The Hot Button: Did Falcons redo too much of their defense?
And here's why they needed to get younger and faster. (AJC photo by Curtis Compton)
He could have taken half-measures: Dump three guys in one offseason, two more the next. Instead Thomas Dimitroff, who doesn’t eat meat, went whole-hog.
Five Falcons starters were cast off or allowed to leave. We knew such movement would yield growing pains, but events of the preseason suggest orientation might take a while longer. Already Dimitroff has had to make last-minute acquisitions to prop up a shaky secondary, importing cornerback Tye Hill and safety Brian Williams.
So, then, the question: Did Dimitroff overreach by changing so much? His e-mailed response:
“Absolutely no regrets as per our offseason defensive moves. Our desire at the outset of the 2009 offseason was to get younger, faster and increase our level of urgency. Our aim is to build for sustainability”
And that was always the key. The Falcons cut ties with four of the five starters because of that get-younger-faster-and-more-urgent mandate. The fifth was another matter. A look at each case:
Michael Boley, linebacker: There was a time — in 2007, say — when Boley seemed the Falcons’ next Pro Bowler. But he didn’t take to the new coaching staff, and the new coaches weren’t wildly enamored of him. The Dimitroff mantra for 2009 is “urgency and consistency,” and the Boley of 2008 failed on both counts. Which is a nicer way of saying he took plays off.
Keith Brooking, linebacker: The Falcons knew even before the playoff loss in Phoenix that Brooking had lost more than a step, but his feet didn’t fail him on that fateful third-and-16. He misread the play completely. And that sealed it. If you’re going to keep an experienced guy around as, say, a fourth linebacker, he’d better not get fooled like a raw rookie.
Domonique Foxworth, cornerback: This was the guy the Falcons wanted to keep, but he priced himself out of their market. Foxworth took a half-season of good work here and wrangled a $28 million contract from Baltimore (with $17 million guaranteed). The Falcons weren’t going to pay that much for someone they didn’t feel was a true No. 1 cornerback. A solid one, yes, but not a great one.
Loading ...Grady Jackson, tackle: The Falcons liked Big Grady, too — everybody likes Big Grady — but he’s 36. And it wasn’t hard to find someone both younger and faster. Dimitroff did it by taking Peria Jerry with the first draft pick of 2009
Lawyer Milloy, safety: Outside perception held that Milloy was a team leader. The new regime thought he talked too much. (And they couldn’t have been thrilled when he was arrested for DUI following the second game of 2008.) The new regime also kept coming back to two plays in Phoenix, both Cardinal touchdown: On the first, Milloy got outjumped by Larry Fitzgerald; on the second, he got outrun by Anquan Boldin.
Let’s also recall that Dimitroff worked for the Patriots, whose M.O. is to dump a guy before he gets too old or too expensive. Let’s recall that New England dumped Milloy in 2003, only one full season after he’d helped the Pats win their first Super Bowl, because he wanted too much. Let’s note that they just traded Richard Seymour, the Georgia program and a stalwart since 2001, to Oakland.
Yes, New England is always dealing from a position of strength, but there’s never a reason to propagate a weakness for the sake of cosmetic continuity. The 2008 Falcons ranked 24th in total defense. To become a Super Bowl team, they had to get better. There’s no time like the present, Dimitroff said, and he took urgent action.
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174 comments Add your comment
Bad News
September 12th, 2009
5:28 pm
Ken “UNCLE SAMBO” Strictland………..
So finally you admit you are a liar
But that just shows how ignorant and stupid you are. If playoffs are less important than the regular season, then it makes very little since to play for the SuperBowl
You are “MORE ROCKS IN YOUR HEAD” than I previously thought. Who in their right mind that knows his HEAD FROM HIS ANUS would ever try and make that rationale that the regular season is more important than the playoffs
What rock did you crawl from? The Super Bowl (playoff game) the most watched event in the WORLD!
You are “DUMBER THAN A SACK OF ROCKS”
KQuark
September 12th, 2009
7:15 pm
Foxworth was the only real loss to worry about. But Dimitroff pulled of waiver wire magic again by picking up Brian Williams who is a very good player and who is much more versatile than Foxworth. Tye Hill is an upgrade for nickle too.
Lofton and Nicholas (a star in the making IMHO) are both huge upgrades over Boley and Brookings. Both these LBs increase speed on defense tremendously.
I like Grady (who we affectionately called Gravy in my house) but Jerry looks like the real deal and I liked what I saw from Trey Lewis before he got injured.
I think losing Milloy is simply a non-factor and again speed in the secondary is much better.
The D will struggle early a little because of their youth but get better by the end of the season instead of showing their age like they did with Brooking and Milloy last year. I don’t take anything away from Grady, Brooking and Milloy they had some great years for the Falcons but now was the time to let them go.
Ken Strickland
September 12th, 2009
8:39 pm
BAD NEWS-you know what, you’re extremely boring, and exchanging childish insults with the likes of you has also gotten boring. You’re obviously extremely childish, for only a child or child like individual could derive such continuous pleasure while engaging in something so trivial. It’s obvious you’re on these blogs to instigate and draw attention to yourselves, not to acquire or diseminate information.
The season starts tomorrow and I’m going to concentrate on that, not wasting anymore time with you. Oh, by the way, THE REGULAR SEASON IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN THE PLAYOFFS BECAUSE WITHOUT THE REGULAR SEASON, HOW DO YOU DETERMINE WHO PLAYS IN THE PLAYOFFS. You are either too young or stupid to realize this, but the NFL managed to determin its champion before there was any Superbowl or NFC/AFC playoffs.
Bad News
September 12th, 2009
11:02 pm
UNCLE SAMBO – You are a liar and got caught lying and not man enough to admit it even when the facts were linked in black and white.
Any fool knows that playoffs and the Super Bowl is the reason for training camp and the regular season. You sound like a fool and at this point I’m not even conversing with you because I don’t talk to idiots or fools who tell FLAT OUT LIES to try and pull the wool over people eyes, because you think they won’t “FACT CHECK” your stupid statements.
You have no credibility and you can bet any B.S. you spread on here will be “FACT CHECKED” each and every time.
You are truly “DUMBER THAN A SACK OF ROCKS”
Big Ray
September 13th, 2009
3:46 am
BigEasy830,
It should be obvious. Dimitroff chose to pay for offense (Turner and Gonzalez) and build the defense through the draft.
Yes, the Ravens were 5-11 in 2007. What was the Falcons record? Surely you can tell me, as you are so good at pointing out Falcon failures. My point stands: the Ravens are a more established team with a KNOWN and established defense and line. The reason they went 5-11? Bad coaching and no offense. They chose the opposite of what Dimitroff, and chose to build offense through the draft when they got Flacco. And it was a good choice, just a different one.
You seem to insist on ignoring one simple fact: The Falcons are rebuilding. You don’t rebuild a team over the course of one year. And when you’re using the draft to do it, it never happens in one year. Dimitroff obviously didn’t want to buy himself a defense.
Bad News,
You seem to have a bad memory as well. What did Dimitroff and Smith say when they came to Atlanta? They wanted to build a team whose offense was based on the run. So, they paid the money necessary to get Turner, and voila! He got 1,699 yards last year. Of course everybody mentions Turner, and not Ryan. This team is built on the running game! Ryan is a guy they drafted to take care of the ball and make good decisions. Just so happens that he’s quite good at it. And good decision making is better than arm strength. Don’t believe me? Remember Jeff George? He had arguably a stronger arm than Mike Vick. Where did it get us? Accuracy. It’s what Manning has (both of them). Aikman had it. Brady has it. Marino had it. Ryan’s got it.
This team’s offense is built on the running game. Turner proved that last year. Why you keep bringing up Ryan is beyond me. Sounds like an obsession.
And why do you say Ken Strickland and I are joined at the hip when you and BigEasy830 can’t seem to get enough of each other? Nor can you get enough of Ken. If you ask me, you must be the secret admirer. Seems to me like he minds his business, then you come along calling him Uncle Tom and all that. Well, I don’t understand your “Uncle Tom” fetish at all, but whatever they let you do in that loony bin over there is their business. At least they’re not stupid enough to let you out. Lord knows you’d get the color beat off your ass if you called somebody that in person…..enjoy your fetish and be nice to the men in the white suits. They might even let you watch the game tomorrow.
Big Ray
September 13th, 2009
3:58 am
Gosh, those guys at ESPN must be a bunch of dummies! Every last one of them has picked us for the win today.
Go Falcons!
Big Ray
September 13th, 2009
4:12 am
An article on ESPN, written by Trent Dilfer. Notice the rankings and comments on Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco. Quite interesting. No doubt this will be waved aside by those who seek to bolster their own idiotic arguments…..
KNOCKING AT THE DOOR
Quarterbacks with immense talent and potential who haven’t won anything of significance yet. Playoff success will launch them into a higher category.
1. Tony Romo, Dallas
Analysis: Quickest release in the NFL … unparalleled ability to throw from multiple foot platforms, both intermediately and down the field … as artistic as any quarterback in the league, instinctively using all available resources (eye placement, shoulder nods, pump fakes, arm angles, you name it) … can make something out of nothing on a consistent basis … sometimes careless with the football, both in the pocket and through the air … limited big-game success.
2. Carson Palmer, Cincinnati
Analysis: As good a pure passer as there is in the league … immense arm talent … great mastery of his offensive system … needs to stay healthy … can be a little too aggressive in pumping the ball down the field.
3. Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay
Analysis: Great arm talent … spins the tightest spiral in the league … makes every throw look easy … on his way to having complete mastery of his offense … inconsistent to this point in his career in two-minute and end-of-game situations
4. Matt Ryan, Atlanta
Analysis: Most dynamic passer as a rookie since Dan Marino … phenomenal instincts for the position … strong leader … the only negative is that he hasn’t played enough.
5. Jay Cutler, Chicago
Analysis: Great physical attributes … phenomenal playmaker … has shown lack of discipline in critical situations and must show more maturity on and off the field.
6. Joe Flacco, Baltimore
Analysis: Enjoyed playoff success as a rookie and is therefore an exception to the rule in this category, but defies categorization elsewhere … phenomenal poise under fire … shows the ability to make every throw … has not had to carry his team with his arm like the other players in this category.
Yep. I’ll take Trent Dilfer’s viewpoint as a former SuperBowl-winning quarterback over that of a moronic blogger who takes the name of Mike Vick’s former kennel venture….
Big Ray
September 13th, 2009
4:17 am
ESPN must certainly be a bunch of boobs. 12 out of 16 writers (including Scout.com and others) have the Falcons winning the NFC South. Nah, they gotta be wrong. We all know that two of the bloggers around here have it right, and the sports experts don’t know anything. Yeah, the Falcons are going 4-12. Ha!
Go Falcons!
DJ The Realist
September 13th, 2009
9:34 am
You gotta be kidding. Here is where some of the shine comes off the Dimitroff image. You give the guy waaayyyy too much credit. I think my vegetarian friend is smart and has good instincts but to suggest that he is wise…..is definitely presumptuous. Falcons take a big step back this season, Since you want to use the Patriots as a guide…The Falcons lack balance , have you ever seen a Bill Belichek Patriots team that was this unbalanced ???…Falcons-great Offense…very questionable defense. Falcons..7 wins 9 losses..maybe worse if we get hit with the injury bug.
Bad News
September 13th, 2009
11:05 am
DJ The Realist……….
Excellent wise and unbiased post…………
LITTLE RAY
First of all, I never called Ken “UNCLE SAMBO” Strictland “UNCLE TOM”……… once again, you come to rescue of UNCLE SAMBO like he is your woman or something
Scroll up and show me where I did…..you may see me calling him “Uncle you know what”.
By assuming that’s what I meant, just confirms what he really is
You stated that the Ravens chose to rebuild on defense and the Falcons chose to rebuild on offense. Based on that, you admit that they both were rebounding from 5-11 and 4-12 seasons………..now
Based on that scenario that you proposed, the Flacco went to the championshp game, with a rebuilt defense, yet Ryan as you explained had an invested new set of offensive weapons, yet the team lost based on the offensive performance.
When your (questionable) leader throws 2-picks, 1-fumble and nut up in the endzone and give up a safety, that is not a leader, that is called a C-H-O-K-E…..
Hell Joey Harrington could have done that for 2 million instead of 72-million. Say what you want but Ryan is the only qb on the Falcons team that went 1 and done in this decade in the playoffs.
You seem to love ESPN predictions this season, yet last season you called them idiots when last season they predicted them to have a losing system – can you say H-Y-P-O-C-R-A-C-Y.
Since they were wrong last year, then if they are wrong this year, that could mean a 4-12 or 5-11 season. But since you want to talk about sports analyst………….Let’s talk about the NFL Network
Their analyst is that if the Falcons don’t light up the scoreboard every game, they will have a very L-O-N-G season. One thing you and UNCLE SAMBO don’t realize is, if your offense is a potential 24 points per game team, if your defense is horrendous like this one is, means that your touches and possessions will be shrunk, which means less opportunities to score………..
I look forward to seeing you and UNCLE SAMBO after the game on the blogs……….don’t just show up when they win now, because I would like to see you guys more than 3 times this season
Big Ray
September 13th, 2009
1:30 pm
Well, well. Looks like ol’ “noodle arm” definitely looks stronger. A little wild, though. But strong.
I’m enjoying seeing more of an involvment by Jerious Norwood. That guy is a game-breaker waiting to happen!
Have to admit, the Dolphins have been getting good pressure on Ryan, and there have been a few after-the-pass hits. But he’ll be fine.
On the other hand….Kroy Biermann is gonna taste him some Pennington steak today if he can help it, and John Abraham already has!
Big Ray
September 13th, 2009
1:33 pm
Bad News,
Nice twist of my words. If Ken’s a liar, then what are you? And damn, learn to spell “hypocrisy”, will you?
I’m here every year, after every game, win or lose. You can’t say the same. I know you look forward to seeing me, but especially Ken. You’ve got a thing for him. It’s obvious. Sick…..
Big Ray
September 13th, 2009
1:40 pm
What do you call it when your quarterback makes it into the playoffs one year, and gets deep in….but can’t lead his team to a winning record the next year? Oh, I have a name for it, but I want to hear yours.
Matt Ryan has played one year. Did Vick make the playoffs and win his first year? He did it in his second year, a fact that you would like to suppress, no doubt. Yeah, Ryan is the only Falcon QB to go one and done in his FIRST AND ONLY SEASON. As I recall, Vick didn’t make the playoffs in his first season, now did he? Try again, biatch.
Ken Strickland
September 13th, 2009
2:30 pm
BIG RAY-Talking about tristing things around. Every QB in the NFL could, and most have, thrown 2 picks and had 1 fumble. Hell, future HCF CB BFarve either led the NFL in INT’s or finished 2nd for 2 consecutive yrs. The question BAD NEWS should have considered is could Joey Harrington have led the Falcons to the playoffs with an 11-5 record. He certainly hasn’t led anyone else to such lofty goals in his career.
His/their obsession with me stems from his/their anger at me for reading his childish A&& like a book. Their modus Operandi of continuously making accusations and unsubstantiated comments, hoping something comes out right, is simular to throwing mud against the wall knowing most of it will fall off, but hoping something sticks.
Ken Strickland
September 13th, 2009
3:42 pm
DJ THE REALIST-is the 9:34am post and faulty analysis your idea of being realistic? What gm are you watching? The questionable DEF you referred to is pitching a shutout and dominating Miamie’s OFF.
We’ve added speed, quickness, athleticism and youth, and you can see the results in todays gm. There’s no way we would have gotten this type of hard hitting, pursuit and 4th qtr aggressiveness from last yrs DEF with DT GJackson, OLB’s MBoley & KBrooking and SS LMilloy.
D.Ellis
September 13th, 2009
3:57 pm
Will the Falcon and Ryan bashers please stand up
mars
September 13th, 2009
4:59 pm
Man, what an a-hole! Bad News, it is comical how you feign innocence in your racial disparaging of Strickland. “Uncle Sambo” might not be “Uncle Tom”. It is blatantly more racist than that. Combine “Uncle Tom” with “Little Black Sambo” and your H-Y-P-O-C-R-I-S-Y becomes clear. Racist piece of garbage. And Big Ray is correct. H-Y-P-O-C-R-A-C-Y is simply our current form of government under Obama.
Uncle Brother
September 13th, 2009
10:22 pm
BAD NEWS??? Where you at Brother!! I was laughing at your AZZ from my 7th row seats in the end zone!! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH Have a good bottle of Gin with that Kool Aid!!
GO FALCONS!!!
Uncle Brother
September 13th, 2009
10:31 pm
HMS, was it not the Best Cake you have had ? The only Bad News was we couldn’t see his stupid face when we won! The score should have been 26 to 0, but our kicker decided to have a hic up. LOL Anyway, it was a sweet win my friend! Have a great day and talk to you next week!
Go Falcons
Hms
September 14th, 2009
1:43 am
Uncle Brother,
Best cake ever. I will call it BAD NEWS PIE. He says we settle for mediocrity and that Flacco is better. As of right now Matt Iceman Ryan has a higher rating than Mr. Joe Flacco. Bad News for BAD NEWS. Sweeter than Bad News’s boyfriend ha ha.
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joe
September 14th, 2009
12:51 pm
Listen. I worreid about the defense like everyone did but I have faith in Dimi and the org. The Falcons not only have talent on the field but in all aspects of the off the field organization. Dimi and Smith got it going on and I support them 100%.
BTW – the Faclons were impressive and made a lot of mistakes. Wait unitl this season goes on and the younger players play better and the vets get into full blown football shape.
One of the best plays on defense I have ever seen was Abraham running over 317 pound All Pro Tackle Jake Long on his way to a sack of Pennington. Wow! That was a top ten all timer for a guy who has been watching football since 1965 (I was born in 1961).
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