The Falcons won this football game because of their defense on Thursday Night.  DE Kory Biermann led the way for the Falcons’ defense with 5 tackles and a sack.  Free safety Thomas DeCoud also had a solid game with 4 tackles and a interception.  The Ravens finished up with 88 yards rushing on 29 carries (3.0 ypc) and they also completed 15 of 34 passes for 159 yards.

Matt Ryan had a off game against the Ravens as he only completed 2 of 7 passes for 17 yards.  Joey Harrington wasn’t any better as he completed 2 of 5 passes for 17 yards and he threw an interception.  D.J. Shockley was the best QB for the Falcons on this night as he completed 7 of 14 passes for 98 yards with a 20-yard TD pass to WR Brian Finneran.  Jason Snelling led the Falcons in this game with 88 yards rushing on 15 carries (5.9 ypc) and he also caught 2 passes for 22 yards (11.0 avg).  Michael Turner made a brief appearance in which he rushed for 18 yards on 4 carries (4.5 ypc).  WR Laurent Robinson was the leading receiver for the Falcons in this game with 3 catches for 40 yards (13.3 avg).  The Falcons finished up this game with 135 yards rushing on 32 carries (4.2 ypc) and they also completed 11 of 26 passes for 121 yards.  The Falcons finished up the preseason 2-2 and they looked like they might be a better team than most people expect them to be in 2008.

The Falcons have signed 36-year old TE Marcus Pollard to a 1-year contract.  Pollard will give the Falcons a pass receiving threat at TE which they didn’t have until now.  Pollard played in 14 games for the Seahawks last season and he caught 28 passes for 273 yards (9.8 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Pollard has had a solid NFL career having played in 183 games in which he has caught 349 passes for 4,280 yards (12.3 avg) with 40 TD grabs.  This was a good move for the Falcons.

The Atlanta Falcons looked pretty good on both sides of the football last night in a very impressive win.  Matt Ryan got the start and he looked really good completing 15 of 21 passes for 102 yards with a 1-yard TD pass to fellow rookie Harry Douglas.  Chris Redman finished up the game in the 2nd half and he also played well completing 9 of 11 passes for 83 yards.  Jerious Norwood led the way for the Falcons’ last night as he rushed for 53 yards on only 4 carries (13.3 ypc) against the Titans.  Jason Snelling was also pretty impressive with 46 yards rushing on 9 carries (5.1 ypc).  Rookie Thomas Brown pitched in with 29 yards rushing on 7 carries (4.1 ypc) including a 9-yard TD run.  WR Brian Finneran led the Falcons’ with 5 catches for 53 yards (10.6 avg) last night.  Michael Jenkins pitched in with 5 grabs for 44 yards (8.8 avg) last night.  Rookie WR Henry Douglas was also solid last night with 19 yards receiving on 4 catches (4.8 avg) including a TD grab from Matt Ryan.  The Falcons finished up with 145 yards rushing on 30 carries (4.8 ypc) and they also completed 24 of 32 passes for 175 yards.  The Falcons had possession of the football for 36:06 last night and that’s the way to win a lot of football games.

The defense was outstanding last night for the Falcons and it was led by rookie linebacker Curtis Lofton (6 tackles) and safety Lawyer Milloy (5 tackles).  The Falcons held the Titans to only 75 yards rushing on 22 carries (3.4 ypc) and they also completed 13 of 32 passes for 140 yards.  This is a nice win and the Falcons’ will hopefully build on it with the regular season only two weeks away.

The Atlanta Falcons have decided to go young at WR in 2008 and with that in mind they cut Joe Horn today.  Horn has been asking for a trade out of Atlanta and the Falcons just tired of his act.  The 36-year old Horn played in 12 games (all starts) for the Falcons last season and he caught 27 passes for 243 yards (9.0 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Maybe a desperate team might give Horn a chance but he just as likely could have played in his last NFL game.

The Falcons did not look good at home against the Colts last Saturday Night.  Matt Ryan did not look as good as he did in his first game as he completed 8 of 16 passes for 62 yards with an interception that was returned 67 yards for a TD by Colts’ CB Kelvin Hayden.  Chris Redman followed Ryan and he didn’t play much better as he completed 3 of 4 passes for 56 yards but he also threw an interception.  Joey Harrington made a brief appearance in this game completing 2 of 3 passes for 17 yards.  D.J. Shockley keeps trying to pass his way off the Falcons’ roster as he only completed 2 of 5 passes for 24 yards and he threw an interception and lost a fumble.  Michael Turner was incredible for the Falcons agains the Colts as he carried the ball only 4 times for a ridiculous 113 yards (28.3 ypc).  Jerious Norwood pitched in with 25 yards rushing on 7 carries (3.6 ypc).  Rookie RB Thomas Brown rushed for 22 yards on 4 carries (5.5 ypc) for the Falcons in this game.  Laurent Robinson led the Falcons with 48 yards receiving on 3 catches (16.0 avg) on Saturday Night.  Michael Jenkins pitched in with 4 catches for 25 yards (6.3 avg) in this game.  The Falcons finished up with 166 yards rushing on only 24 carries (6.9 ypc).  They also completed 15 of 28 passes for 152 yards against the Colts.

CB Blue Adams led a decent effort by the Falcons’ defense in this game with 10 tackles.  The Colts finished up with 118 yards rushing on 35 carries (3.4 ypc) in this game.  They also completed 19 of 37 passes for 207 yards. 

The Atlanta Falcons learned their lesson about hiring a hot shot college coach in Bobby Petrino who quit during the season.  Petrino couldn’t handle not making his own schedule and having a salary cap so he had to run away to college like a little baby that didn’t get his way.  Enter Mike Smith who was hired as the new head coach of the Falcons.  He has been an outstanding defensive co-ordinator in his career which is definately an area the Falcons need to improve on.  Smith served as the defensive co-ordinator of the Jacksonville Jaguars from 2003-07.  During that time the Jaguars ranked 4th in total yards allowed (296.6), 3rd in offensive points allowed per game (16.1) and 5th in allowing only 99.3 yards rushing per game.  The Falcons hope that Smith can improve on a 4-12 record that the team posted last season.  He’s already close to naming Matt Ryan as the starting QB which is the biggest decision he will likely have to make this season.  I like this hiring for the Falcons who needed a tough, take charge guy and I believe Smith is that man.

The Falcons played good enough on both sides of the field to win on Saturday Night but they just fell a bit short.  Still, there was plenty to get excited about for the Falcons.  Chris Redman started at QB and he looked terrible completing 3 of 6 passes for 13 yards and tossing a pickoff.  Rookie Matt Ryan was outstanding in his NFL debut completing 9 of 15 passes for 113 yards and hitting WR Roddy White for a 25-yard TD pass.  Joey Harrington was next up and he was solid completing 5 of 7 passes for 64 yards.  He also scored a TD on a 1-yard carry which was the only time he ran the ball in the game.  D.J. Shockley looked awful in finishing up the game for the Falcons.  He completed only 4 of 15 passes for 63 yards with a interception.  He also carried the ball 1 time for 17 yards in this game.  Jason Snelling led the way for the Falcons with 32 yards rushing on 4 carries (8.0 ypc).  He also caught 1 pass for 47 yards against the Jaguars.  Michael Turner was solid in his Falcons’ debut rushing for 22 yards on only 4 carries (5.5 ypc).  Jerious Norwood was busy with 6 carries for 20 yards (3.3 ypc) on Saturday.  Rookie Thomas Brown also had a solid NFL debut rushing for 19 yards on 4 carries (4.8 ypc).  WR Roddy White led the way for the Falcons on Saturday with 5 catches for 47 yards (9.4 avg) with a TD grab covering 25 yards from rookie QB Matt Ryan.  The Falcons finished up Saturday Night with 115 yards rushing on 24 carries (4.8 ypc).  They also completed 21 of 43 passes for 228 yards thru the air.  The Falcons looked impressive on offense despite only scoring 17 points.

The Falcons defense was pretty tight on Saturday Night.  Cornerback Brent Grimes led the Falcons with 6 tackles on Saturday Night.  Linebacker Curtis Lofton made a smashing debut for the Falcons with 6 tackles also.  The Jaguars finished up with 136 yards rushing on 33 carries (4.1 ypc).  The Jags also completed 15 of 30 passes for 129 yards thru the air.  The Jaguars run against everyone so don’t be too alarmed by the yardage but the Falcons’ pass defense was pretty impressive on Saturday.  Despite the loss the Falcons put up a good all around effort on Saturday Night.

For some reason the Falcons have been trying to save money at the kicker position the last couple of years and it has hurt them pretty badly.  So, with that in mind the Falcons have signed 38-year old Jason Elam to handle the kicking chores in 2008.  Elam played in all 16 games for the Broncos last season and he made 27 of 31 field goals (87.1%) last season.  He also converted all 33 of his extra points last year.  It will be interesting to see how much carry Elam will have on his kicks without kicking in the light air of Denver.  Elam has now played in 236 games in his NFL career and he has made 395 of 490 field goal attempts (80.6%).  He has also made 601 of 604 extra points (99.5%) in his career.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  B

Alge Crumpler is gone but not forgotten and the Falcons will wish they kept him around.  28-year old Ben Hartsock will likely be the starting TE for the Falcons this season.  He’s a big guy at 6’4″, 265 pounds and he’s a good blocker in the running game but he’s not much of a receiver.  He played in all 16 games for the Titans last season and he caught 12 passes for 138 yards (11.5 avg) without a TD grab.  Hartsock has good hands but he doesn’t have much speed so don’t expect any big plays out of him.  Hartsock has now played in 45 games in his NFL career and he has caught 24 passes for 247 yards (10.3 avg) with 0 TD grabs.

Martrez Milner could be a surprise this season if the Falcons let him play.  He only played in 8 games as a rookie last season for the Falcons and he caught 9 passes for 50 yards (5.6 avg).  Milner is a local boy so the Falcons wouldn’t mind him making the people of Georgia happy.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  D-

The Falcons would be smart to stick with the young receivers on the roster as they build towards the future.  26-year old Roddy White had a breakout season in 2007 for the Falcons.  He benefitted from having QBs on the team that could throw the football with accuracy and that should be the case again in 2008.  White played in all 16 games for the Falcons last season and he caught 83 passes for 1,202 yards (14.5 avg) with 6 TD grabs.  There is no reason to think that White can’t do it all over again in 2008.  White has now played in 48 games in his NFL career and he has caught 142 passes for 2,154 yards (15.2 avg) with 9 TD grabs.  He has also carried the ball 5 times for 10 yards (2.0 ypc) in his career.

23-year old Laurent Robinson appears to be a receiver on the rise for the Falcons.  He played in 15 games as a rookie last season for the Falcons and he caught 37 passes for 437 yards (11.8 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Look for him to improve on those numbers this season for the Falcons as he appears to be moving up the depth chart.

The Falcons really like 23-year old rookie WR Harry Douglas.  He’s super fast but he’s a small guy at 5’11″, 170 pounds.  His size didn’t hinder him at Louisville however as he played in 10 games (all starts) last season and he caught 71 passes for 1,159 yards (16.3 avg) with 7 TD grabs.  The Falcons envision Douglas as a huge deep threat for them in 2008.  He finished his career at Louisville having played in 47 games (28 starts) in which he caught 173 passes for 2,915 yards (16.8 avg) with 15 TD grabs.

The Falcons keep waiting for 26-year old Michael Jenkins to live up to his potential but it just hasn’t happened yet.  He is a big guy at 6’4″, 217 pounds and he’s fast so I can’t figure out why he isn’t a better football player than he is.  Jenkins played in 15 games for the Falcons last season and he caught 53 passes for 532 yards (10.0 avg) with 4 TD grabs.  It’s doubtful that Jenkins will put up better numbers in 2008 as the Falcons have more depth at WR this season.  Jenkins has now played in 61 games in his NFL career and he has caught 135 passes for 1,595 yards (11.8 avg) with 14 TD grabs.

36-year old Joe Horn is running out of time as he appears to be getting slower and he just can’t stay healthy anymore.  Horn played in 12 games with the Falcons last season and he caught 27 passes for 243 yards (9.0 avg) with 1 TD grab.  The days of putting cell phones in the padding of the goalposts appear over for Horn who is on the last leg of his NFL career.  Horn has now played in 164 games in his NFL career and he has caught 603 passes for 8,744 yards (14.5 avg) with 58 TD grabs.  He has also carried the football 14 times for 54 yards (3.9 ypc) in his career.

The Falcons would love to see 32-year old Brian Finneran make it back to action this season.  He is a big target at 6’5″, 217 pounds and he has a great set of hands.  Finneran hasn’t played since the 2005 season as he tore his ACL in each of the last two training camps the Falcons have had.  He has played in 86 games in his NFL career and he has caught 187 passes for 2,647 yards (14.2 avg) with 15 TD grabs.

Adam Jennings is running out of time with the Falcons at WR.  He’s on the small side at 5’9″, 181 pounds but he’s pretty fast.  Jennings played in all 16 games for the Falcons last season and he caught 6 passes for 62 yards (10.3 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Jennings also played in 15 games in 2006 for the Falcons but he didn’t catch any passes as a rookie that season.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  C