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October 2008
D. Hall regains his Swag
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Everybody saw DeAngelo Hall get worked out in the season opener against Denver. Fantasy players all across the land picked up Eddie Royal the next day after his big day.
Since a lot has happened in Raider land. Lane Kiffin was shown the door. My man Tom Cable, who with the Falcons in 2006 and knows Hall, was named the interim coach and told Hall to chill out and play his game. Hall is over his hand, toe and foot injuries and said he’s regained his swagger.
Hey, all cornerbacks must have their Swag. One that’s as colorful as D. Hall is required to have his Swag.
It was a sad day for the local media when D. Hall was traded to the Raiders for a second round pick in 2008 and a fifth round pick in 2009. The second round pick was used to help the Falcons move up and draft Sam Baker.
D. Hall marched to his own beat and that probably shied the new regime away from opening up the purse strings for the sometimes loose cannon. But the Raiders don’t have a problem with sometimes individualistic players and gave Hall a seven-year, $70 million deal.
Hall is jacked up for Sunday’s game.
Should the Falcons throw Hall’s way much on Sunday? Who’s the real Hall in your book, the one Eddie Royal worked out? Or the D. Hall who’s gone to two Pro Bowls? Or the D. Hall who got the penalties against Steve Smith in a tight game?
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Seasoned veteran Gandy returns
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Wayne Gandy didn’t want his career to end with him being carted off the field.
He got the call from the Falcons on Sunday night and came in for a workout on Tuesday.
He was signed around 6:30 a.m. today to provide some depth for the offensive line in the wake of Sam Baker’s hip injury.
Gandy, the former Auburn Tiger who has lived in Buckhead since 1995, is now in his 15th season and well get to end his career on his terms. He said he just wants to one day be able to take off his jersey and “That’s it.”
Good for ol’ Wayne, one of the nicest guys in the National Football League.
He’s been medically cleared for the last eight weeks and was looking to get back into the league after tearing his ACL at Tennessee last season on Oct. 7.
He has instant locker room cred. It’s just a matter of time before he gets back into game shape.
Another good think for him is that he’s played for offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey before in Pittsburgh. He said some of the playbook is the same and some of it is foreign.
Ready to welcome back Gandy? Worried about Baker’s hip? Does this move help the offensive line going forward?
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Wild week expected in Flowery Branch
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
All was quiet in the F.B. for most of the season.
The Falcons were off to a 4-2 start. Matt Ryan was playing like a seasoned veteran. The veterans were buying into the new regime’s style. The rose petals were smelling good.
But this week promises the first fireworks of the season.
First up, is what’s going to happen to Grady Jackson? Is the big fella going to get suspended for four games? Who’s going to play nose tackle in his potential absence?
Lawyer Milloy is probably going to hear from league office on Thursday or Friday for his hit on L.J. Smith. His pocket, already a little lighter this season after being fined for his DUI episode, might become $25,000 lighter this week. OUCH!
Wonder if referee Jerome Boger, of Conyers and a former quarterback at Morehouse, will have to admit his crew botched the Adam Jennings punt return touch/no touch? Boger and his crew came to the F.B. this summer and provided the media with a session on the rule changes for the season. Seems like a real nice guy. Wonder if they’ll get assigned to the Falcons next training camp.
All this and lest we forget it’s D. HALL week! I’m sure the former Falcon cornerback will have some things to say about his trade to the Raiders and other topics of interests.
But the most pressing issue will be how are the Falcons going to replace Big Grady if he goes down in the water pill/masking agent scandal? Should Milloy, one of the game’s hardest hitters with a stellar reputation, be fined for doing his job? What about D. HALL and the Raiders, can the Falcons take them to improve to 5-3? Should Matt Ryan throw a bunch of balls at Hall and try to catch him slipping?
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Philly Blitz Master praises Ryan
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Got to always check out the other team’s newspapers to see what they are saying about the Falcons. It’s part of the background that goes along with preparing for what might happen on Sunday.
Ray Parillo of The Philadelphia Inquirer has a pretty interesting article today with Eagles defensive coordinator Jim “the Blitz Master” Johnson. (Don’t know how to put the link in here for you but you can go to Philly.Com, bounce around and find it).
Johnson was the linebackers coach in Seattle during Peyton Manning’s rookie year. After studying Ryan for Sunday’s game, Johnson concludes that Ryan is ahead of where Manning was at this stage of his rookie season.
I’d been writing that Manning was 3-13 as a rookie and Ryan is already 4-2. Manning, who wasn’t devoid of weapons as he had Marshall Faulk, was 1-5 after his first six games. It’s interesting that Johnson and went that extra step in the comparison.
Since becoming the Eagles defensive coordinator, Johnson is 8-3 while confusing rookie quarterbacks. Pittsburgh’s Ben Roethlisberger (2004), Tampa Bay’s Bruce Gradkowski (2006) and Tennessee’s Vince Young (2006) have posted wins over Johnson’s defenses. The list of victims include Cade McNown, David Carr, Patrick Ramsey, Chad Hutchinson, Eli Manning, Ryan Fitzpatrick, John Beck and Trent Edwards.
The Eagles note that like when Roethlisberger was a rookie quarterback with the Steelers, Ryan has been helped immensely by Michael Turner and the Falcons’ running game, which ranks second in the league.
Is it asking too much of Ryan to handle the Eagles’ blitz scheme in just his seventh game? Does Michael Turner and the offensive line need a strong running game to help Ryan? When teams blitz they are exposing themselves to quick passes. Can Roddy White beat Asante Samuel on some quick stuff? Can the Falcons really climb to 5-2?
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Grimes’ homecoming on hold
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Imagine how cornerback Brent Grimes feels.
Grimes overcame all of the odds to become a NFL starter and when his team is about to play in his hometown, he’s injured.
Got to be a major bummer.
The former undrafted free agent from Shippensburg played his high school football and basketball at Northeast High in Philadelphia.
Grimes slammed his knee on the turf at the Georgia Dome during Chicago’s fourth quarter touchdown drive. He suffered what the coach Mike Smith said was a bruised knee, but he hasn’t practice since.
Smith is hoping he returns for today’s practice. (We’ll update his return or non-return after practice). Grimes promised earlier in the week that he’d be ready to go.
After not getting any Division I offers, going to Shippensburg University as a running back and then converting to defensive back, getting cut by the Falcons, playing in NFL Europe, making the practice squad and then finally the team, you know that Grimes is going to do all that he can to play in this game.
But if Grimes is not able to go, Domonique Foxworth would step into his spot. Foxworth was acquired before the start of the season from Denver. At some point the coaches have to figure out what he can do because the former Maryland Terp becomes an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season.
Coaches keep saying the Falcons system is so much different than Denver’s and Foxworth (a pretty smart customer) needed time to digest things. Well six weeks and a bye week is plenty of time. Let’s see some Foxworth!
Whatever the case may be, Foxworth or Grimes will be on the spot against Philly QB Donovan McNabb, who’s healthy again and dissecting pass defenses.
The Eagles pass offense (5th in the league, 263.5 yards) against the Falcons pass defense (26th, 231.7) is the glaring statistical mismatch. Rookie receiver DeSean Jackson appears to be legit. Throw in the return of Brian Westbrook, Reggie Brown and Kevin Curtis and it could be a long day for the secondary against Andy Reid’s pass first West Coast offense.
Do you hope that Grimes gets to make his homecoming trip and play? Ready to see some Foxworth, but not at Grimes’ expense? McNabb is looking pretty good, how do the Falcons stop him? Should the Falcons steal a page from the Eagles and blitz more in order to help out the pass defense?
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Great bye week in rearview mirror
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Had to get by bye-week blog legs back under me.
I’m back and ready for the final 10 games. Don’t know how you made it through the bye weekend, but I hung out with some old friends in Washington, D. C., went to a college game and to see the Redskins and Browns on Sunday.
I have a newfound respect for Washington running back Clinton Portis. He ran the ball hard all day long. Sitting down in section 216 with fans, I didn’t have access to the pressroom stats. (Beer was $8 and a double cheeseburger was $13!!!) But I thought Portis had about 110 yards only to find out he’d shredded the Browns for a buck 75. He had the late fumble, but Braylon Edwards bailed him out with four drops and misread/wrong route in the fourth quarter.
Watching Portis kind of let you know how the Falcons must attack the Eagles. Portis went for 145 rushing against the Eagles in Washington’s 23-17 victory on Oct. 5.
The Falcons will have to spring Michael “The Burner” Turner and Jerious Norwood loose on the ground. Turner ran for 54 yards on 25 carries against the Bears. The Eagles give up 91.5 rushing yards per game (ninth in the league), but Portis and Frank Gore have gone over 100-yards in their last two games.
If the ground game can get rolling, then the Eagles will not be able to dial up all of those exotic blitzes. They are second in the league with 21 sacks and will send everybody and the ball boy at the quarterback.
How are feeling about this one? Can the Falcons run on the Eagles? Can the Falcons pick apart their blitzes with quick passes to slot receiver Harry Douglas and running back Jerious Norwood on some screen passes? Worried about Matt Ryan making a return to his hometown?
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How do you plan to spend the bye week?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Falcons have exceeded early season expectations and are off this week.
How to plan to fill your time on Sunday?
Watch the New Orleans at Carolina game? Or Seattle at Tampa Bay?
Cut the grass?
Where is Vick going to land in the NFL?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
My good friend Pat Yasinskas has a nice piece on ESPN.com with Falcons owner Arthur Blank repeating what he’s told former colleague Steve Wyche and columnist Jeff Schultz several times about the franchise moving on after Michael Vick’s incarceration.
The $73 million contract he bestowed on Matt Ryan closed that door. Now with Ryan’s fine play, Vick’s really in Blank’s rear view mirror.
However, Blank told Yasinskas that he’ll support for Vick’s return to the NFL… you know, just not in the ATL. That’s new stuff.
Vick’s technically still a Falcon, who’s indefinitely suspended. His path back to the NFL is littered with obstacles.
Vick will have to be released by the Falcons at some salary cap-friendly point. His salary situation, which is in a legal dispute, will have to be settled. The salary cap issue is huge as the Falcons will have 13 unrestricted free agents after this season.
The State charges in Virginia must be resolved via adjudication or plea agreement, with no additional jail time.
The final thing to happen would be clearance for NFL Commissioner Roger “The Sheriff” Goodell.
Vick’s projected released date is July 20, 2009 by the Federal Bureau of Prisons. If everything lines up right or there is an earlier released, he could be ready to hit the field next season.
Since the Falcons have already taken themselves out of the running, who are some of the teams that might be interested in Vick?
Look at the teams with major quarterback issues and then you have to determine if they’ll take the public relations risk in order to improve their team.
I’m watching the Detroit situation? Kitna’s about done there. The loyal fan base is hungry for a winner. They’ll finally have new management next season.
What about a Raiders reunion with offensive coordinator Greg Knapp? As long as Al Davis is alive anything can happen out there.
Where do you think Vick will land after he’s paid his debt to society?
Big win can catapult Falcons back to playoffs
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Come on now, you had the Falcons going 4-2.
You knew Matt Ryan was a legitimate NFL quarterback.
You never really wanted Glenn Dorsey.
You have plans for the playoff party and reservations for Tampa Bay.
Well maybe not.
But one thing is clear, the Falcons season - no matter what happens the rest of the way - has marked the return of pro football to Georgia after a year hiatus. Through six games, it’s safe to conclude that they are going to play and compete each week.
Too many times last season, you know they didn’t stand a chance entering the games. Things could be going well and then a sack would come or a real bad interception. You don’t get that sense of doom with this team.
Even after cornerback Chris Houston left Rashied Davis cross through his zone, while they were playing quarters, without clinging to him like static guard, you sensed something could still happen. Norwood could bust another return. A reverse or something. There was still time. Not a lot of time, but some time. 11 seconds.
With coach Mike Smith’s team, you know they are going to fight and are going to play the whole game. They went toe-to-toe with the Bears. Lost in the mix was that Michael Turner was still running hard on his 25th carry, despite the hits he was taking.
For right now, the Falcons (4-2) are running with the big boys in the NFC: the Giants (4-0), Tampa Bay (4-2), Arizona (4-2), Washington (4-2), Carolina (4-2) and Dallas (4-2).
In the second group of teams are Green Bay (3-3), New Orleans (3-3), Chicago (3-3), Philadelphia (3-3) and Minnesota (3-3).
The bottom of the NFC includes San Francisco (2-4), Seattle (1-4), St. Louis (1-4) and Detroit (0-5).
After the bye week, the Falcons play at Philadelphia and at Oakland to reach the halfway point. Can they keep it going? Can they find a red zone offense? Will the secondary tighten things up? Is it too early to start thinking about the P-word? (You know, playoffs!)
Defense has to get after Orton
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Falcons offensive line, which played well last week, will be front and center against Chicago’s rugged defensive front.
The Bears are getting back Tommie Harris this week after he served his one-game suspension. Alex Brown is beast, too.
“They are very salty,” Falcons offensive coach Paul Boudreau said. “As far as their front goes, they are very similar to Tampa and Carolina. They are going to stop the run and get you in those third down situations and try to get some sacks. We’re going to have to make our money on first and second down for sure.”
This might be the game that the Falcons have to see how far Matt Ryan has progressed. They’ll need to pass on first down instead of waiting to third down. Instead of running Michael Turner to set up the passing game, Ryan must be efficient passing in order to open things up for The Burner.
Also, the Bears know that Roddy White gets most of the passes. So the other receivers, Michael Jenkins, Harry Douglas and Brian Finneran will be on the spot. This would be a good game to have a pass catching tight end. Big Ben Hartsock, the pride of Chillicothe, Ohio, may need to be a factor in the passing game. Just a couple of seam routes to keep the Cover Two safeties honest.
The Falcons defense need flip the table on the Bears and get after quarterback Kyle Orton. He’s been hot over his last two games, but the jury is still out on him. The secondary can’t keep giving up 300 yards passing.
So how do you see this match-up? Can the Falcons rattle Orton? Will the Burner be able to get loose against his hometown team? Is Ryan ready to pass the Falcons to victory? Oh yeah, there’s that little issue of the receivers not dropping passes, too. Can they hold onto the passes?
Should be an old-school, knock down, drag out game.
Falcons must refocus, brace for Bears
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
In the NFL, Wednesdays and Thursdays are the major preparation days for the teams. So after getting Monday off for the victory over the Green Bay Packers, the Falcons spring back into action today.
Coach Mike Smith is hoping they celebrated the win, got it out of their system and are now ready to deal with a rugged and tenacious Chicago Bears squad.
We’ll get to a couple of things this week like how can the secondary get better? What’s up with the 3-3-5 nickel/dime look? What’s Justin Blalock’s role in the improved line play? How to attack Brian Urlacher and Lance Briggs?
Got a bunch of things down on the notepad to chase.
But the beginning and end of the Falcons’ early season success starts with running back Michael Turner. His blend of speed and toughness has powered the offense, helped the young quarterback get his feet wet and has made the line look better.
He’s got a lot of his league-leading 543 yards on sheer determination.
Another indicator for the Falcons is their fast starts. They’ve owned the first quarter, outscoring teams, 48-14. The 48 points is tops in the NFL and a credit to offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey and his staff.
The defense has helped out in the first quarter by shutting down the opposition’s rushing attack. Detroit ran for 13 yards, Tampa bay 2, Kansas City 14, Carolina 16 and Green Bay 7 in the first quarter.
This gets us to the major issue against the Bears’ defense, which is led by linebackers Brian Urlacher and Lance Briggs. The Bears only give up 74.2 yards rushing a game, fourth overall in the league. When the Burner hasn’t been able to get loose - Tampa Bay and Carolina - the Falcons have lost.
Who’s going to step up and give The Burner some help like Roddy White did last week? The rookie has proved he’ll get the ball out under duress, but who’s going to catch it other than White (there were two more third down drops in the Green Bay game, after six drops against Carolina)? Will the secondary be able to cover Devin Hester? Will somebody step up and give John Abraham some help in the pass rush?
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Falcons playing power ball
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Falcons are off to a 3-2 start because they have played some good old-fashioned power football.
All of the folks in Lambeau Field knew the Falcons had to run the ball with under two minutes to play. The Packers knew the Falcons were going to run it.
Even the ghost of Vince Lombardi himself knew the Falcons were going to run the football.
Green Bay defensive coordinator Bob Sanders put 10 players near the line of scrimmage. Even with the extra manpower, the Packers still could not stop a determined Michael Turner and the offensive line from carving out 11 yards on three plays.
Turner powered his way behind good blocks from Sam Baker and Todd McClure to pick up the first down with 1:42 left.
The Packers were punched in the mouth by a team they were expected to kick dirt on.
It must be noted that the Packers were without three defensive starters in safety Atari Bigby, cornerback Al Harris and defensive lineman Cullen Jenkins. Also, A.J. Hawk, who got beat by Justin Peelle on a touchdown pass, was playing with a groin injury.
On Roddy White’s 22-yard touchdown pass, for some reason the Packers had their top cornerback Charles Woodson on rookie Harry Douglas. Will Blackmon was left in man coverage on White and got roasted.
In short, this was not the Packers team that went 13-3 last year and went to the NFC Championship game. They repeatedly helped the Falcons out with bone-headed penalties, including a holding call that took a field goal off the scoreboard.
But when the Packers tried to give the Falcons this game, they made enough plays to take it.
Last week in Carolina, the Panthers were stumbling about, but the Falcons couldn’t come up with the plays to take the game.
Against the Packers, they made enough plays, overcame a torching of their secondary for 313 yards passing, and then ran the ball to close out the game.
The Packers’ nine penalties for 97 yards were also helpful. The Falcons only had two penalties for 15 yards.
Now, with the Falcons sitting 3-2 and waiting for a 3-2 Chicago team, do you have to recalibrate your projections?
Did you have the Falcons 4-2 going into the bye week?
How do the Falcons get things tightened up in the secondary?
Which receiver is going to step up and become a factor when teams try to take Roddy White out of the passing game?
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Falcons face ghosts of Lambeau Field
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
For most of the 1990s, I covered the Green Bay Packers for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel with colleagues Bob McGinn and Tom Silverstein.
The memories still flow. Saw Sterling Sharpe’s last game when he inexplicably went to the field at old Milwaukee County Stadium with a career-ending neck injury.
Was at training camp as Ron Wolf trotted through a parade of NFL quarterbacks, of course Brett Favre, Mark Brunell, Ty Detmer, Aaron Brooks and even a young Kurt Warner. Met all of the assistants - Andy Reid, Steve Mariucci, Jon Gruden, Ray Rhodes and Mike McCarthy - before they become head coaches. My favorite was offensive coordinator Sherman Lewis, he’d diagram West Coast offense plays for me and tell me how they worked or were supposed to work.
Got to see Reggie White toss around linemen at practice when Mike Holmgren wasn’t mad at the media and kicked us out of practice. I think that’s why I still migrate to the one-on-one lineman drills at Falcons practice.
Got to cover the Super Bowl victory over the Patriots in New Orleans and the still stunning Super Bowl loss to the Denver Broncos in San Diego.
So this isn’t a football pilgrimage for me. I’m just glad it’s not December. My challenge will be not to eat too many brats in the press box.
But for a young Falcons team that’s looked shaky on the road, this is a pilgrimage to one of the great football Meccas in the nation. The truth is, despite all of the Packer injuries, the Falcons may not be ready to pull off this road win.
They might be taken aback by coming through the tunnel and looking up to see the names of all the Packer greats — Lombardi, Starr, Taylor, Davis, Wood, Lofton, White, Hornung and Nitschke - on the stadium façade.
Whether if the Falcons win or not, I suspect the fans of the Packers, perhaps the most knowledgeable group in the league, are going to like the Falcons style of play. The Falcons have played hard, mean and nasty under Mike Smith. The Packers’ fans will respect that.
A rookie quarterback in Lambeau Field doesn’t equal success. Michael Turner must run the ball with authority and hope the Falcons can deploy their “Shock and Awe” strategy on the road. Against Detroit and Kansas City they jumped out to big leads of 21 and 24 points to shock their opponents and put the local crowds in awe of the young team.
Now, if they can do that in Green Bay, the original Titletown, U.S.A., they may wake up some of the ghosts of Lambeau Field.
What do you, think about the game? Do the Falcons have a shot? Can they put some licks on Aaron Rodgers if he plays? How’s the secondary going to shut down Greg Jennings and Donald Driver after last week?
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The Green Bay curse of Samkon Gado
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
There have been several intervening events, but the Falcons have not been the same franchise since their last meeting with Green Bay during the 2005 season.
In the season after their trip to the NFC title game, the Falcons were off to a 6-2 start when the Packers came to the Georgia Dome on Nov. 13, 2005.
The Packers were hurting. Running backs Ahman Green and Najeh Davenport were injured and then Coach Mike Sherman had to start rookie running back Samkon Gado.
Gado, who was making his first NFL start, rushed for 103 yards and score three touchdowns, sending the Falcons fortunes spiraling.
The Falcons closed out the season 8-8. The 2006 season started out fine as they jumped out to a 5-2. But the Falcons dropped consecutive games to Detroit and Cleveland on their way to a 7-9 mark and the end of the Jim Mora’s tenure.
We don’t need to review what happened next starting with the magic water bottle through Bobby Petrino’s exit.
But since the day Gado rampaged through the Falcons run defense, the franchise has gone 14-29 and have not made it back to the playoffs.
The Packers are banged up again and could have a backup running back ready for the Falcons. Stephenson High’s Kregg Lumpkin is one of the backups who could play if Ryan Grant’s hamstring doesn’t improve.
What do the Falcons have to do to turn around their fortunes? They handed the Packers their first playoff loss at Lambeau Field in 2003. Is the historic stadium the place where they post their first road win in the Thomas Dimitroff-Mike Smith era?
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