Who'd of thunk it? When the season began, people everywhere were dissing the Dirty Birds saying they would only win 3 or 4 games, or that they had given away all their "good" players. Truth be told, they had given away all their troublesome, individual Vick supporters, with the exception of Roddy White, who, with the addition of an incredible young QB whom we will discuss in moments, kept his mouth shut throughout the season.
Nobody thought it possible then, not even me. I don't think anybody believes it's even possible now, but the Atlanta Falcons (Yes, those Atlanta Falcons) are going to the playoffs. Is this the same Atlanta Falcons team that went 4-12 last year? Is this the same Atlanta Falcons team who's franchise quarterback was imprisoned and who's coach walked out on them to go coach a mediocre Arkansas Razorbacks team? The answer, my friends, is no. That team is no more. That was the team, if that's what you wish to call them, who blew easy games against bad opponents, keeping them out of playoff contention for years.
This is, however, the same Atlanta Falcons team who many predicted would only win 4 games, at best. Sporting News went so far as to say that the Falcons would only have 1 win all season. Who are these people? Did they not know that the Atlanta Falcons were now, finally becoming a football "team"? No, they did not. According to them, the Falcons had no "stars", and thus had no chance at ever becoming anything.
But newly hired head coach Mike Smith, and new GM Thomas Dimitroff felt differently. The Falcons cut any and all trouble makers, including Deangelo Hall, who was cut by the Raiders mid way through the season. They drafted rookie quarterback Matt Ryan, much to my dismay I will admit. I personally believed that the Falcons had 2 or 3 quarterbacks that could easily have been their starter. But the more I heard about this Ryan kid, the more I liked him. I was one of the many people here in Atlanta who hoped they would make him the starter the first week of the season.
Back to the offseason. The Atlanta Falcons made the most brilliant move in franchise history by picking up Michael Turner off waivers early in the offseason. They also picked up Dominique Foxworth just before the season started, and we all know how that turned out. Foxworth was a major part of the defense all season, and broke up some major plays that could've affected the outcome of the season for the Falcons.
Along came the regular season. At no point did the Falcons ever fall under the .500 mark, nor did they lose back-to-back games. In fact, they haven't even seen .500 since week 4, after getting clobbered by the Carolina Panthers. Clearly, as time went on, Matt Ryan got better and better learning on the job. Michael Turner and Jerious Norwood, along with Michael Jenkins, Brian Finneran, Harry Douglas, and of course, Roddy White helped the learning process flow along a lot more smoothly than anyone had ever anticipated. And for once, the Falcons didn't blow a bunch of games they should have won. In fact, they actually stole a couple from teams such as Tampa Bay, Chicago, Carolina, San Diego, Green Bay, and of course, Minnesota.
Because of all this, the Atlanta Falcons are in the playoffs, while teams such as Dallas, Tampa Bay, Chicago, and Philadelphia struggle for their playoff lives. And with a win, and some help from New Orleans, the Atlanta Falcons may just wind up with a division title, as well as a first-round bye. But at this very moment, none of that matters. Right now, the city of Atlanta is laughing in the faces of Sporting News, and anyone else that said we could go nowhere. News flash sportswriters: The Atlanta Falcons are in the playoffs. Stick that in your pipe and smoke it.
Keywords: atlanta falcons, nfl football
