Live from New Orleans: The Falcons will lose – but not today
Just another example of how the Saints afford us Atlantans no respect. (Photo by M. Bradley)
New Orleans – Father Peter P. Finney delivered the homily at the 8 a.m. Mass at St. Clement of Rome in Metairie, La., this morning, and here we note: Father Finney is the grandson of Peter Finney, the gentlemanly sports columnist of the New Orleans Times-Picayune, and Father Finney actually gave no homily at all. It’s a St. Clement tradition to do without one during its annual Oyster Festival, which is ongoing this weekend. (There was carnival paraphernalia all over the parking lot.)
Father Finney noted that today’s Oyster Festival session is set to commence at noon – “when the Saints kick off,” he said. Then he noted: “The Saints’ game will be shown on television.”
Our rather roundabout point being: Even when the Saints stink, they’re still the talk of the town. (Metairie is a suburb off Lake Pontchartrain, of which my hotel affords me a half-scenic view.)
I’m on record — if you have three minutes and 32 seconds, you can hear me say it to Bill Littlefield of NPR’s Only A Game — that the Falcons won’t go undefeated. (My quote: “I don’t think anybody really seriously believes the Falcons are going to go 16-0.”) But there’s CineSport proof of me picking the Falcons to reach the Super Bowl and, via the Internet and the print AJC, I’m also on record as predicting that they’ll sweep the Saints.
That belief probably won’t win me many friends among the Oyster Fest folks, but it is, for better or worse, how I feel. I don’t think a lousy defensive team can beat the Falcons, and the Saints are on course to be the lousiest defensive team ever. I believe the Falcons’ first loss will come two weeks hence, at Tampa three days after Thanksgiving. I do not believe it will happen today.
But I have, as we know, been wrong a time or two. Whatever occurs, I’ll be here to watch and comment, and I implore you to join me. And I thank you, as ever, in advance. (Oh, and if you missed it: Read the fine print on the seat card depicted above.)
By Mark Bradley
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1,785 comments Add your comment
dawgnation1
November 11th, 2012
5:30 pm
@oldtimer
HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Scooby
November 11th, 2012
5:31 pm
VIck got the bell rung pretty good by the Cowgirls. I’m a Steeler fan so I ain’t got no dog in ur Falcons vs Saints battle, but boy y’all sure raggin on Turner. Just an observation.
Let's Be Real
November 11th, 2012
5:32 pm
son’s who?
November 11th, 2012
5:11 pm
@Let’s Be Real.
Will you give me the winning Powerball numbers for the next drawing? I’d like to retire early.
I will when you make a good post
bucklblue
November 11th, 2012
5:34 pm
Bow Down to the Black n Gold
We own the nasty birds….aka Lords of NO Riongs
bucklblue
November 11th, 2012
5:36 pm
LSU owns the pulldogs as well
Michael M.
November 11th, 2012
5:36 pm
hiramsaint and CGD would make good porch puppies together since they lie in the same bed together………….celebrating an escape 1 point win by the lowly Caints……………..shame ,…………………
take it from me.
November 11th, 2012
5:36 pm
The saints got lucky to day,had they been playing a team with an average running back,they would have lost!
bucklblue
November 11th, 2012
5:36 pm
Luck is where preparation meets opportunity…..
Saints fan
November 11th, 2012
5:36 pm
Atlanta if you learn anything from a Saints fan it should be this. Through thick and thin we stand behind our team! Y’all lost faith in the first quarter when u were still ahead. A team plays for there fans. Y’all gave a new meaning to a fair weathered fan! Who Dat nation will always stand behind the black and gold. Who Dat!
buckblue
November 11th, 2012
5:37 pm
Who Dat…?
Aint da nasty birds….
buckblue
November 11th, 2012
5:39 pm
Falcons…Lords of NO Rings
Lil' Barry Bailout
November 11th, 2012
5:41 pm
Can’t run the ball. Can’t defend.
Not exactly a recipe for playoff success.
dawgnation1
November 11th, 2012
5:42 pm
Who dat?????? Dat is a team dat wont make the playoff and has a losing record.
Michael M.
November 11th, 2012
5:42 pm
Caints think they beat the Falcons but it was the Falcons that beat theirselves in this one…………………….any idiot can say it the other way around but if you watched the game and saw it ………………..only one play and the Caints would have been crying time again………..but it is okay, we will lose a couple more probably during the season but the Falcons are on top and the rest are wishin and looking up, so deal with it and I am out……………………
Roddy White
November 11th, 2012
5:43 pm
buckblue. 8-1 >4-5. Your team still has the worst defense of all time and your super bowl title will forever live in the shadow of that bounty scandal. And don”t we play y”all again in our house? Dont talk too much trash.
take it from me.
November 11th, 2012
5:44 pm
Turner has lost his burner,he needs to be cut.
Sis-Boom-Bah Humbug
November 11th, 2012
5:44 pm
There has been some attention directed toward the relatively high number of penalties the Falcons incurred against the Saints, which is the sort of things that is apt to happen now & then. Of greater concern & impact is the weekly penalty imposed on the team by the coaching staff, namely putting Michael “Tip Toe Through the Tulips” Turner on the field. His usual deficient performance today was sufficient to lose the game.
It is good, however, that his number of carries has been deliberately limited this season. Otherwise, the Falcons would be fortunate to be around .500 now. Even though the Falcons acquisition & development of running backs has been rather poor in recent years (Quizz excepted), there just has to be less harmful “talent” on the roster right now.
For several years, Falcons fans railed about replacing the previous coordinators, who were clearly sub-mediocre. Finally, the voices of reasons could no longer be resisted. And shazaam! – the Falcons are far more proficient & intense. Turner now constitutes a comparable liability to the Falcon’s success. How much longer will it take to deactivate him?
Don’t talk about saving him for the playoffs, unless another 1-and-out is mandatory
Lil' Barry Bailout
November 11th, 2012
5:45 pm
Saints defense looked better than ours. Saints were 2nd and 2 almost every time.
JSS
November 11th, 2012
5:45 pm
Gee, such language and disgusting treatment of one’s fellow man! Yep, it is a AJC based Falcons blog!!! Man, what a way to come back from vacation in Mexico…
Angry Dave
November 11th, 2012
5:45 pm
Hey, aints fans, when is the parade for this win today? I see that city every time I flush the toilet and I get on with my day. We are still 8-1 and your 4-5.
intellibird
November 11th, 2012
5:46 pm
Saints probably used to be my second favorite team, after the Falcons. Then Sean Peyton and the Superbowl happened. Along with Brees/Peyton running up the score and then the final straw was Peyton signalling first down by pointing his crutch down the field. Thats was it! .
Saints fans and players are a bunch of bad sports and now I wonder if they are bounty hunting as well. Institutional bounty hunters, as evidenced by the number of personal fouls called or uncalled today.
Do you really need to celebrate every single first down, as the Saints do?
Its a good thing that these guys have been set down a few notches. Just waiting to see Drew Brees get his face buried in the turf. Maybe next game, I will get that satisfaction.
Enjoy 4-4, losers. We are 8-1 and the sky is the limit.
Didn't really care until now
November 11th, 2012
5:47 pm
“The Falcons will lose – but not today”
Epic Fail.
As a life-long resident of NO, and one who would rather watch paint dry than sports on tv, I will root for the Saints if forced to take a side. But after reading the comments on this article, I couldn’t be more delighted that the Saints won today. You people in Atlanta really need to chill. It’s just a game.
What was the score anyway?
Lil' Barry Bailout
November 11th, 2012
5:52 pm
The sky isn’t the limit for a team that plays no defense. The first round of the playoffs is.
take it from me.
November 11th, 2012
5:52 pm
Turner is the player of the game,as far as the Saints are concerned.
Eric C.
November 11th, 2012
5:52 pm
One thing that has not changed since last year…the short yardage rushing game stinks. Twice, down inside the 5, and they get only 3 points. Really, the Falcons were better off to run 3 straight QB sneaks from the 1 yd line.
dawgnation1
November 11th, 2012
5:54 pm
@didn’t care
Was it really an “epic” fail??? Really?? Epic would imply that he would have predicted them to win by 30 ,and then they lost by 30. Didn’t exaclt work out that way. The falcons lost because they couldn’t convert. Definitely didn’t get blown out. Why don’t you go back to a saint blog? If you’ve been a life long NO resident and not even a sports fan, why are you here?
Angry Dave
November 11th, 2012
5:54 pm
Thugs!!
Eric C.
November 11th, 2012
5:54 pm
I’m more worried about the Bucs right now…they are only 3 games back and can control their own destiny for the division crown if they win next week and the Falcons lose.
Lil' Barry Bailout
November 11th, 2012
5:56 pm
46 yards rushing against the NFL’s worst run defense.
What else do you need to know?
Eric C.
November 11th, 2012
5:57 pm
The Falcons need to get this game quickly out of their system and refocus.
Eric C.
November 11th, 2012
5:58 pm
I’m not sure there is much the Falcons can do to improve the run blocking at this point. The big key is to get Weatherspoon back…he was really missed today.
Eric C.
November 11th, 2012
6:00 pm
Sadly, the defense just cannot get over the hump…why can’t the Falcons ever have a top 10 defense?
replace turner
November 11th, 2012
6:01 pm
Tuner is not a brutal runner any longer….he tippy toes around….cant get one yard…how many times do we Falcon fans have to endure pathetic short yardage feeble attempts…..jaquizz and snelling have more desire! Hello OC! get with it.d#am it…your play calling cost us on the goal..And…if im sitting here in Cataula Ga knowing Brees is gonna throw to #80 graham….how in the WORLD…can our DB.s not be in position to take care of buisness…..ughhhhhh!
JW
November 11th, 2012
6:01 pm
We can lose to any team…doesnt’ matter, it can be team “A”. After the loss we will see a few amazingly inteligent comments regarding we won and you didn’t from said team “A” fans. It always amazes me when we lose to the team from New Orleans. The type of fandom bred in that hole is something to behold. Also, almost comically, I bet the lovely mouth runners live here. They had to leave their obsessively beloved town because they had to leave after a hurricane. Go back already…rebuild your beloved metroplis and leave us reasonable Atlantans well enough alone. I shouldn’t really care, however I had the miss fortune of attending the game here last year. You know…the game we went for it on 4th down. Anywho, walking out of that building was pretty incredible. I would rather be stuck in an elevator with Hannibal Lecter than a clown Saints fan. Saints…you are seriously damaging your reputation as great people and fun to be around…wait, that never existed. To break it down to simple basics…win or lose a sporting contest, any fan from any other team besides the 2 teams mentioned above…would most certainly choose to be stuck in an elevator with a Falcons fan and certainly not a Saints fan…b/c you’re awful. Actually, they would probably go with ole Hannibal. That is all.
dawgnation1
November 11th, 2012
6:05 pm
DAT is a city that’s above water and DAT is a team that has a winning record!!!! Hahahaha!!!!!! Loser saints
take it from me.
November 11th, 2012
6:06 pm
The Falcons have no anwser on defence for Jimmy Graham,he beats them every time they play! you would think they could plan for him since they play each other 2 time a year.
take it from me.
November 11th, 2012
6:06 pm
The Falcons have no anwser on defence for Jimmy Graham,he beats them every time they play! you would think they could plan for him since they play each other 2 time a year.
vesaversa
November 11th, 2012
6:06 pm
Well it wasn’t like the Falcons went down there and didn’t give it their all. It was a great game . We Can’t win them all . But i see the Falcons weakness today and it’s Micheal Turner . I like the little man Roger coming out of back field to catch some balls . But i watch time and time again the Falcons giving Turnner the ball on third down and he lose yards .Tunner have gotten slower every year we need a bigger faster runner back . And as for the defense they would play better with a younger defensiveness end crew the guys that they have now are way to small and slow getting to the QB if they get there at all . There are a few more tweets on defense the Falcons need adjusting in the secondary . They wasn’t playing as aggressive as they were against the Eagles .I like this team and anything can happen but beside Ryan ,White and the rest of the receiving crew we are a few great players away from becoming a real elite team .Go Falcons
Saints R.E.A.M.
November 11th, 2012
6:08 pm
Really not surprised by the outcome. We own Mike Smith. If Sean Payton was coaching we would have the division and your dirty turds would be firing Smitty. Next game mike smith will go for it on every short yardage play….he will panic as usual. Saints are in his head.
playmeortrademe
November 11th, 2012
6:10 pm
I hope this is not the same ol’,same ol’ for another Atlanta pro team. You know, look brilliant for most or all of a season, but you know there are weaknesses that eventually are exposed in the playoffs. It’s been this way since our pro teams decided to become competitive in the 80’s. There have been probably a dozen or more of these types of teams in Atlanta in the last 32 years, starting with the infamous 1980 Falcons. I don’t remember watching the 1980 Falcons or 82 Braves, but I remember seeing the rest of them. Even 1995 and 1998 seem a little blemished, with 1995 happening in a strike-shortened year against the Indians, of all teams. and I think we all know why the 1998 SB run seems a little, uh, dirty. If this team gets exposed again in the playoffs by the 49ers or Bears, it will be disappointing, but you can almost see it coming like it is inevitable.
vesaversa
November 11th, 2012
6:12 pm
Michael Turner have gotten slow he should be traded or cut .But can we please get some young Defensive Ends that can pressure the QB. The SEC is full of them.
hiramsaint
November 11th, 2012
6:12 pm
H MIKEY M -AS USUAL BETTER CHECK YOUR STATS – IT WAS MORE THAN 1 POINT BUT THEN AGAIN-1POINT WOULD HAVE BEEN ENUF
Didn't really care until now
November 11th, 2012
6:13 pm
>If you’ve been a life long NO resident and not even a sports fan, why are you here?Was it really an “epic” fail??? Really?? Epic would imply that he would have predicted them to win by 30 ,and then they lost by 30. <
Well, no. The writer predicted Atlanta wouldn't lose today.
They lost.
Today.
I'm willing to concede that my use of the word 'epic' was a bit of hyperbole, but the prediction was a total failure.
Atlanta lost today.
And I really don't care. Hell, I'll even wish them better luck in their next game.
Go Falcons! (who are y'all playing next week?)
But the animosity I'm seeing here directed at a city and it's people by Atlanta fans, over a football game, is positively insane.
I listen to my sportsfan friends comments the days after games. I can't remember any of them ever saying ugly stuff about the home town of the opposing team, or any of it's citizens.
Even when Payton Manning snubbed Brees after the Superbowl that we won, I didn't hear any hateful or mean comments about the people who actually live in whatever town Manning's team comes from.
Nola James
November 11th, 2012
6:13 pm
What a bunch of sore losers – to paraphrase James Carville – No one is going to an Atlanta-style restaurant to listen to Atlanta music. Your city is the same suburban hell as Houston and the Saints own y’all.
vesaversa
November 11th, 2012
6:15 pm
Micheal Turner have to go.
hiramsaint
November 11th, 2012
6:15 pm
matty melt threw it 52 times againt the worst Dand still lost to superior qb’ing coaching and fans
hiramsaint
November 11th, 2012
6:19 pm
only 46 rushing yards against the leagues worst rushing D- thats gotta suck
DawgNole
November 11th, 2012
6:20 pm
NORRIS CHUCK
November 11th, 2012
4:13 pm
Also, my final thought…i would rather lose now than go out like the Patriots did a few years ago.
____________________
I would rather WIN now than go out like the Patriots did a few years ago.
Esquire
November 11th, 2012
6:20 pm
Mr. Bradley, you gonna let me in on the fun or am I still in purgatory?
Didn't really care until now
November 11th, 2012
6:20 pm
@dawgnation
>If you’ve been a life long NO resident and not even a sports fan, why are you here?<
There was a link to this article on the Google News page and I clicked on it.