The Axe Falls On Three Falcons As Cut Season Begins

by Dave Choate on Aug 31, 2009 8:00 AM EDT in Falcons News

If you heard the unmistakable sound of a man being forcefully parted from his roster spot on Sunday, then pour out a little Falcohol. Three good men will not be making the team after this weekend.

The mighty Russian axe of one Comrade Thomas Dimitroff and Mike Smith(roff) fell on Jason Jefferson, Tywain Myles and Robert Shiver. While Shiver, a long snapper, was almost guaranteed to lose his spot sometime this off-season and Tywain Myles hadn't registered as more than a blip with an awesome name, Jefferson is still a surprise. I really thought he was movin' on up after some time in the season and a solid enough pre-season, but a quick look at the new unofficial depth chart leaves us with five defensive tackles, with Peria Jerry and Jonathan Babineaux starting, Trey Lewsi and Thomas Johnson backing up, Vance Walker third string and a couple of guys who could probably play DT in a pinch.

Personally, I'd be pretty happy with that. The team may have cut Jefferson because he was clearly not in that top five, but it's still surprising to see it done so soon. After all, the Falcons have until Saturday to trim the roster down to 53 in a bloody frenzy of a purge, so color me surprised a little. Jefferson's solid enough that he'll catch on elsewhere, I'm sure, and this is a team that clearly knows what it's doing. To recap: Dave the Falconer is surprised by timing, but no the decision. I'm sure you're all glad you know that now.

Use this post as a discussion about likely (or even certain) future cuts. Without picking names at this point, I can't see the Falcons carrying as many corners or defensive backs as those listed on the current depth chart, and they definitely won't be carrying that many receivers. I'm sure you can think of many more positions where the sickle of communism will fall.

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Chris Houston should be next.

Go get another corner. Now they are wishing that they had figured out a way to keep Foxworth.

Life is a garden. Dig it!

by Hardcore Falcon on Aug 31, 2009 8:14 AM EDT reply actions

Oh, come on

Foxworth wasn’t that much better than Houston last year, and they didn’t have to pay $28 Million to keep Houston. They made the right choice to let Foxworth leave.

by orang3b on Aug 31, 2009 10:09 AM EDT up reply actions

Hey

based on what I see, I would cut all CB’s to have one foxworth. I think grimes will be ok but based on that game Houston needs to go.

Life is a garden. Dig it!

by Hardcore Falcon on Aug 31, 2009 2:48 PM EDT up reply actions

a huge part of me wants Chris McCallister (6'1)

but I think his price tag is what is steering the franchise away (as far as I know he has no off the field issues and really, his veteran presence and former Baltimore background would be great in the locker room).

I know the team still claims we are “rebuilding” – but I say that is hogwash. You don’t sign a future HoF TE that has about 2-3 more good years left in him if you aren’t planning on WINNING NOW. We have the cap space, sign Chris McCallister to a 1 year deal and let him be there for the development process of Owens and Middelton while being the reliable and tall aid to Grimes super athletic self on the other side.

know what you believe in and why you believe in it

by MentallyMIA on Aug 31, 2009 3:24 PM EDT up reply actions

I dunno

He’s 32. He’s only started 13 games (played in 14) TOTAL the last 2 seasons. And here’s a quote from Rotoworld (August 14th):

According to Brad Biggs, free agent CB Chris McAlister (knee) is two weeks away from being fully ready. The 32-year-old missed the final 10 games of last season due to knee surgery and is just finishing up his rehab. Expect him to have some workouts soon, but McAlister isn’t going to help anyone. He can’t run anymore.

by orang3b on Aug 31, 2009 3:50 PM EDT up reply actions

dang...

I’ll take your I dunno and convert it to a definitely not. Thanks for the news.

Any other options?

know what you believe in and why you believe in it

by MentallyMIA on Aug 31, 2009 5:11 PM EDT up reply actions

I don't think

There’s anybody freely available (i.e., a Free Agent) that would really be an upgrade. If a move is made, I would think it would have to be some sort of trade. But what do I know? Heck, Foxworth had been demoted from Nickle Corner in Denver, but comes here and becomes a star… Dimitroff may have another miracle up his sleeve.

by orang3b on Aug 31, 2009 5:31 PM EDT up reply actions

I think at the money he'll be making

Foxworth probably isn’t worth it. If we could have gotten him to give us the A-Town discount, then I would’ve been fully on board.

I think the coaching staff is going to get another corner, one way or the other. I’m just not sure who is available…

by Dave Choate on Aug 31, 2009 10:14 AM EDT up reply actions

Last position to receive a cut will be QB.

Shock and JPW will likely have their chance to make their case this Thursday.

I believe we’ll see even more cuts this week, probably in the receiving and corner backing corps.

You have opinions. Share them.

by Adam Schultz on Aug 31, 2009 8:25 AM EDT reply actions

Shockley to be cut

"This is America, if we can’t self-righteously look down on others and blame them for our faults, the commies win."-----Cormican on Bleeding Green Nation w/r/t fans overreacting to the Eagles signing of Michael Vick

by Jesse28 on Aug 31, 2009 9:34 AM EDT up reply actions

Unfortunately, I agree

Unless he pulls a miracle out of his rear, I think he’ll be gone. But then again he could go 10/11 for 135 yards with 2 tds, and 3 carries for 45 yards with 1 td while JPW’s head explodes on the field. You never know.

"There were far too many penalties on both sides of the football," said Coach Smith. "Some things that we'll have to address and I can assure you we will."

by Pregame with Pabst on Aug 31, 2009 10:38 AM EDT up reply actions

Are you trying to tell me that D.J. Shockley....

….is a Scanner?

by Dave Choate on Aug 31, 2009 10:41 AM EDT up reply actions

if he was

I think the league would be missing a lot of defensive lineman (and backup QBs, lol)

know what you believe in and why you believe in it

by MentallyMIA on Aug 31, 2009 2:48 PM EDT up reply actions

Jamaal Anderson?

Not that he will, but he should. I know he is a high pick to give up on, but if you aren’t helping your hurting. He definitely isn’t helping in my opinion.

by FLA_Falcon on Aug 31, 2009 8:31 AM EDT via mobile reply actions

Serious question

I read through the Game Thread (I didn’t get to watch the game until yesterday), and there were several negative comments towards Anderson. Did I miss something? I thought he was in the backfield on several plays – actually, without watching it again and charting it, I’d guess he had more penetration than any D-Lineman besides Peria Jerry… Did I mis-read his number or something?

by orang3b on Aug 31, 2009 10:14 AM EDT up reply actions

I didnt see hardly any pressure vs the Chargers

But Abe had 16.5 sacks in limited time last year. Anderson has 2 sacks in 2 full years. His backup, Chauncey davis, had 4 sacks last year coming off the bench. I’m willing to give Anderson this year but if he doesn’t improve greatly I want him gone. Windows for championships don’t stay open forever and our pass rush and coverage are the only things holding us back this year. We need to improve both areas ASAP

by FLA_Falcon on Aug 31, 2009 10:28 AM EDT via mobile up reply actions

I'd say

If the pass rush AND coverage aren’t up to snuff, then the “window for championships” is not open yet…

And I understand what happened last year – I was asking specifically about the Charger game. He didn’t get much “pressure” neccissarily, because the couple times I saw him get penetration, Volek (or whoever was in) would just slide a few steps to the left (he was coming in off RT), where there was a nice pocket waiting for him. I’ll just watch it again to see if my eyes were fooling me…

by orang3b on Aug 31, 2009 2:23 PM EDT up reply actions

Like Mentally MIA said...

We wouldn’t trade for a future HOF TE at the end of his career if we weren’t planning on winning now. I’m not saying Davis is the answer, I’m just saying he did more as a backup than Jamaal did as a starter.

Yes defense is a team effort, pressure and coverage go hand in hand but look at our DL…Abraham is a pass rushing monster, Babineaux is a pretty good DT, Jerry is a rookie, Anderson flat out sucks, Sidbury is a project to replace Abe, Lewis is coming off an injury, Vance walker is a 7th round pick, never heard of Johnson before this preseason but he looks pretty impressive for a nobody, and Biermann is an undersized pass rusher that hustles his @** off every play he is in. Our DBs are pretty decent in coverage they just can’t hang with the bigger WRs.

Anderson isn’t the ONLY problem he is just the BIGGEST problem.

by FLA_Falcon on Aug 31, 2009 5:30 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions

He's a big problem

Considering the investment the team made in him (high draft choice + money). But I thought he and Chauncey were getting fairly similar playing time last year (especially at the end of the year, even though Anderson was the “starter”), and they had very similar production… check my Defensive Line analysis for some of their numbers. If I’m way off about the playing time, then I’m wrong about Anderson…

by orang3b on Aug 31, 2009 5:40 PM EDT up reply actions

Remember when Dahl beat out Forney?

Not exactly a parallel situation, and that happened under a different regime, but we have to remember that Anderson was not the pick of this administration. I think it is clear Chauncey Davis is better at the end position, and Anderson has not been seeing a lot of snaps at DT in preseason action. My feeling is that Anderson lucks into rotation of Abraham/Davis/Biermann/Sidbury simply because there are too many concerns about Abraham’s health and there is such little depth at DT. However, if a veteran presence is cut from another roster (see: Tollefson/Kiwanuka in New York), I think the Falcons could drop Anderson to acquire more known talent.

by FalconCrazie on Aug 31, 2009 1:23 PM EDT up reply actions

Hold on

It’s clear that Chauncey is better at the end position?? I don’t think so. 1) Anderson is still listed as the starter on the depth chart (for whatever that means, probably nothing), and 2) his advanced numbers are not any better than Anderson’s (I’m going to post the Analysis of D-Line later today… hopefully).

by orang3b on Aug 31, 2009 2:26 PM EDT up reply actions

someone else said this

but i’ll repeat it. the thought is, Anderson will not be cut because of the large cap hit the team would have to take.

Some people think football is a matter of life and death. I don't like that attitude. I can assure them it is much more serious than that. - Bill Shankly

by armchair quarterback on Aug 31, 2009 8:41 PM EDT up reply actions

What??!

What chance is there of Kiwanuka being cut? That seems like a horrible move if the Giants make it!

by blackertai on Sep 1, 2009 12:06 AM EDT up reply actions

Hahaha...Smith(roff)

I don’t know who’s getting cut, but it might depend on whether or not we pick up any new players off of waivers. I couldn’t believe how we played those third downs the other night. We may need some help, otherwise our offense will have to score a touchdown on every single drive.

P.S. Lofton is the shazz.

by TomQ on Aug 31, 2009 8:52 AM EDT reply actions

WR and CB will be really interesting

I think there will be some real battles happening this week at the Wide Receiver and Cornerback positions. At WR, my feeling is White, Jenkins and Finneran are safe. I would expect the other two (I can’t imagine they would carry more than 5 WR) battles to come down to Booker v. Ferguson for one spot and Weems v. Williams v. Bergeron for the other. In those battles, I would probably favor Booker and Weems, and I could see the team having a sixth wideout in Bergeron/Ferguson, but I don’t know that there is space elsewhere on the roster to accommodate that move.

When it comes to corner, I think there is safety in youth. Chris Houston, Chris Owens, and Chevis Jackson seem to be shoe-ins. It looks like Brent Grimes will be on the roster (starting even), though I feel like he is remarkably uninspiring. I do wonder if Von Hutchins will make the roster as a combo CB/S, which might leave space for William Middleton.

Certainly there are battles at all positions, but these two stand out to me.

by FalconCrazie on Aug 31, 2009 9:32 AM EDT reply actions 2 recs

While we might disagree on the specific people making the roster

Very good thoughts. I rec’d it.

by Dave Choate on Aug 31, 2009 10:14 AM EDT up reply actions

Yeah, I Rec'd it too

The reason I’m not so sure about Booker, though: he would be the 4th receiver, right? Does he play special teams at all? I sure haven’t noticed him. Ferguson, on the other hand, has been in on several special teams tackles.

I think if Hutchins is gonna stick, it might be as the 4th Safety. I know he’s still listed as a 3rd string CB (with Antoine Harris as the #2 FS), but I keep hearing he’s been practicing almost exclusively at Safety. Actually, I’m not really sure what to think about him…

by orang3b on Aug 31, 2009 10:25 AM EDT up reply actions

Brent Grimes does not have to inspire you.

by Debilah on Aug 31, 2009 12:15 PM EDT up reply actions

No he doesn't...

…but he does need to show some coverage ability. It should be noted that, as Dan Fouts said Saturday night, Vincent Jackson is a rising star at receiver for the Chargers. However, it just seemed like, in man-on-man coverage, Grimes was grossly overmatched. I’m not questioning Grimes athletic ability (see: corner blitz for a sack), I am just concerned that, even with wonderful leaping ability, he will be exposed against taller receivers who know where the sideline is and have decent hands.

I would think Booker could actually fit in as the 3rd receiver. Did you notice how Ryan was hitting him with some frequency on those 5-7 yard slants? IMO, Weems, Ferguson and Bergeron are the players who have the best shot to fit in the “slot” position, though I wouldn’t be swelling with confidence on account of any of the three.

by FalconCrazie on Aug 31, 2009 1:14 PM EDT up reply actions

I do think this was somewhat of a rare occurence

Phillip Rivers is well-known for throwing arcing passes and we were going against one of the tallest groups of receivers in the league.

by Dave Choate on Aug 31, 2009 1:33 PM EDT up reply actions

one of the tallest group of receivers indeed

and I posted this list (a smaller version of it anyways – haha, no pun intended) before about where Grimes place could easily be against some elite and up-and-coming WRs who are under 6’

Miami’s Tedd Ginn (5’11)
Carolina’s Steve Smith (5’9)
New England’s Wes Welker (5’9)
both the San Francisco starting WRs are listed at 6’ (Isaac Bruce and Josh Morgan)
Chicago’s Devin Hester (5’11)
New Orleans Devery Henderson (5’11)
Washington’s Santana Moss AND Antwaan Randle El are listed 5’10
New York Giant’s Steve Smith (5’11)
Phillidelphia’s DeSean Jackson (5’10) with Kevin Curtis and Jeremy Maclin both at 6’
New York Jet’s Cotchery, Stuckey and Clowney are only 6’
Buffalo’s Lee Evans (5’10).

I don’t think the height thing is an issue with Dallas being the only other team we have to face this season loaded with giants at receiver.

Not just to mention his athletic advantage against people that aren’t 6 inches taller than him, but he is also smart on play reading, he comes up and makes tackles on run plays and he got our only sack on Phillip Rivers for crying out loud.

know what you believe in and why you believe in it

by MentallyMIA on Aug 31, 2009 3:18 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs

Cuts

I’m interested to see who they keep out of Thomas Brown or Jason Snelling. After watching Brown return Kicks, i’m kind leaning in his favor. Although Snelling was decent playing for Norwood after his world go rocked.

"There were far too many penalties on both sides of the football," said Coach Smith. "Some things that we'll have to address and I can assure you we will."

by Pregame with Pabst on Aug 31, 2009 10:42 AM EDT reply actions

I think we keep both

Snelling has looked good preseason and I think has played FB some in the past. Brown is more slippery and can return kicks. I say let Verron Haynes go and keep only 1 FB.

by zooker on Aug 31, 2009 12:07 PM EDT up reply actions

You mean two FB?

Ogie Mugvehliiekhjkhuihuinkfekl…. is the starting FB.

by Jesse28 on Aug 31, 2009 12:58 PM EDT up reply actions

Ogie Mugvehliiekhjkhuihuinkfekl?

Ovie Mughelli is a ghost. Seriously, I rarely ever even notice he’s on the field. Expensive ghost at that but what I’m told he blocks well. I just need to put a big neon sign on him telling me he’s in the game.

by Jon Cushman on Aug 31, 2009 11:43 PM EDT up reply actions

You don't want your FB being noticed though

If you notice your FB in teh game, then that probably means he is missing his blocks and your run plays are geting blown up at the line. Ovie Mughelli is one of the most underrated FB’s in the league.

I was just stating that we would keep two FB’s on the roster, Mughelli and Snelling.

by Jesse28 on Sep 1, 2009 7:34 AM EDT up reply actions

Try to watch him in the opener...

I love watching his collisions with middle LBs. Watch what he does to Channing Crowder vs Miami…

I have six locks on my door all in a row. When I go out, I only lock every other one. I figure no matter how long somebody stands there picking the locks, they are always locking three.

Elayne Boosler

by NaGaNole on Sep 1, 2009 9:15 AM EDT up reply actions

Agreed.

Haynes should be cut. He’s a veteran presence in the RB corps, but so is Turner. And Mughelli. And Norwood, a bit.

Keep:
HB: Turner, Norwood, Brown FB: Mughelli, Snelling.

by BigManChili on Aug 31, 2009 9:26 PM EDT up reply actions

Guess I could have been clearer

I’m saying keep Ovie, have Snelling available in case he goes down and let Haynes go.

In other UGA roster news, I think Tony Gilbert has made a strong case to stick

by zooker on Aug 31, 2009 1:06 PM EDT reply actions

He really has

He’s a Mike Smith favorite to begin with an offers a ton of value on special teams, so he was likely to stick anyways. He may get more snaps than I ever thought, though.

by Dave Choate on Aug 31, 2009 1:33 PM EDT up reply actions

So we going to get another Louisville Slot Receiver that wears #83? Deion Branch?

by Jon Cushman on Aug 31, 2009 11:40 PM EDT reply actions

Ovie Mughelli is underrated??

Isn’t he the highest paid FB in the NFL? If not I’m pretty sure he was at the time of his signing.

He is a beast. An old school lead blocking FB. Not a H-Back type of guy like seemingly everyone else is using.

Redman and Mughelli are the only good things to come from the Petrino fiasco…well in a way Smith and Dimitroff are too. Everyone got mad about him leaving but honestly he was in over his head and he knew it. Where would we be if he had stuck around? Probably picking ahead of the lions this past April.

by FLA_Falcon on Sep 1, 2009 8:47 AM EDT via mobile reply actions

Underrated in that he doesn't get tons of public recognition

Sure, the coaches and organization know his worth and that’s why he is getting paid, but that’s completely different than being underrated in the public mainstream.

As for Petrino, I don’t think people were upset about him leaving at all. It was the way in which he did it, which was simply cowardly, not to mention completely unprofessional, disrespectful, and disgraceful.

by Jesse28 on Sep 1, 2009 1:23 PM EDT up reply actions

Houston...

Why is Chris Houston getting so much love? To me, he has been awful for the past 2 seasons. And as bad as he is, why doesn’t Jackson get more of a look with the first string? This guy is garbage. And last week wasn’t the first time I seen him trailing a reciever because he got burnt.

And please, I am sick of him prancing around like “Deion” after he makes an OK play. He is truly the most overrated player on this roster.

"If I disagree with you, it's because you are wrong..."

by Tybeaux on Sep 1, 2009 4:24 PM EDT reply actions