April 2009 – The Recycle Bin

Running in the hood.

This morning I decided that I wanted a change in scenery for my morning run. Instead of doing my usual park run, which is always good for seeing a few hotties, I was a dumbass and decide to take a run through the hood. No, seriously. I figured hitting a few blocks in the hood would give me some extra motivation for time, speed, and distance.

Good grief, little did I know that I was right, and I was in for a real eye opening treat. Right off the bat, one of the locals was working a corner. Of course, I am ignorant and naïve, so at first I did not really realize he was “working,” waiting for potential buyers. By the time I looped around the block, he was on the opposite corner, talking to a fellow in truck.

As the truck pulled away, I the dude asked me a couple of times if I need some weed. Let’s be honest, and all it for what it is. I did not really expect a local to be working the corners, much less making me an offer for a smoke. Sunday morning … offered a lefty? Seriously? No joke.

The same sort of scene repeated itself a few blocks over. Two dudes this time. Understand I am not really scared, but starting to get a little nervous. Kind of like bad idea jeans. No harm no foul, but another offer, and the adrenaline kicked in. Needless to say after a head-knob and a “w-sup,” I was flying.

A hood run was the perfect “get up and go” for getting back in a routine. There was no way on God’s green Earth that I was going to slow down, stop and rest. Doubt I will do that again anytime soon, but what a rush!

Falcons Day One Grade = B+

The only reason I am saying B+ and not a slam dunk “A” is because I am not 100% certain that Moore is a day one starter. I think that scenario is likely to be the case, but training camp will tell the story.

The ESPN NFC South Blog thinks the Falcons got the upper hand on the rest of the NFC South with the selection of Peria …

“The Falcons stayed at No. 24 and selected Mississippi’s Peria Jerry and — at least in the short term — they might be the winners of this draft for the NFC South. The Saints and Bucs both could have used Peria.

There’s no doubt Jerry will be starting next to Jonathan Babineaux on opening day. There’s almost no doubt Peria would have started for the Saints or Bucs right away.

We’ll grade this draft in a few years. But, as of right now, the Falcons are the only NFC South with an absolute certain immediate starter.”

They also think that Moore is a likely starter …

“I’ve said all along, the Falcons needed to get two immediate defensive starters out of this draft. I think they’ve done that.

The addition of Missouri safety William Moore in the second round should fill what was Atlanta’s only real remaining hole in the starting lineup. The Falcons aren’t about to give up on second-year pro Thomas DeCoud, but Moore’s draft status and physical skills probably will make him the starter at strong safety.

That spot was wide open when veteran Lawyer Milloy was released after last season. Moore is a physical player with a lot of upside and adding him was a very wise move because the Falcons are going to have to deal with tight ends like New Orleans’ Jeremy Shockey and Tampa Bay’s Kellen Winslow on a regular basis.”

I have not looked around at the full complement of sites posting grades, winners and losers, but I thought it was interesting that CBS Sports graded Peria and Moore as the second best player at their respective positions:

DT
2. Peria Jerry
6-2, 299, Mississippi

SS
2. William Moore
6-0, 221, Missouri

If we assume for a moment that Peria is a day one starter, and Moore wins Lawyer’s old job, then Day One was actually an “A” for the Falcons. Time will tell; hope I am selling ATL a little short.

Falcons second round pick Moore to start right away?

The Atlanta Falcons picked up William Moore, S Missouri, with their second round selection (23rd pick in the second round; 55 overall. To be honest, I know very little about this Moore kid, but after doing some research on him seems to have a shot at starting. The scuttlebutt on Moore is that his value fell after an injury plagued senior year, and his coverage instincts are poor at best.

The FalconInsider @ scout.com thinks that Moore may not be a day one starter, but whatever concerns were on there on Moore, the Falcons got a second round gift.

“Brian McIntyre’s Take: Because of his combination of size, speed and versatility, I had Moore as the top safety in the draft. I was very surprised that the Falcons were in position to take him without having to burn a later round draft pick to move up to do so. It’s probably too early to say with any certainty if Moore will start in Week One, but the competition with second-year safety Thomas DeCoud should be one to watch during training camp.”

The Falcons have to find an immediate replace for Lawyer. No offense to DeCoud, but if Moore is not the replacement, this pick is suspect at best. Day One selections are for starters, unless you are the Super Bowl favorites and you are building depth. Day Two is when you pickup up a surprise starter, and strengthen your roster by getting some value plays.

When it is all said and done, I think Moore will be the starting strong safety. Why? Take a look at Moore’s numbers last year (2008 Missouri Season Statistics) and then compare them to his junior season (2007 Missouri Season Statistics). If Moore’s numbers last year fell due to injuries, and Moore can play healthy, the Falcons just got a steal of a deal.

Peria a perfect fit for the Falcons.

I watched the first seven or eight picks of the draft, and then took the better half out for dinner. I figured that was pretty generous of me … giving up the draft and all. Hopefully she will reciprocate later tonight.

The Falcons managed a bit of luck by landing Peria Jerry, DT Mississippi, with the 24th overall selection. I really thought Peria would be gone by the time Atlanta selected, and I saw very few mock drafts that had Peria lasting this long.

Hopefully they will go secondary with the next selection, followed by linebacker, and then depth on the defensive and offensive lines.

Shaping up to be a great draft for the Falcons. At a minimum, Peria will be a day one starter.

Stafford goes first.

The funny thing about Stafford signing with the Lions, reportedly one of the richest contracts in NFL history, is that I thought he was not playing with a full deck. I mean seriously, who wants to go to Detroit? That franchise is a wreck that may take a miracle to rebuild.

I was going to write an article about how Stafford’s intelligence must be over rated. After all, he did well on the Wonderlic, but he still wanted to go to Detroit? Makes you wonder WTF is wrong with him?

After his dazzling pro day workout in Athens last week, word is now that the Bulldogs’ quarterback — rated by many as the best quarterback in this year’s NFL Draft — scored the highest score on the Wonderlic test of any other quarterback.

Stafford reportedly scored 38.

USC’s Mark Sanchez scored 28 and Kansas State’s Josh Freeman 27.

The test, which measures problem-solving ability, features 50 questions and a 12-minute time limit.

Though the test is rarely completed, the Wonderlic is typically regarded as a good way to measure a player’s intelligence.

So now we know that not only is Stafford a smart guy, he is going to be incredibly wealthy. Sounds like he is living the high life.

May 8. Reimaging day.

I spent some time watching the various clips of the new Star Trek movie, and I have to say that May 8 cannot get here soon enough. It looks like they are putting a lot of time and energy into the movie, and while I have not search for a script, news, info, etc, I assume the budget is big enough to pull of something that will not put the franchise in shambles. I am thinking this one is going to follow the party lines, and not be as much of a reimaging as Battlestar Galactica.

I am also going to assume that the actors had so sign some sort of three movie deal; maybe even a spin off TV contract. I hope this thing turns out well, so we can bring back some Star Trek … I am ready for some new material. In this case, maybe it is not new by the strictest definition, but if done well; the new Star Trek will fill a nice void.

Live long and prosper.

Super Bowl contending Falcons?

OK, so the Falcons traded for one of the best TE to play the game (best as in the past). Not sure if I am happy about giving up a second round pick next year; second round picks can be starters if you are smart about your draft picks.

This article has me tickled pink …

“Tony Gonzalez said after his trade to Atlanta on Thursday that it is “somewhat bittersweet” to be traded to the Super Bowl contending Falcons away from the struggling Chiefs.”

Seriously. When have you read Falcons and Super Bowl contending in the same sentence? Hold the door; don’t jump to conclusions so quickly and temper the Falcons Super Bowl talk.

Falcons awarded difficult 2009 schedule.

I guess it was bound to happen. Win a bunch of games, make the playoffs, and get rewarded with a difficult scheduled. It does not help that the NFC South is a very tough conference, making six games a year iffy propositions. I suppose this is better than the alternative; have a down year, get an easy schedule.

At this point the Falcons have 16-1 odds of winning the Super Bowl, which pretty much means Atlanta is not even in the preseason conversation, but it is still nice to not see “you are a dumb ass to even look” type odds. I like to call that progress. I guess it could also be a fool’s hope – Mezzanine Endzone season tickets will make a fool of you (or at least me).

The Falcons’ 2009 schedule is tough as nails:

-Week 1: Sunday, Sept. 13 MIAMI DOLPHINS 1:00 p.m.
-Week 2: Sunday, Sept. 20 CAROLINA PANTHERS 1:00 p.m.
-Week 3: Sunday, Sept. 27 at New England Patriots 1:00 p.m.
-Week 4: BYE WEEK
-Week 5: Sunday, Oct. 11 at San Francisco 49ers 4:05 p.m.
-Week 6: Sunday, Oct. 18 CHICAGO BEARS 8:20 p.m.
-Week 7: Sunday, Oct. 25 at Dallas Cowboys 4:15 p.m.
-Week 8: Monday, Nov. 2 at New Orleans Saints 8:30 p.m. ESPN
-Week 9: Sunday, Nov. 8 WASHINGTON REDSKINS 1:00 p.m.
-Week 10: Sunday, Nov. 15 at Carolina Panthers 1:00 p.m.
-Week 11: Sunday, Nov. 22 at N.Y. Giants 1:00 p.m.
-Week 12: Sunday, Nov. 29 TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS 1:00 p.m.
-Week 13: Sunday, Dec. 6 PHILADELPHIA EAGLES 1:00 p.m.
-Week 14: Sunday, Dec. 13 NEW ORLEANS SAINTS 1:00 p.m.
-Week 15: Sunday, Dec. 20 at N.Y. Jets 1:00 p.m.
-Week 16: Sunday, Dec. 27 BUFFALO BILLS 1:00 p.m.
-Week 17: Sunday, Jan. 3 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers 1:00 p.m.

For starters, I think getting the bye in week 4 sucks; week 5, 6, or 7 would be a better check point. From a home schedule standpoint, I wish Atlanta picked up a different team than Chicago; saw them last year, and adding Cutler does not make the Bears any more compelling. Getting Miami, Philadelphia, Washington, and Buffalo is nice. I have never seen any of those teams in person, so I am looking forward to those games.

So where to from here? The Falcons have never had back-to-back winning seasons, so that has to be the first order of business. May as well get that monkey off their collective backs, and make the playoffs to boot. While Carolina is always strong, I do not see them winning the division. Tampa Bay is rebuilding. New Orleans will bounce back this year, making the South a tossup between the Falcons and Saints. At least that is my early predraft guess.

Wishing you a Joyous and Blessed Easter!

I hope you and yours have a wonderful Easter.

“After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.

The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.”

So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” [Matthew 28:1-10 (NIV)]

I am looking forward to time with my family, and a great time preparing lunch on the grill. Lamb loin chops, marinated in extra virgin olive oil with thyme, rosemary, basil, minced garlic, ground black pepper, and a dash of salt. I also have ears of corn and sweat potatoes to slowly cook over the grill, and my wife is going to cook fresh asparagus. Plan to wash it all down with a great bottle of Juan Gil (2006) Spanish red wine. Yum! Cannot wait!

A Joyous Easter Sunday to all!

The last word on the Laurent Robinson trade.

I really do not get all the fuss about moving Robinson. He may turn out to be a great player, but then again, maybe not. I thought this exchange from the NFC Chat (ESPN Blog Nation network stuff) was enlightening:

Frat (Athens, GA): Pat, why the Laurent Robinson trade? By all appearances we traded a promising young receiver for a few extra draft spots. Was something else going on behind the scenes? Is this really a good trade for the Falcons?

SportsNation Pat Yasinskas: Yeah, the coaches had given up on him. They didn’t like the fact he wasn’t very physical.

As I wrote a few days ago, I think the trade was a solid value play. The Falcons moved Robinson, a former 3rd round pick that was injured all of last year and most likely did not play into the Falcons future (or he would not have been traded). In return Atlanta was able to move up ~20 spots in the 5th and 6th rounds. On draft weekend, I think Falcons fans will be grateful that we were able to pick a little higher in each round.

G-Day Game

So far (midway through the second “quarter”) the Dawgs looks extremely sloppy, but it is still interesting getting to watch their Spring Game on ESPN. I was not really sure what to expect because the game is basically a fancy practice.

I am not sure what to think of all the trick plays. Work on them now and see what sticks? To me it seems like it would also tip off some teams when the games get real.

I hope the drop passes are not an indicator of things to come.

Good call by Georgia to get their game on ESPN. Even a better call to make sure Matthew Stafford and Knowshon Moreno are readily available to further increase Georgia football exposure on a National stage.

Go Dawgs!

Mock Draft Take 5.

TheFootballExpert has the Falcons taking Peria Jerry, DT, Mississippi with their first round pick.

Atlanta Falcons – Peria Jerry, DT, Ole Miss.
Brandon Pettigrew is tempting as he would provide Matt Ryan not only with another great blocker, but also a huge target to throw to. But with a deep draft of tight ends, the Falcons can afford to pass on a tight end in round 1. With Grady Jackson gone the Falcons have very little at the defensive tackle position. Last year, almost all the experts thought the Falcons would take DT Glenn Dorsey. The Falcons made the right decision with Matt Ryan, but now they get their defensive tackle. A hole at your defensive tackle position is much more of a concern than a hole at your tight end position.

That is better than the Atlanta burns their first round pick on Brandon Pettigrew, TE, Oklahoma State, mock drafts that I continue to read. According to this article, the Falcons only got 211 yards out of the TE position last year, which was good for dead last.

I like the idea of addressing the TE position in the 3rd or 4th round. I think the Falcons must go defense with the first few selections.

Women love WoW?

OK, I have to admit that this story really surprised me.

“It’s amazing how Nielsen can get these numbers but they’re reporting a total of 428,621 female WoW players while there are 675,713 male players within the age groups of 25 to 54.

The statistic is even more impressive when considering that an estimated 675,713 unique male players of the same age group logged into World of Warcraft during the period, indicating that the WoW gender gap may not be as large as some imagine.”

Who knew that women love WoW almost as much as men? I know that Blizzard claims to have millions of users, so I guess the rest are male teenagers? Surely there are not hundreds of thousands of girls slogging though WoW?

The last Dungeon Master passes on …

The last of the original Dungeon Masters, Dave Arneson, passed away today just thirteen months after Gary Gygax (March 2008).

There are numerous guys my age that were very much influenced by the original box set of Dungeons & Dragons, the “red” and “blue” Basic and Expert sets, and of course Advanced Dungeons & Dragons. I still remember when I finally realized that the two sets of rules (D&D vs. AD&D) were in fact different, and no, you do not go from Basic to Expert, to Advanced. LOL

Browsers statistics for those that like math.

I thought this was an interesting article about browser adoption. Even if it is European centric, it shows some interesting insights into the browser market.

“On an average basis, IE remains the dominant browser globally, according to Net Applications. However, the market share was 66.82%, the lowest level for IE in about a decade. Firefox marches on and came in at 22.05%, the highest number published by the market research firm so far. Safari climbed back up to 8.23%, after having dropped to 8.05% in February, and Google’s Chrome continued to gain slightly to 1.23%. For the month, IE was down 0.62 percentage points, Firefox up 0.28 points, Safari up by 0.21 points and Chrome up by 0.08 points. We will leave the Opera browser out of consideration in this article, as its share has always remained between 0.69% and 0.75% over the past year and has not shown substantial gains or losses. Its current share is estimated at 0.71%.”

My family is pretty much exclusive to FireFox and Opera, except for those sites that demand IE. I have not played around much with Chrome, and while Safari is available on Vista, I have never given it a go. The article goes on to show some trends for weekdays (IE6 is popular in the business world), weekend (drop off of 4% of IE6), and points out that IE is better adopted in the US.