picture above pushing Vick around in a wheel chair. Please Bradley, no more reminders of that junk.
wp
June 27th, 2009
2:12 pm
I can not believe it. I’d about had that cheesy picture of Blank pushing Vick around in that wheelchair and here you print it again. AJC WRITERS GET OVER VICK! HE IS GONE let him go away
What!!!
June 27th, 2009
3:38 pm
It’s funny how Ryan is the “new face” of the franchise, but is not even the face of the AJC blogs
“It’s me again” based on that choke in the playoffs last year against Arizona, I guess Matty Ice was figured out in less than a season
it's me again
June 27th, 2009
9:46 pm
What I’ve got something you can joke on!
Wesley Wallace
June 27th, 2009
9:46 pm
Regardless of how good they are going to be, they have a super difficult schedule. Anything over 500 will be considered a great success.
adam keefe
June 28th, 2009
9:16 am
im just thinking, if people in
atl really hate mike vick for making poor judgement and then paying his dues, yall must really hate Bush
Foriel
June 28th, 2009
9:26 am
Mark Bradley says, “But another part of me — the part that says, “You know, this organization still hasn’t had consecutive winning seasons” — wonders if it’s too much too soon.”
No, Mark Bradley, it’s simply TIME. These Falcons are poised!
What!!!
June 28th, 2009
1:30 pm
2009 Falcons Breakdown:
http://www.examiner.com/x-2712-San-Francisco-49ers-Examiner~y2009m6d28-49ers-2009-opponent-breakdown-Atlanta-Falcons-Week-5
This article breaks down the 2009 Falcons……
Article lists top 3 Falcons as follows:
Michael Turner
Tony Gonzales
John Abraham
No Matty Ice on that list – WOW!
Where is the leader? Where is the “new face”?
Article also states that Mike Turner led the league in carries for running backs (339) and that if he carries that many times this season, he will be worn down.
Wow – I thought the quarterback was always the top player – the leader
Unca' Bob
June 28th, 2009
5:14 pm
It’s right here.
. Obviously the biggest name on the team is quarterback Matt Ryan. As the team tries to move on from the Michael Vick era, the Falcons will be asking a lot more from Ryan this year.
The Falcons will ask Ryan to do a lot more passing to relieve the workload of running back Michael Turner. Turner rushed a league-high 336 times last year.
What!!!
June 28th, 2009
5:59 pm
Top 3 players on team:
Michael Turner (Pro Bowler)
Tony Gonzales (Hall of Famer)
John Abraham (Hall of Famer)
http://www.examiner.com/x-2712-San-Francisco-49ers-Examiner~y2009m6d28-49ers-2009-opponent-breakdown-Atlanta-Falcons-Week-5
What!!!
June 28th, 2009
6:08 pm
The 49ers come into Week 5 looking to finish strong before their bye week. They will host the Atlanta Falcons, an upstart team that made the playoffs last year with an explosive offense. In charge of the offense is Rookie of the Year Matt Ryan and running back Michael Turner.
The Falcons are in the running to win their division, so the 49ers will have a huge task at hand.
Let’s break down the 2009 Falcons.
2008 Record: 11-5 (2nd NFC South)
Last meeting: 11/4/0 @ Atlanta (Falcons win 20-16)
2009 schedule: Week 2 @ San Francisco, Week 13 @ Seattle
Top 3 best players: RB Michael Turner, TE Tony Gonzalez, DE John Abraham
Notable draft picks: DT Peria Jerry, CB Christopher Owens
Notable new acquisitions: TE Tony Gonzalez, C Jeremy Newberry, LB MIke Peterson,
Notable losses: LB Michael Boley, LB Keith Brooking, CB Dominique Foxworth, DT Grady Jackson
After starting the season with three division opponents in the first four games, the 49ers look to test their skills against some new faces. The Falcons are a whole different team since the 49ers played them in 2007. Obviously the biggest name on the team is quarterback Matt Ryan. As the team tries to move on from the Michael Vick era, the Falcons will be asking a lot more from Ryan this year.
The Falcons will ask Ryan to do a lot more passing to relieve the workload of running back Michael Turner. Turner rushed a league-high 336 times last year. Granted that Turner has turned into a pretty good running back, but such a workload can take a toll on a body. With a new plan to get more passes out, the 49ers will have to focus on containing Michael Jenking and Roddy White at the wide receiver position.
Both these receivers are fast and lengthy. If the 49ers can hold them down, they still need to find a way to contain the Falcons’ biggest acquisition this off-season. Former Chiefs tight end Tony Gonzalez’s desire to be with a playoff team was enough to send him to Atlanta.
And Gonzalez’s game opens up the field. The former Cal tight end averages nearly 12 yards per reception in his career. You can imagine the assignments that the 49ers linebackers will have. Gonzalez might be the most dangerous in the red zone. His size and speed will definitely cause tough matchups for the 49ers.
On defense, the Falcons are doing some shifting. At cornerback, it looks like Von Hutchins and Chris Houston should end as the starters. But it looks like an open competition where any of the other cornerbacks (Brent Grimes, Chevis Jackson and Christpher Owens) could very easily take the starting spot.
The pressure on the 49ers quarterback will rely on the pass rush. Defensive end John Abraham has collected 26.5 sacks over the past two seasons and remains as a major threat to the 49ers’ offensive line. The Falcons also signed veteran linebacker Mike Peterson from the Jaguars. Peterson has a great nose for the ball, which might make the running game for the 49ers very tough.
The key for the 49ers to win this game will come on the hands of the passing game. With a Falcons cornerback crew that isn’t all too impressive, the 49ers have to take advantage of their passing opportunities. But if the 49ers defense cannot contain the running of Michael Turner and what looks to be a potentially more explosive passing game, the 49ers won’t be able to w
WheresMyFalcons
June 29th, 2009
6:57 am
Ok, already. Have visited this same OLD article for the past few days and there is NOTHING new to write about??????? Are you guys on vacation from your dwindling industry.
You’re giving me more and more reason to stay strictly with ESPN and give you up completely.
Coach D
June 29th, 2009
10:27 am
Well the Falcons certainly won’t be under the radar like they were last year, but I think they have the tools in place to make a run at a winning season. And unlike in past years where the back ups have been terrible: Redman, Norwood, Jenkins, can get the job done.
On paper the schedule looks tough, but it’s hard to really gauge any NFL schedule because there is so much parity. The Patriots while loaded, are still waiting to see how Brady will perform after surgery. The Cowboys have question marks and a loss of playmakers. The Giants got to prove the can get the job done without Plaxico. The Dolphins got to prove they’re no one season wonder themselves. The Saints, Panthers, and Buccaneers all have weaknesses as well. So I don’t feel the Falcons have anything more to prove than anyone else they play.
V Tuck
June 29th, 2009
12:12 pm
It will indeed be interesting. NFC South is no easy division theses days, and our schedule has been ramped up. Something tells me that if we can keep that same excitement and team energy that surrounded the Birds last season it’s going to be good. We spent needed focus on the D this offseason – which hopefully will payoff. We hemorrhaged yards last year – which will be more exploited by a tougher schedule if things were to be equal. A young D is certainly less reliable, but the releases / acquisitions we’ve made seem right to me. Go Birds!
What!!!
June 29th, 2009
8:18 pm
LIST OF 2009 PROJECTED 4,000 YARD PASSERS:
http://www.profootballtalk.com/2009/06/29/trent-green-says-at-least-ten-will-throw-for-more-than-4000-yards/
Apparently, even the addition of a hall of fame tight end won’t get “the new” face in the “elite” list.
I guess that 3,400 rookie season was a fluke, based on the “paid” analysts say he can’t get another 600 yards from last season.
He has been figured out I guess
mars
June 29th, 2009
8:23 pm
Too bad our young QB can’t get any attention. No one pays any heed to the poor boy, what with all the fuss over Turner-Norwood, White and Gonzalez. Not to mention the former QB. I wonder who will be the feature QB on Athlon Pro Football Mag and Beckett Pro Football Mag. Surely not our little fledgling. Do VS and/or VS2 have any updates on that? Yep, our new “face of the team” gets no respect. What a shame.
mars
June 29th, 2009
8:27 pm
Are the fellows at Athlon and Beckett considered to be “paid” analyst? Surely they’re not in a league with that “Hall of Famer” Trent Green. Got to be the final word there!
mars
June 29th, 2009
8:31 pm
Why have my comments disappeared? Does support for Matt Ryan merit being editted out? Very nice!
WheresMyFalcons
June 30th, 2009
6:57 am
Yawn!!!!! New Day….Same Story.
Please close the AJC and open a a news magazine where sports writers actually write.
JTiger
June 30th, 2009
4:53 pm
Everyone needs to chill out. The Flacons are going to kick some butt this year. And who gives a crap about MV? HE’S GONE, GET OVER IT! I bet the guys who constantly write about him and his deal with ATL stalk their ex-girlfriends. HELLO! IT”S OVER!!!! CAN WE MOVE ON PLEASE!?!?! MV will be in Miami soon. Meanwhile the Falcons will be going deep into the playoffs while Miami loses a wildcard game.