The Falcoholic - Where Ending A Streak Is Just The Beginning

Falcons Schedule

Miami The Phinsider	Sun 09/13	W 19 - 7
Carolina Cat Scratch Reader	Sun 09/20	W 28 - 20
@ New England Pats Pulpit	Sun 09/27	L 10 - 26
@ San Francisco Niners Nation	Sun 10/11	W 45 - 10
Chicago Windy City Gridiron	Sun 10/18	W 21 - 14
@ Dallas Blogging The Boys	Sun 10/25	L 21 - 37
@ New Orleans Canal Street Chronicles	Mon 11/02	L 27 - 35
Washington Hogs Haven	Sun 11/08	W 31 - 17
@ Carolina Cat Scratch Reader	Sun 11/15	L 19 - 28
@ New York Giants Big Blue View	Sun 11/22	L 31 - 34
Tampa Bay Buc 'Em	Sun 11/29	W 20 - 17
Philadelphia Bleeding Green Nation	Sun 12/06	L 7 - 34
New Orleans Canal Street Chronicles	Sun 12/13	L 23 - 26
@ New York Jets Gang Green Nation	Sun 12/20	W 10 - 7
Buffalo Buffalo Rumblings	Sun 12/27	W 31 - 3
@ Tampa Bay Buc 'Em	Sun 01/03	W 20 - 10

Atlanta Falcons Injuries

Probable

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Michael Koenen	head	01/03/2010
Eric Weems	head	01/03/2010
Curtis Lofton	shoulder	01/03/2010
Matt Ryan	toe	01/03/2010

Questionable

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Jonathan Babineaux	shoulder	01/03/2010
Matt Bryant	hamstring	01/03/2010
Sam Baker	elbow	01/03/2010

Out (IR / Out / Suspended / Physically unvailable)

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Brian Finneran	knee	12/14/2009
Antoine Harris	knee	12/21/2009
Chris Houston	hamstring	12/29/2009
Charlie Peprah	knee	09/05/2009
Harvey Dahl	ankle	12/29/2009
Tony Gilbert	hamstring	12/08/2009
Brian Williams	knee	10/20/2009
Harry Douglas	knee	08/07/2009
Peria Jerry	knee	09/21/2009
William Moore	hamstring	10/27/2009
Christopher Owens	ankle	12/29/2009

Atlanta Falcons searching for broadcast personality

The hunt is on...for a new Falcons broadcast personality! The team's front office staff will be taking demo reel submissions between now and March 12th. If you think you look good on cam and have the broadcast chops to prove it, follow the link above to learn how to apply.

about 10 hours ago tlozwarlock 2 comments 0 recs

Hat Contest winner #2 - cm011

by tlozwarlock on Feb 8, 2010 11:42 AM EST in Editorial Comment 4 comments

Atlanta native Clint M. wins a hard hat with this entry:

"Unlike many others in the Atlanta-area, I am a fan of all Atlanta sports teams. No matter how terrible they are doing (Joey Harrington starting), I always have cheered them on. Braves/Falcons/Hawks/Thrashers. As a kid growing up, I became a fan of the Falcons in 1997 when I moved to the suburbs of Atlanta from south Georgia. At recess all of my classmates would play football. I didn't really know how to since I grew up on baseball. Once they taught me I fell in love with it.

The following season happened to be the greatest season ever for the Atlanta Falcons. I did my best to watch every game possible that season except for when it conflicted with my duties as being a kid. You know, taking naps, running around outside. Breaking stuff. The most memorable game to me was the upset of the Vikings in overtime. Thank you Morten Andersen. Before the Super Bowl I remember being at a Winn-Dixie and I BEGGED my parents to buy me the NFC Championship shirt. It was a large, and me being in first grade at the time made it awkward looking but I didn't care. I think I wore it twice that week alone.

Ever since that season the Falcons have given me dreams and nightmares. I thought with Vick we would be saved. He came close. But then nightmares would kick in with him getting indicted. At thanksgiving I was cutting the turkey and was really tempted to go for my wrists. Friends of mine that had been Falcons fans suddenly became fans of the Patriots or Colts. I've even seen some Bucs jerseys. Never have I thought about abandoning the Falcons.

One of my current roommates in college was at the Eagles/Falcons game and he was telling how how they were cheering Vick on in the dome. I was furious that he was cheering for someone on ANOTHER team. It also made me sad that there are still many bandwagon fans around here.

Now matter how bad the Falcons may ever be, I will always be a fan, and when they go to the Super Bowl in February of 2011, I will be standing there yelling at the top of my lungs for them."

4 comments | 0 recs

New Orleans Saints Win The Super Bowl: Bring On 2010 Season

by Dave the Falconer on Feb 8, 2010 1:07 AM EST in Falcons News Comment 59 comments

So there were the New Orleans Saints last night, celebrating a Super Bowl win. I came into the night fully intent on rooting for the Saints, knowing they had a dedicated fanbase that has long suffered in much the same miserable fashion as the Falcons. I don't care for the Colts and I had a styrofoam cooler of beer, trays of nachos and wings and a couple of slices of pizza to fortify me.

And then, somewhere along the way, I lost it.

This Super Bowl was a lot less enjoyable than most because I ended up simply not wanting either team to win it. I kept rooting for the Colts to come back and at least make a game of it, probably because the full magnitude of what was happening finally sunk in. The Bucs and Saints now have Super Bowl wins and the Falcons don't. That's more than a little sobering. While I wish the team no ill will—they earned every victory this year—it's kind of a relief to go from rooting for them in any way, shape or form and returning to gentle loathing. It's like taking a relaxing bath...of hatred.

But at the end of the day, you just have to say to hell with it. There's a clean slate come this September, and the Falcons are going to be better. They're going to be in the running for a division title. The Saints will have a big target on their back and as strong a squad as they truly are, we're going to come out swinging. In 2010, I think we'll take at least one game. Maybe two. Who knows? The only thing the Atlanta Falcons control is their own destiny, and I'm brimming with optimism right now.

So be polite to Saints fans, congratulate them but don't let this title get to you. 2010 could very well be the year of the Falcon, and if it is, you'll hope for the same.

Oh, and where'd you all go for the Super Bowl last night? Enjoy any of the commercials (probably not, seeing as they were all pretty terrible)? Drink a lot of beer? Share.

59 comments | 0 recs | Share

Super Bowl XLIV Open Thread: Colts Versus Saints

by Dave the Falconer on Feb 7, 2010 10:00 AM EST in Events Comment 74 comments

More photos » J Pat Carter - AP

What the hell is the Uper Bowl? (AP Photo/J Pat Carter)

Browse more photos »

This is it, my friends. The culmination of the football season.

Obviously, I'd prefer the Falcons were one of the two teams still alive. The New Orleans Saints and Indianapolis Colts are not teams I particularly love, but it is the Super Bowl, and that is a time to be alive, a time to drink and eat to the point of spontaneous combustion, and a time to watch some football. This is your last chance for months, so I'd urge you to enjoy it.

So gather here to talk Super Bowl plans, swap some recipes and keep one another company during the game. Discuss who you're rooting for. Just don't kill each other, and enjoy the game.

Oh, and if you're so inclined, visit Canal Street Chronicles and Stampede Blue to talk Saints and Colts, respectively. Just don't be a troll. SB Nation has its boots on the ground, as well.

74 comments | 0 recs | Share

Hat Contest Winner #1 - TO Falcon

by tlozwarlock on Feb 5, 2010 9:36 AM EST in Events Comment 26 comments

The first winner of the Defend the Dome Hard Hat contest is TO falcon! He hails all the way from that glorious land of "futbol," fish and chip shops, and Indian takeaway; the UK! Here's why he's a Falcon fan:

"Being from the UK, its not an easy feat becoming tangled up in the web of hope and despair that is, the life of an Atlanta Falcons fan. My first exposure to the sport through a friend (Skins fan) who I often played Madden with. Being a teenage kid at the time, anything that made me different and helped forge my identity was welcomed (remember its the UK, I was 1 of 2 people I knew who liked the sport). The thirst for more drove me to actually play for a local youth team and I started cruising the web for something other than porn, and found other fans to converse with - like you guys!

However, I was yet to pick a team. It wasn't until September, 10 2006 when I watched my now beloved, Atlanta Falcons, beat the Carolina Panthers 20-6 at the Bank of America Stadium, North Carolina. That game I fell in love with the team asVick wowed me, Dunn gained 132 yards rushing and Abraham dominated their O-Line. From that day, I was a UK Falc. Knowing myself as a 16/17 year old kid at the time, I knew full well that it could have just been a phase.

But, 4 years down the line i'm more committed than ever. Having seen 6 NFL teams play live at the International Series in London, i'm saving for that all important first trip to the Dome! I don't think some American fans understand how difficult it can be following the Falcons from here. The TV coverage has improved vastly, however, its dominated by the Cowboys, Patriots and now the Saints. I have to cruise the internet (I do this a lot...) for links to streams and watch on a tiny netbook until the link ultimately breaks and the search is on again. For Monday Night Football, this means watching from 1am to 4am GMT and getting up for work 4 hours later.Then, starved of coverage, I find myself reading any online content I can find to get my fix of Falcon news. This doesn't even factor in the hundreds of dollars i've spent on shipping merchandise over to the UK so that I can show my support.

Why do I do this I hear you ask. Why? Just like love, you dont have a choice. You may not like it/them, but you know you love it/them. The early disappointments only served to endear me to the team. Just like when you first fall in love, that snoring is so beautiful. Going through the Petrino era felt like a baptism of fire that left me forged close to the heart. I felt more desperate for the Falcons to break a virtually meaningless back to back streak more than I want my own British teams to win anything. American football does this to a person. 16 games a year instead of 7,000,000 like Baseball (sorry Dave). Every one matters, therefore as a fan, you feel like your opinion and voice matters.

Why do I support Atlanta Falcons? Because i'm in Love. I'm in love with a girl thats unreliable, unrelenting, bad for my health and causes me nothing but stress and heartache. But would I change her for any other girl in the league? Hell no. I'm in love with the Atlanta Falcons. And shes cheating on me with all of you but I don't care...as long as I can watch you."

26 comments | 0 recs

Football Outsiders' Super Bowl XLIV Preview

Aaron Schatz and Bill Barnwell analyze the matchups for the big game, using their DVOA stat and game charting results. They conclude this is the closest Super Bowl pairing since FO launched in 2003.

Also, Pro Football Focus has done several interesting matchup posts, like Saints Coverage vs Colts Receivers, and Saints Offensive Line vs Colts Defensive Line. These positional breakdowns are done Dr. Z style (many more on their side-bar).

3 days ago orang3b 2 comments 0 recs

Off-Topic Thursday Thread

by Dave the Falconer on Feb 4, 2010 8:00 AM EST in Editorial Comment 71 comments

That's right, this it just a random discussion thread. As of 2 a.m. the Falcons hadn't gone out and signed Steve Bartkowski to a new contract or anything, so I decided to give all y'all a chance to talk....well, whatever you want. Within reason. If I come back and find this thread on fire, I'm going to be pissed.

So take it away. I understand there's some kind of football game this weekend? You might want to talk about that. Or, if you're like me, you're pretty excited about the new Gorillaz album dropping in about a month. The world is your oyster.

Go!

71 comments | 0 recs