2008 NFL Season Preview: #32 Atlanta Falcons

Team: Atlanta Falcons
Division: NFC South
Last Year's Record: 4-12
Head Coach: Mike Smith

Schedule: Wk 1 Detroit
Wk 2 @ Tampa Bay
Wk 3 Kansas City
Wk 4 @Carolina
Wk 5 @ Green Bay
Wk 6 Chicago
Wk 7 BYE
Wk 8 @ Philadelphia
Wk 9 @ Oakland
Wk 10 New Orleans
Wk 11 Denver
Wk 12 Carolina
Wk 13 @ San Diego
Wk 14 @ New Orleans
Wk 15 Tampa Bay
Wk 16 @ Minnesota
Wk 17 St. Louis

Key Losses: Byron Leftwich QB
Warrick Dunn RB
Alge Crumpler TE
DeAngelo Hall CB

Key Additions: Matt Ryan QB(rookie)
Michael Turner RB
Joe Horn WR
Thomas Brown RB (rookie from UGA)
Jason Elam K


Breakdown of the offense: Chris Redman is projected as the starter right now at QB, which raises the question if your offense is run by a chicken with its head cut off, does the chicken still have to wear a helmet. Expect this team to run the ball a lot. Head Coach Mike Smith used to be the defensive coordinator for Jacksonville, whose offense relied heavily on the running tandem of Fred Taylor and Maurice Jones-Drew. Smith will be looking for Michael Turner, formerly LT's backup in San Diego, and Jerious Norwood to play the tag team role at RB.

Breakdown of the defense: Picture the Jacksonville defense of the last few years that occassionally roughed up the Colts just enough for everyone to pick the Jaguars as an AFC darkhorse. Now, picture that same defense without the talent and you've got the Atlanta Falcons. Keith Brooking is old, John Abraham plays old, and I didn't even know Lawyer Milloy was still in the league. Okay, the John Abraham comment might have been a low blow; he did have ten sacks last year, but nothing about this defense screams they will be able to carry this team to anything significant.
Summary Breakdown of the Special Teams: Jason Elam could be the top fantasy player for the Falcons this year. He uses his leg to kick the ball.

Position Grades: QB---D: There are four QB's on the roster. Two of them we know stink, Chris Redman and Joey Harrington. Matt Ryan is the rookie and the future of the franchise. Personally, I'm hoping DJ Shockley somehow becomes the savior of the franchise, which will allow all Georgia Bulldog fans to recall Quincy Carter favorably again.

RB---C: Michael Turner was great as a backup in San Diego, but was that him or the system? The depth here is decent, but as a fantasy owner, I feel like experts say that every year about Atlanta RB's and the only one that ever panned out was Warrick Dunn, who is no longer on the team.

Wr/TE---C-: I probably should give this group a D, but I won't because of Roddy White, who caught 1,202 yards last year and 6 TDs. He bumps this group up to a C-, not because of his play, but because he gives all football fans the chance to remember Rowdy Roddy Piper every Sunday. Also, if you see Joe Horn use his cellphone this year, he's calling a taxi to get him out of Atlanta.

O-Line---C-: I honestly don't know what grade to give the Atlanta Falcons O-line. I teach high school English. If these guys want to write essays for me, I'll grade those. The left side of the line has a total of four years experience. The center and the right side of the line have a total of 29 years of NFL experience. If the sacks come, I'm guessing they come from the left side. Of course, the left side of the line does weigh more. I'll write John Hollinger to see if he can figure out an equation for this.

D-line---D-: Have fun, John Abraham.


LBs---C-: Two of the three starters are from the state of Georgia. Keith Brooking is the leader of this unit and the defense as a whole, but he's probably on his way out; however, he is surrounded by youth, including Curits Lofton from Oklahoma, who a lot of Atlanta message boards seem to be high on. Anyway, youth means they can always improve, right?

DBs---D-: Looking at their projected starters, they intercepted a total of three passes last year and forced a total of two fumbles. I'm not saying these statistics are the only way to judge the performance of a secondary, but don't these numbers suggest that there really aren't any playmakers lining up for the Falcolns in this unit?

Season Outlook: I see them winning four games at most. They could maybe beat KC at home, take a game from one of the NFC North teams, and then possibly steal a couple at home from within their own division. Personally, I think they should bring back Jerry Glanville's belt buckle for conversational purposes, that thing casts a bigger shadow on the franchise than either the Vick saga or the Petrino betrayal. I mean just look at the following highlights from Glanville's teams:

Langston's Thoughts: The Vick hangover is still being felt, but with new coach Mike Smith the team will finally start their turnaround. Expect another top 5 pick and a few more rebuilding years before they can contend.

Berndon's Thoughts: On the plus side, if they're having a flag football team in whatever hole Michael Vick's making license plates in, then they should dominate. However, that does nothing to help the franchise that holds his rights. Too many questions on both sides of the ball, coupled with an inexperienced head coach, will leave the Falcolns in the NFC South's basement.