Begin at the beginning and go on till you come to the news roundup; and then stop.

Yes, it's time for us to re-visit the halcyon days of news gathering, where your fearless bravely goes into the Interwebs and collects bits and pieces of delicious data for you to peruse. Don't thank me too effusively, though. I'm only one man. We'll start this off today with a guy whose name isn't mentioned too often around here.

• My stance on Michael Vick hasn't really wavered. He's done his time in prison, he's entitled to seek his fortunes as a football player and as a human being, and I wish him well wherever he may go. One thing I don't consider him at this point is an Atlanta Falcon, and it's clear that the Atlanta Falcons don't think so either. While rumors swirl about the quarterback being traded to San Fransisco or getting cut from the roster altogether, he's going back before a judge regarding a bankruptcy plan. His legal and financial issues are going to haunt him well beyond the point that he catches on with a team, methinks.
• One more crime-related item and we'll move along. Quinn Ojinnaka isn't commenting on the charge of battery against him. I'm hoping this was a relatively minor incident that will be worked out swiftly, because the Falcons still need the offensive line depth. It's easy to forget that Ojinnaka is only 25. Hope for a just and speedy resolution. 
• Erik Coleman is apparently a wizened old man. The veteran safety, who as I recall fought in the War of 1812 alongside a reincarnated, steam-powered George Washington, is now the oldest starter in the secondary and one of the oldest guys back there period. A genuinely good guy, Coleman should be able to lead by example, and it's going to take one hell of an effort to pry him out of his starting role. And for those of you wondering, yes, I did minor in history in college.
• Hat tip to reader TO falcon, who noted that the Georgia Dome has a new scoreboard. It's always cool to get new gadgets--especially during a relatively slow news cycle--but unless it fires laser beams at Drew Brees, it's not going to change my life too much.
• The Tampa Bay Bucs are installing one of them zone blocking schemes, which you may remember in some form or another from the days of Alex Gibbs and Kynan Forney playing offensive guard weighing in at 150 pounds. I guess the nice thing to say here would be would be good luck, but I'm hoping it fails miserably and the entire team decides they'd rather make a living sailing the world on an actual pirate ship.
  
  What? I'm a Falcons fan. What do you want from me?
• Speaking of big changes on the defensive end of things, the Carolina Panthers are rolling with Ron Meeks, he of Indianapolis Colts fame (?). If the lessons of the past teach us anything--and judging by the way I live my life, they don't--it's that Meeks is going to swing a more complicated stick at us in the secondary and rely a little less on blitzing. Months away from the season, I think I can live with that.
• In the least surprising news since scientists determined that people read news that doesn't contradict their point of view, New Orleans Saints linebacker Dan Morgan is retiring. An allegedly supremely talented guy, Morgan's career was crippled by injuries and concussions, with each off-season bringing some peppy pieces about how this would be the year. I have to wish him well, as does Canal Street Chronicles, who says it's hard to lose production you didn't have in the first place.
  

Got a news item I missed? Submit it at davethefalconer@yahoo.com.