Falcons Not In Cost-Cutting Mode

You could be forgiven for doing what Alex Welch of Bleacher Report did recently, which was to take a look at the Falcons' team salaries and wonder aloud why the team appears to be cutting costs.You could be forgiven, but you wouldn't be right in your assumption.

There are two ways to look at Erik Coleman getting the axe dropped on him this week. One is to see that, hear the reports of Jamaal Anderson possibly facing the executioner and assume that the Falcons are stingy with their money, given their position as 25th in the league in player salaries. The other is to take it as a sign that the Falcons aren't willing to overpay players who aren't as valuable as they once were, and as a sign that the team is well-positioned to spend big in 2011, should they desire to do so.

It's not like the team has avoided locking up key players. They gave Roddy White a big extension, ponied up plenty for Dunta Robinson and Michael Turner, and have shown a willingness to keep valuable pieces of the team's core around. If they like the current free agent class, they'll be able to bid big, and they could conceivably keep all three free agent members of the offensive line without running aground on Salary Cap Island. I don't think a little financial flexibility is a bad thing.

Weigh in, if you would.