07-29-2010 @ 22:36
Confident Falcons have a shot this season
Having owned the Falcons for eight fluctuating seasons, Arthur Blank has come to a reasoned conclusion: It's easier to predict success in business than football. "Once we got things rolling at Home Depot, we never had an undue sense of urgency about opening our next store because we knew once we go there, that we'd be successful," he said. "It doesn't work that way in sports. It's a game, and leagues like the NFL are designed for parity. At HD, if a guy breaks his leg, sometimes he still shows up for work. In football, his season is over." Given that backdrop, as well as experiencing everything from spineless and self-immolating head coaches to a derailed former quarterback, it would be understandable if Blank were gun-shy about making predictions. But when asked if he believed the 2010 Falcons were a playoff team, Blank responded like a self-made billionaire who had just been asked if he believed in capitalism. Atlanta Falcons - Sport - NFL - National Football League - Arthur Blank

07-29-2010 @ 14:19
Falcons first-round LB signs deal
The Falcons have agreed on a 5-year deal with their first-round pick, Sean Weatherspoon. Atlanta Falcons - Linebacker - NFL - Sports - Football

07-29-2010 @ 14:19
Falcons sign LB Weatherspoon to deal
The Falcons have agreed on a 5-year deal with their first-round pick, Sean Weatherspoon. Atlanta Falcons - Linebacker - NFL - Sports - Football

07-29-2010 @ 11:21
Falcons agree to terms with Weatherspoon
First-round draft pick Sean Weatherspoon has reported for training camp after reaching an agreement on a contract with the Atlanta Falcons. Atlanta Falcons - NFL - Sports - Sean Weatherspoon - Football

07-29-2010 @ 11:17
Falcons aiming high in Year 3 of Matt Ryan era
The Atlanta Falcons are aiming high in Year 3 of the Matt Ryan era. Atlanta Falcons - Matt Ryan - NFL - Sport - Football

07-27-2010 @ 09:36
NFL pre-camp previews: NFC West
Without Warner, Boldin, Rolle and Dansby, can the Cardinals keep hold of the NFC West? NFC West - NFL - National Football League - Football - Sports

07-26-2010 @ 16:11
Buzz: Latest from NFL training camps
Buzz: Latest news from around NFL training camps. NFL - Sports - Football - American - Training camp

07-24-2010 @ 21:07
Presented By:

07-24-2010 @ 21:07
STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL
The waters are relatively calm heading into training camp. All that is left is for the Falcons to sign first-round draft pick Sean Weatherspoon. The roster has been manicured down to 79 players, with the lone spot left for Weatherspoon. The team will start to find off if its massive makeover on defense is going to take hold and be firm enough for them to ascend to elite status in the NFC. UNIT-BY-UNIT ANALYSIS QUARTERBACKS: Starter - Matt Ryan. Backups - Chris Redman, John Parker Wilson. You can quibble about Ryan's stats and, yes, there are some issues. But the bottom line is that he's posted a 20-10 record in his first two seasons as a starter. Now that he has a sense of want to expect and has seen just about every defense in the league, he might be ready to take a quantum leap forward. Last season, he battled back from an ugly turf toe injury to guide the franchise to its first back-to-back winning seasons. He played with a specially fitted shoe to protect the injury, which required special attention after the season. Ryan could improve his completion percentage (58.3) and his touchdown-to-interception (22 to 14) ratio. Redman was retained to serve again as Ryan's backup and Parker Wilson appears set to be the No. 3. RUNNING BACKS: Starters - RB Michael Turner, FB Ovie Mughelli. Backups - RB Jerious Norwood, RB/FB Jason Snelling, RB Antone Smith, RB Dimitri Nance, FB Dan Klecko. Turner's slow start in 2009 has been attributed to being out of shape. Turner is determined to prove that the 1,700-yard season in 2009 was not a fluke. He has basically lived at the team facilities this offseason working in the weight room. If he does get off to a slow start, fitness will not be the issue. The team retained Norwood and Snelling, who did a good job after Turner went down. The plan is to spread the carries around and not lean so heavily on Turner. At fullback, Mughelli is back and Klecko has a shot to become his backup. TIGHT ENDS: Starter - Tony Gonzalez. Backups - Justin Peelle, Keith Zinger, Michael Palmer, Colin Peek. Gonzalez is just one catch away from 1,000 for his storied career. He was a force last season and didn't show any signs of slippage. He caught 83 passes for 867 yards and six touchdowns. But his real impact can't be measured in just receptions. When he's on the field, defenses have to be aware of him and, in some instances, have two players to follow his routes. Peelle is a savvy veteran at the No. 2 tight end slot. WIDE RECEIVERS: Starters - Roddy White, Michael Jenkins. Backups - Harry Douglas, Brian Finneran, Troy Bergeron, Eric Weems, Andy Strickland, Tim Buckley, Brandyn Harvey, Ryan Wolfe, Kerry Meier. White amassed a career-high 11 touchdowns and was 47 yards short of posting his third consecutive 1,200-yard season. He was a late addition to his second consecutive Pro Bowl. Jenkins is solid on the opposite side. He caught 50 passes last season, but averaged only 2.5 yards after the catch. Behind those two, the Falcons are counting on Douglas to bounce back from knee surgery. Finneran could be in a battle to retain his spot, as the team drafted Meier in the fifth round and then added some rather intriguing undrafted free agents in Harvey and Wolfe. OFFENSIVE LINEMEN: Starters - LT Sam Baker, LG Justin Blalock, C Todd McClure, RG Harvey Dahl, RT Tyson Clabo. Backups - C/G Joe Hawley, G Jose Valdez, C/G Brett Romberg, T Rob Bruggeman, G Blake Schlueter, T Will Svitek, G/T Garrett Reynolds, G Quinn Ojinnaka, G Mike Johnson. McClure is the anchor of the unit and is back for a 12th season. He's set to break the franchise record for most consecutive starts; he'll enter the season tied for the mark with 128. Dahl and Clabo are expected to anchor the right side of line at guard and tackle. Dahl missed five games and had offseason surgery to repair his ankle. Blalock and Baker are back to man the left side of the line. The unit continued to protect the quarterback well, giving up only 27 sacks last season. Over the last two drafts, the Falcons have attempted to add to the depth by selecting Reynolds, Johnson and Hawley. DEFENSIVE LINEMEN: Starters - LDE Kroy Biermann, NT Peria Jerry, UT Jonathan Babineaux, RDE John Abraham. Backups - DT Rajon Henley, DT Corey Peters, DT Trey Lewis, DT Thomas Johnson, DT Vance Walker, DE Chauncey Davis, DE Lawrence Sidbury, DE Jamaal Anderson, DE Emmanuel Stephens The Falcon s finished the 2009 season with 28 sacks, which ranked tied for 26th in the league with Tampa Bay and Seattle. Minnesota led the league with 48. The Falcons were happy with their defensive ends and are banking on the return to good health of Jerry (knee) to combine with Babineaux to provide push up the middle. Also, the Falcons are confident that Abraham, with a better push up the middle, can turn in another double-digit sack season. His sacks dipped from 16.5 on 2008 to 5.5 last season. Anderson is set to play end on run downs and slide inside to tackle in passing situations. Biermann, Davis and Sidbury will fight for playing time in the end rotation. LINEBACKERS: Starters - WLB Mike Peterson, MLB Curtis Lofton, SLB Stephen Nicholas. Backups - OLB Sean Weatherspoon, OLB Spencer Adkins, OLB Weston Johnson, OLB Robert James, ILB Bear Woods, ILB Coy Wire. Rookie Weatherspoon appears to the heir apparent to the weak-side position behind Peterson, who's set to play his 12th season. But over the offseason, the Falcons worked out Weatherspoon at both the strongside and weakside positions. If Weatherspoon can't beat out Peterson or Nicholas in the base defense, it's possible that he could earn one of the two nickel linebacker spots. He was solid in coverage in the pass-happy Big 12 Conference. Lofton could blossom into a Pro Bowl player in his third season. DEFENSIVE BACKS: Starters - LCB Dunta Robinson, SS Erik Coleman, FS Thomas DeCoud, RCB Brian Williams. Backups - CB Brent Grimes, CB Christopher Owens, CB Chevis Jackson, CB Dominique Franks, S William Moore, S Shann Schillinger, S Matt Giordano, S Gabe Derricks, S Rafael Bush. DeCoud had a breakthrough season at free safety last season, and strong safety Coleman was the team's second leading tackler. Moore, who was selected in the second round of the 2009 draft, spent most of last season on injured reserve. Moore will certainly help on special teams and has a chance to earn some playing time. The team finished 28th against the pass, so it signed Robinson in free agency, traded Chris Houston and released Tye Hill. In Robinson, the team hopes it has an anchor for the pass defense. The battle to play opposite Robinson will be fierce. Brian Williams, if he's fully recovered from his knee injury, could land the spot. If Williams is slow to recover, Grimes, Owens and Jackson will battle for the open spot. SPECIAL TEAMS: P Michael Koenen, PK Matt Bryant, PK Steven Hauschka, LS Joel Zelenka, KR Jerious Norwood, KR Eric Weems, KR Dominique Franks. PR Harry Douglas, PR Weems, PR Franks. After Jason Elam faltered last season, Bryant was signed on Dec. 1 and made 7 of 9 field-goal attempts, including a 51-yarder against Buffalo. Hauschka opened last season as Baltimore's kicker. He has a lively leg. Michael Koenen was retained as the punter and will handle kickoff duties. There figures to be some stiff competition for the kickoff and punt return jobs. William Moore - Safety - Erik Coleman - American football positions - Atlanta Falcons