Mailbag, Checking Injuries, and Final Word by Pat Yasinskas

[theProf]

NFC South Saturday mailbag
December, 4, 2010 1:37PM Comments By Pat Yasinskas

Joseph in Athens, Ga., writes: I don't know how many people have realized this but I think it is pretty crazy that there are four starting and very good quarterbacks in the NFL that were all drafted by the Falcons. I don't know if anything like that has ever really happened before. That is 12.5 percent of the league. Matt Ryan, Matt Schaub, Michael Vick and Brett Favre.

Pat Yasinskas: Interesting point. We all know the Favre story in Atlanta and how that never was going to work out unless he changed his lifestyle. But it’s more interesting to think about the three more recent guys you mentioned. Had things gone a little differently, Vick or Schaub could be the starter for the Falcons right now and Ryan never would have been drafted. I salute Vick for resurrecting his career in Philadelphia, but he recently admitted he short-changed the Falcons by never really dedicating himself to the game when he was in Atlanta. Too late to change that. And too late to change the Schaub trade. He was a guy the Falcons liked, but they also had Vick at the time and decided they could get a nice trade for Schaub. It all worked out in the end. I’m not saying Ryan will have a better career than Favre or that he’s better than Vick right now. But he’s the right guy for the Falcons right now.


Checking the injuries that matter most
December, 3, 2010 4:11PM By Pat Yasinskas

It's Friday afternoon, so that means it's time to check in on the most significant injuries across the NFC South.

Falcons. If you have Michael Turner on your fantasy team, be sure to start him. Reserves Jason Snelling and Antone Smith are questionable with hamstring injuries. That probably means Turner will get even more carries than usual. Another bit of fantasy advice, even if you never have heard of Gartrell Johnson, you might want to pick him up and play him. Johnson probably will get some carries as Turner’s backup. He’s an unknown, but the Falcons like Johnson and he could give them some production this week.


Final Word: NFC South
Dec 3 4:00PM By Pat Yasinskas

Point of no returns. The last time Tampa Bay and Atlanta got together (earlier this season in the Georgia Dome) Micheal Spurlock almost single-handedly knocked off the Falcons with a few huge kickoff and punt returns. I wouldn’t look for that to happen again. Mike Smith and his coaching staff sat down after that one and made some major changes to their coverage units. They switched where some guys line up and they also brought a couple of starters, most notably defensive end Kroy Biermann, onto the coverage units. Since then, the Falcons haven’t been giving up much in the way of returns.

Turnover-free zone. We’ve already talked several times about how the Falcons have gone four straight games without a turnover. But we’re going to do it again now because this is significant. If Atlanta can go without a turnover against the Bucs, the Falcons will become the first team since the NFL-AFL merger in 1970 to go five consecutive games without turning the ball over. If they do that, I think chances are pretty good they’ll also extend their winning streak to six games and get their 10th victory of the season.

Safety dance. Tampa Bay coach Raheem Morris has been a little coy about his plans at safety after Cody Grimm's season ended when broke his left ankle. We may see some of Corey Lynch back there. He’s mainly been a special-teams guy but has been working in this defensive system in practice all year. I also think you might see cornerback Ronde Barber get some time at safety -- or maybe even some sort of hybrid position. What I’m saying is, if I’m Morris, I’m putting Aqib Talib on Roddy White all day. That’s strength against strength. Then, I’m looking at Atlanta’s other receiving weapons -- tight end Tony Gonzalez and receiver Michael Jenkins. I’d take my chances and let E.J. Biggers, Myron Lewis or Elbert Mack handle Jenkins, who is a role player. No matter if you line him up at safety or cornerback, I’d put Barber on Gonzalez and let the two veterans go at it.


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[hitwriter]

Thanks!

[bF™]

I hope the bucs don't do what py suggested at the end. That could make it tough on our pass game. Would help out our run game though....