Live from Falcons-Giants: We’re a lousy sports city, are we?
"If I give you two dimes and a nickel, will you give me a quarter back?" (AP photo)
East Rutherford, N.J. – Here’s a fun little nugget that was posted on the New York Post’s web site yesterday: As of Friday night, the Giants-Falcons playoff game was not sold out.
If said game were being staged at the Georgia Dome, we Atlantans would be hearing yet again how lousy a sports town we are. But this is New York, where millions live and where sports are, we’re constantly reminded, a point of strutting metropolitan pride.
Let the record reflect that an attempt to find available tickets this morning via Ticketmaster was unavailing, so we can assume that the game finally has sold out. Still, the thought of a Giants’ home postseason game with available seats not 30 hours before kickoff would surely come as a revelation to those New Yorkers who love to poke fun at us dumb ol’ Southerners for our indifference/inattention.
But I digress. The Falcons arrive with a point to prove, and the belief here is that they’ll prove it. The belief here is that they’ll win because they are, top to bottom, the better team. The tabloids have been full of Matt Ryan stuff this week, the thrust being that he still hasn’t proven anything in the postseason. (He hasn’t, but I’d suggest two games in his first three NFL seasons isn’t quite a true sample.)
I remember another day in Ryan’s pro career, a Sunday here in November 2009 when he overrode a second-half deficit to force overtime. The Giants won the toss and scored in the bonus canto, but that remains, at least to this dumb Southern observer, one of the shining performances of a very good career.
If you can do it here once, you should be able to do it again. And if you can make it here, the song has it, you can make it anywhere. I think Matty Ice will author his playoff breakthrough today, but maybe you disagree.
Which is why we have these little live chats — for you to interact with a dumb Southern writer like yours truly. I invite your comments. And I thank you, as ever, in advance.
By Mark Bradley
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4,613 comments Add your comment
Tom1
January 8th, 2012
1:47 pm
Go for the throat – touchdown to Julio!!
Mark Bradley
January 8th, 2012
1:47 pm
First down for MT. Falcons getting a handle on this game
Tomahawkin
January 8th, 2012
1:47 pm
Falcons 2012
January 8th, 2012
1:45 pm
‘Mark you are going to have a record number of hits for a live blog.”
No, No Offense to Bradley but He Cant Touch David O’Brien’s Blog During a Late Season Braves Game!
David O’Brien is the Braves Version of TBS for Outta State Fans
Boss
January 8th, 2012
1:47 pm
mark when you wrote safety, did you write it based on what you thought or based on what the officials called on the field?
bigdave
January 8th, 2012
1:47 pm
keep feeding him..
Andy
January 8th, 2012
1:48 pm
Nice second effort by Turner to get the first down.
Falcons Man
January 8th, 2012
1:48 pm
Ryan is leaving the pocket early. Looks scared out there
bigdave
January 8th, 2012
1:48 pm
Ryan.. when they take away your primary read.. keep your cool man..
Falcons 2012
January 8th, 2012
1:48 pm
Giants look very mediocre.
Mark Bradley
January 8th, 2012
1:48 pm
What I thought, Boss.
Wet Willie...keep on smiling
January 8th, 2012
1:48 pm
JJ is open on every play but noodle arm will not throw it! Blank needs to call the plays that any grade school football coach would and throw the fecking ball to Julio!!! DA
makemyday
January 8th, 2012
1:48 pm
phil, u never say anything good period..you moron.
Lil' Barry Bailout
January 8th, 2012
1:48 pm
In 1938 the Bears beat the Packers 2-0.
phil
January 8th, 2012
1:48 pm
I don’t blame anything but us, you doof. Saints are good.
Mixxo
January 8th, 2012
1:49 pm
Must be some good coverage downfield…..Matt’s getting decent protection though.
Falcoons
January 8th, 2012
1:49 pm
Let’s see the Jones show!!!!
Caesar
January 8th, 2012
1:49 pm
Matt Ryan is the king of the 3 yard pass.
stendek
January 8th, 2012
1:49 pm
Safety was poetic justice! That damn black zebra put the ball back just enough so the Falcons would not pick up first down. Which they did! Everyone watching saw it. Not too dam hard to see! Know who refs are for.
Boss
January 8th, 2012
1:49 pm
Thanks. Just didn’t know if tv was that far behind live action
Dawgs Man
January 8th, 2012
1:49 pm
I want one of the Falcons to POP that SOB linesman #110.
Tomahawkin
January 8th, 2012
1:49 pm
Mark Bradley
January 8th, 2012
1:46 pm
“Actually, the Outback Bowl started 2-0 on Michigan State’s first snap.”
LOL, My Man, Dont Bring back Memories of that game?
Falcons 2012
January 8th, 2012
1:49 pm
course with our playcalling?
WitStream
January 8th, 2012
1:49 pm
“CDawg42
January 8th, 2012
1:45 pm
Wonder who Troy Aikman is pulling for??”
Why in the world would you care?
Mark Bradley
January 8th, 2012
1:49 pm
Short again. Go?
Michael G.
January 8th, 2012
1:49 pm
go for it again
FHZ
January 8th, 2012
1:49 pm
Giants can’t pass-protect from Abraham- and the others…
Boss
January 8th, 2012
1:49 pm
Another 4th and 1
tmc
January 8th, 2012
1:49 pm
Turner was SLOWWWW to the hole again.
mmgtfan
January 8th, 2012
1:49 pm
Go for it again!
whodat70816
January 8th, 2012
1:49 pm
Now this is where they should go for it!
Spencer
January 8th, 2012
1:49 pm
Why in the hell? Our defense is playing well, yes but damn SCOREEEEE
y3ll0wjacket
January 8th, 2012
1:49 pm
Good point, Troy Aikman.
ijonathan
January 8th, 2012
1:49 pm
NO!!!! go for it!!!
Ace Ventura
January 8th, 2012
1:49 pm
Go vertical to Roddy & Julio. Come one Mularkey…
Dawgs Man
January 8th, 2012
1:49 pm
Time for #110 of F*ck us again.
evil empire
January 8th, 2012
1:49 pm
when do the saints play again…this is like watching paint dry…new orleans or green bay would be up by 21 by now…on either of these clown teams…
phil
January 8th, 2012
1:49 pm
makemyday
January 8th, 2012
1:48 pm
phil, u never say anything good period..you moron.
You can’t read, obviously….
J.J.M.
January 8th, 2012
1:49 pm
I would punt too
Mark Bradley
January 8th, 2012
1:50 pm
Punting from the 42.
Missed a shot there
bigdave
January 8th, 2012
1:50 pm
how do you not go for this one..? hell..? its shorter.. the first one was a dumb call..
Mixxo
January 8th, 2012
1:50 pm
Good decision
stendek
January 8th, 2012
1:50 pm
YOU WILL LOSE TOO JMM!
LILBURN DAWG
January 8th, 2012
1:50 pm
Fourth and inches. How is it that Smith/Ryan can’t come up with another option than to run it up the gut when the whole world knows what they’re going to run. Whatever happened to the bootleg? At this level, if you can’t make six inches on any down, you don’t belong on the field. It’s justifiable to go for it on fourth down when you’ve sustained a long drive, but why blow it up with s stupid qb sneak and all this absurd motion and shifts?
ijonathan
January 8th, 2012
1:50 pm
What is going on in the head of Mike Smith? Other than wind whistling through cobwebs?
Falcons 2012
January 8th, 2012
1:50 pm
Final score: Giants 3 Falcons 2 at this rate.
whodat70816
January 8th, 2012
1:50 pm
Smith is spooked!
Should have gone for it there…Falcons O having some success and he pulls the plug…SMH
Tomahawkin
January 8th, 2012
1:50 pm
Dammit!
We Needed A Score there, That would’ve Shut Those Yankees/Giants Fans The Hell Up!
Boss
January 8th, 2012
1:50 pm
Man you gotta get it inside the 10 kicking from the 40. They only netted about 25 yards.
phil
January 8th, 2012
1:50 pm
Terrible move. Have to go for that….
We’re playing not to lose again.
It doesn’t work.
Here comes a bomb.
FHZ
January 8th, 2012
1:50 pm
“Turner was SLOWWWW to the hole again.”
His thighs are rubbing together..
Big backs..fat backs should get smaller as they age, not larger