News That Would Devastate Michael Vick

The Atlanta Falcons continued their franchise makeover in earnest on Friday, releasing tight end Alge Crumpler, quarterback Byron Leftwich, offensive tackle Wayne Gandy, cornerback Lewis Sanders, wide receiver Jamin Elliott, linebacker Marcus Wilkins and defensive tackle Rod Coleman.

"This is a difficult day for the entire organization," Falcons GM Thomas Dimitroff said in a statement. "A number of these players have contributed to this organization on and off the field at a high level and we greatly appreciate their efforts. These decisions weren't easy, but we felt they were necessary to build a team in the long-term best interest of the Falcons and its fans."

I just don't understand why teams have been releasing their best players lately. Michael Vick's favorite receiver, and arguably the team's best receiver, Alge Crumpler was released. Why would you get rid of your best receiver? It makes no sense. What are they thinking?

Crumpler, who just completed his seventh season, all with Atlanta, has 316 career catches for 4,212 yards and 35 touchdowns. He had been with the team since 2001 and was selected to five Pro Bowls.

Leftwich, formerly a starter for the Jacksonville Jaguars, was acquired by the Falcons during the season after the Jaguars released him in order to go with David Garrard. He alternated with Joey Harrington as the Falcons' starter last season.

"As a football coach it is never easy to cut any player, especially veteran players who have been valuable members of the organization," said new coach Mike Smith, who was hired last month.

That's probably why Alge Crumpler was released....because the Atlanta Falcons just got a brand new head coach who feels no sympathy or understanding in getting rid of players who he has no prior connection with. And that whole it is never easy to cut players thing is just a cover up. He doesn't mean it.

From all indications, the shake-up isn't done. Veterans such as Warrick Dunn and Lawyer Milloy could become victims of the cap, though they weren't included in the original round of cuts.

Oh, and I'd take Leftwich over Harrington any day

Falcons Release Players In Rebuilding Broken Team

The Atlanta Falcons released four-time Pro Bowl tight end Alge Crumpler and six other players today. The Falcons also cut quarterback Byron Leftwich, defensive tackle Rod Coleman, offensive tackle Wayne Gandy, cornerback Lewis Sanders, wide receiver Jamin Elliott, and linebacker Marcus Wilkins. Many of these cuts were made to open up funds that the Falcons believe could be better spent on new, fresh players. All of these cuts were made after a failure of a season by Atlanta, who finished 4-12. The largest single reason for the Falcons' failure and their current personel upheavel can be said in one word: dogfighting. Yes, Michael Vick, the Falcons' ex-most prominent player, pleaded guilty to federal dogfighting charges and received a prison sentence of nearly two years last year. This loss severely hurt the Falcons' offense, which never recovered during the season. To hurt Atlanta even more, a federal judge ruled this month that the team couldn't recover $16.5 million in bonuses from Vick and other dropped players. This places more strain on the Falcons' salary cap, preventing them from picking up desperately needed players. This pressure on Atlanta's salary cap is fueling the personel cuts that are now roiling the team. From all indications, the shake up isn't over yet. Other players such as veterans Warrick Dunn and Lawyer Milloy could be released due to the salary cap. All this is bad news for Atlanta. One wonders how they are going to replace such key and important players. What are they going to do? Fill the roster with rookies and free agents? With all these changes going on, it seems as if that's all there will be in Atlanta. Rookies. Not such a bad thing, but veterans are needed to show these green players the ropes. The Falcons should definately reconsider the massive renovations they are currently undertaking. Cleaning out the team's closet of all seasoned, skilled, veterans is like destroying the cornerstone or foundation of a towering building. Just like the foundationless building, a team of rookies will collapse without any solid veteran guidance or support. Next season will be a bad one for Atlanta.

The Atlanta Falcons Finally Found A Sucker To Be Their Head Coach

The Atlanta Falcons hired Jacksonville Jaguars defensive coordinator Mike Smith as the team's new head coach on Wednesday evening.

"Mike possesses all of the key qualities we were looking for in a head coach," said general manager Thomas Dimitroff, in his first month on the job.

Dimitroff said the 48-year-old Smith, a 26-year NFL coaching veteran, "has strong experience with winning teams, a track record of success, a solid, smart approach to the game, and high character and integrity."

The two sides worked late Wednesday to finalize a contract, and the goal was to introduce Smith as the successor to Bobby Petrino at a Thursday news conference. Contract details were not yet available.

The decision to hire Smith, who was one of seven candidates interviewed by Falcons officials, was first reported on Wednesday morning by Michael Smith of ESPN. Sources close to Smith and to the hiring process subsequently told ESPN.com's Len Pasquarelli that the Jaguars' coordinator had been formally offered the position.

Smith has never been a head coach at any level of the game. But he is a nine-year league veteran and has served the past five seasons as the Jacksonville defensive coordinator. Under his stewardship, the Jacksonville defense was statistically ranked among the top six in the league on three occasions.

Before joining coach Jack Del Rio's staff in Jacksonville, Smith was the Baltimore Ravens' defensive line coach for three seasons, 1999-2001. As such he was a part of the Baltimore staff that won Super Bowl XXXV. That staff also included Del Rio, who was the linebackers coach.

Falcons quarterback Byron Leftwich, who was with Smith in Jacksonville for four years, says Atlanta made the right choice. "I've played against his defense more than anybody in the world," Leftwich said. "I did it every day in practice for four years. I think he's a great guy for the job.

I just hope Mike Smith realizes the drama he is getting himself into by joining the Atlanta Falcons.

Byron Leftwich to replace Joey Harrington as Starter

This move by the Atlanta Falcons not only surprised me, but I think it surprised poor Joey as well. Despite leading the Falcons to two straight wins, coach Bobby Petrino decided Byron Leftwich will remain the No. 1 starter for the Falcons as soon as he is healthy.

I believe it can be universally accepted that Joey Harrington and Byron Leftwich are both sub-par quarterbacks, but a decision must be made as to which sub-par quarterback will lead his team to make a run down the stretch. The Falcons still have a very real chance to win that terrible division. Petrino isn't sure if Leftwich will be healthy enough to play Sunday in a suddenly crucial game against NFC South rival Tampa Bay. The Falcons (3-6) can climb within a game of first place by beating the Buccaneers (5-4).

Being that Harrington won 2 in a row and started to develop rhythm and momentum, it was an unwise decision to announce that he will be benched soon no matter what. In fact, it was a stupid decision to put it lightly. An announcement like this ultimately has 2 effects on a player. Either it could break him down mentally and he can lose his desire to play or it can motivate him to play even harder. However, in Harrington's case, apparently no matter how well he performs, he is going to be benched anyway.

Harrington, who was 19-of-26 for 192 yards in last week's win at Carolina, had a stunned look on his face when asked if he knew what the first-year coach had said after practice. Joey Harrington had this to say about the decision to bench him: "I feel like I've done what they've asked me to do with the exception of maybe one game. But, like I said a couple of weeks ago when this all started, this isn't my first rodeo. I've been around it before, so I'm not surprised. But, like I've also said, I have a right to disagree with it." I also agree with Joey Harrington's decision to disagree. This guy seems to have little luck no matter where he goes.