Once again, this team has gotten our hopes up, only to let us down. As seems to be the norm around these parts.

That's all I'm saying before the jump. 1000+ words of team roast comes afterwards. Jump with me.

Continue reading this post »

So a deal is close!

But it's not.

Talk about complete public ambivalence. 

Ladies and gentlemen, according to the NFL and its many pundits, reporters, and writers, we are on the edge of a possible labor savior in a new CBA. Just two weeks ago, a resolution was claimed to be two weeks away. Two weeks later, DeMaurice Smith emerges from behind the rusty steel door of the negotiation bunker and grumbles "We're not close."

What the hell? Every sports site and non-sports site is reporting we're mega-super-razor-thin close to getting a new CBA ratified and then the former president and current representative of the players' interests just up and shouts "NOPE." Even a player close to the negotiations agreed a deal was close just a couple of weeks ago.

What gives? Why are the media and NFL administrator championing "SUCCESS!" while Smith is grumbling about failure? Who's confused? I see a lot of blank stares out there in the footbawwwwwlsphere.

So I offer this suggestion to both the NFL and its players and player reps: shut up. Just stop talking to the press. Ixnay alktingtay. Be quiet. Hush up. Zip it. Seal your lips. 

It's gotten to the point of being akin to a school yard verbal scuffle at this point. Every time the NFL or the media pumps rays of sunshine and dreams of Roddy White catching a 100yard bomb from Matty Ice up our bums, Smith comes back and tosses in thoughts of a football-less Fall. It's like two kids arguing if something's so-and-so or not.

NFL: "IS SO!" Smith: "IS NOT!" NFL: "IS SO!" Smith: "IS NOT!"

Just shut up already. I don't give a crap if you think you're close or not. Just shut up and get back to work. Media, stop asking them if a deal is close or not. Stop taking random positive or negative comments from insiders. Just focus on Charlie Sheen or something.

The NFL fans have dealt with this for long enough. Don't get back to us until you've got news that is worthy of a headline. You know, a headline that might read "New CBA Ratified. NFL Season Back On." I'll take that over "NFL Says Labor Deal Close" and "Smith Says Labor Deal Not So Close" anyday. Don't give us any hyperbole, positive or negative. No tweets. No quotes. No bylines. No captions.

Just give us results.

The Comrade says yes. The Smitty says no. And then Dave did this.

The Choatester and I go back. We've been tackling these Falcons together since 09 and it's been fun; but my broseph just crossed a line. I know, I know. We're coming off three straight winning seasons, two playoff appearances, and are likely headed for even more success simply by the structure of the team as it is now. While these feelings are new to longtime Falcons devotees like Dave and me, they shouldn't cloud our long-standing understanding of what (to borrow Jason Kirk's coined phrase) Falconliness truly is.

There are things this maturing, talented, potential-laden team needs; a more effective pass rush, more consistent offensive potency, tighter pass coverage. 

There are things this workhorse, self-made, under-the-radar team already has; leadership, drive, ambition, talent, strong work ethic, a fan-oriented off-the-field persona, a devoted owner, a surly-but-dedicated coach, an intelligent and game-savvy general manager.

There are also things that this on-the-cusp team do not need, chief among them locker-room drama, manafactured or grown. This is a team that does not focus or hinge on one player's style, talent, or ability anymore (Sanders, Vick, anyone?). This is truly a team and was rebuilt from the ground up in 2008 with the specific goal of avoiding the exact thing(s) that tore it apart in early 2007. This Falcons team is a new and improved model, unlike any other before it, blazing a new trail and ringing in a new era of Atlanta professional football.

Continue reading this post »

So the NFL Players Association has decertified and its representatives, which includes three of the best QBs in the league, have filed an anti-trust lawsuit against the NFL to try to prevent the owners from giving them the grown up equivalent of a kindergarten "timeout." The owners then turned right around and gave them that timeout. Both sides are saying the other side is being unreasonable. Both sides say they have the fan's best interests at heart.

Really? Let's examine exactly what this argument is about and how invested the fans are in the topics the two sides are willing to delay or cancel the 2011 NFL season for.

Continue reading this post »

Really, guys and girls? Really?

It's an uphill battle to convince people to take the Falcons' fanbase seriously, and you're walking into a machine gun nest with a neon vest that says SHOOT ME. You can make the argument that there are deeply passionate Falcons fans and a lot of them, which you and I know to be true, but then you get the Georgia Dome walkouts

And then there's Facebook, where the Falcons are 15,000 Likes behind the Tennessee Titans and just above the Carolina Panthers. The Panthers! The bile is rising in my throat just thinking that the Falcons can barely beat out the worst team in the NFL for the cellar of these rankings, especially after the team just went 13-3 and are firmly in the midst of building a winning culture in Atlanta.

I know it's just Facebook and all, but man.

So by now you've undoubtedly heard about the "firestorm"  kicked off by Trent Dilfer's recent comments, and the link there will take you to Dave Cariello's excellent recap over at Canal Street Chronicles.

For those that did miss it, Pat Yasinskas ran down Dilfer's comments:

You’ll see and hear it in the video and I’ll just quickly summarize what Dilfer said. He pretty strongly said the Atlanta Falcons are not the best team in the NFL. He went on to compare them to the 2003 Kansas City Chiefs, who went 13-3 in the regular season, but promptly got bounced in the playoffs. Then, to put the star on the top of the tree, Dilfer went on to say the Falcons are not indestructible at home. As a matter of fact, Dilfer said he thinks the New Orleans Saints can come into the Georgia Dome on Monday night and win, and he wasn’t done there. Dilfer also said the Saints could come back to the Georgia Dome in the playoffs and knock off the Falcons.

Predictably, that kicked off a sharply worded retort from Roddy White, who called the Saints the Ain'ts. That then kicked off a long string of replies from Saints players, who equally predictably pointed to their Super Bowl rings and took great umbrage. At this point, both teams are probably all fired up, which should at the very least make Monday night's game a little more interesting.

But make no mistake: This whole situation is incredibly stupid.

Continue reading this post »

If you don't like laughing at the writers of The Falcoholic or don't care about fantasy football, this isn't the post for you. Shoo!

If you do care, though, we've now knocked off five weeks of football and some clear trends are emerging in our CBS Sports fantasy league, which includes some of our staff and talented readers. Let's take a quick run through the division leaders and where The Falcoholic's writers rank, shall we?

The Bartkowskis Division

Leader: Auto Win Button, 4-0-1

Auto Win Button is led by our own Caleb Rutherford, who is destroying the league at the moment. He leads all teams in scoring by almost 50 points, on the backs of Peyton Manning, Jahvid Best and LeSean McCoy.

Writer Rank: WAKKA Flacco Flame, 1-4-0

Jason Kirk really hates his fantasy team. Based on that fact alone, it's little surprise that he's scored less points than anyone else in the league. Chad Ochocinco continues to be the anchor of crap that ties his ship of suck to the shores of loss island....if you get what I'm saying.

The Humphreys Division

Leaders: PAPredators and Silent Rage, both 3-2-0

Readers mc29012 and redfalcons2 are tied for the division lead in this competitive race. PAPredators are outscoring Silent Rage 445 to 366, but the mute angry dudes are also leading the league in defense, which in fantasy is not a real thing. We'll see if redfalcon can keep that good karma coming.

Writer Rank: Gunless Gunfighters, 2-2-1

Adam Schultz has experienced the dreaded fantasy tie, but it's left him a mere half game out of first. If Frank Gore ever gets it going and Tom Brady can survive life without Randy Moss, he may make a run here.

The Nobises Division

Leader: #2 is Better than #1, 4-1-0

Reader Jeff S won the whole thing last year and he continues to outsmart us on a weekly basis. He's got Aaron Rodgers, Arian Foster and LaDanian Tomlinson, so it's little wonder he's got the lead in perhaps the most competitive division in the whole league.

Writer Rank: Falcoholic Reunion Tour, 2-3-0

Yes, that's me. After starting the season 0-3 because Ray Rice and Shonn Greene were playing like chumps, I've managed to string together a couple of respectable weeks.....but I'm still in the basement. Thank God for Hakeem Nicks.

CBSSports.com is an SB Nation partner and paying sponsor of the SB Nation football communities.This post is one of a series of sponsor endorsed posts relating to the CBSSports.com Fantasy Football Commissioner League.

The minds boggles.

Those of you who are unfamiliar with my position on Jason Webster might wonder why it's such a big deal that the team is kicking the tires on the veteran. Those of you who have  read the site for a long time (hi, TO Falcon!) know exactly where I stand with our old friend Webster. To me, he's an iconic representation of how inept previous coaching regimes were.

When you remove that, though, what's the harm in just looking at a guy?

Continue reading this post »