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WTF?!!!!!!!

C'mon now. It's not like we have a fantastic lineup of backup edge-rushers...We got a Montana boy/hair model and an again vet with a history of injuries...

So LETS LET HIM PLAY DEEP INTO THE FOURTH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And, Im glad Samuels escaped inury: but GoTTDamm! Really?

Criminal. Play to win? PLAY TO WIN???

If we are one and done for this particular game planning after last years GiantFiasco(tm) Smith must go.

I dont care that we 'lost' the game. I just care that we thought so little about it that we 'gambled'. This is checkers, not chess.

Chill. The Falcons aren't gonna lose because they have no pass rush. Well even if they do, they haven't had a pass rush all year long.

I'm going to agree with Pudge, although losing Abe AND Robinson could be the key. We haven't had a pass rush all season, and Abe has had some good play, but losing him isn't like Roddy, Jones, or Ryan going down. But if we lost him AND Robinson, then we are in trouble because we need to have either a pass rush OR a curtain of corners and safeties.

My real concern here was that we played much the same way we did against Carolina, and then it opens the question as to why play starters AT ALL if that was the product we were putting out there on the field?

I read on PFT that Abe would be fine, but I did hope that we would let Massaqoui, Mathews, and Sidbury some snaps, but being as big a competitor that Smitty is I am sure that when the game got close he just wanted to win. I personally think that this the best thing for the Falcons a lose to get them back focused on the task at hand. The issues on third down must be solved if we want to be successful we will either play Seattle, Washington, Dallas, or Minnesota three of which have strong running games and can bleed the clock and leave us with only a few opportunities to make plays so we have to stay on the field.

BULLSHIT :ninja

you are wrong. WRONG. We injured a KEY player. Period.

We had options, we 'took' them. Own up.

Own up and lets move on but dont be stupid..Own it

William Moore coming back will be a great thing and will limit Fun Gus nonsensical tirades.

Yes, Abe is a key player. And yes, he will be missed if he is to miss the playoff game. Or if he's less than 90% (which is what pretty much everybody is at this point in the year), it can affect the outcome of the game.

And yes, Smith deserves your ire and criticism for his decision. Your fears have seemingly become a reality.


Buuuuuuut...

...With all that said, I don't think Smith's job should be in jeopardy because a random player suffered a random injury in the season finale.

He could have easily sat Abe or any number of starters today, and on the third play of the upcoming playoff game, they could have been injured. And it wouldn't have made a single freaking difference.

It's like a car accident. You can do certain things that increase/decrease your odds of getting into a car accident, but besides abstaining from driving and/or riding in cars, there is nothing you can do that will eliminate the chance you do get into an accident. Because like injuries, car accidents are essentially random. And similarly, you seem to think with injuries like many people think with cars that they have more control than they actually do.

Not to dismiss Abe, but I also realize that since the bye he's probably only had 2 or 3 good games, and been fairly average in every other game. So unless he was coasting for the past 10 weeks and ready to turn it on, it's not a death blow. We haven't been able to get effective/consistent pressure with just 4 guys all year long, and Abe's presence for at least 50% of this season hasn't changed that.

Now it's potentially still a key loss. Because at least with Abe, there was still a decent to good possibility he could play well in 2 weeks. Without him, we'll basically need Kroy and/or Babs to have the games of their lives in order to have an effective pass rush.

But given our likely 2nd round matchups (MIN, SEA, WAS), our pass rush isn't going to be the critical factor in our defense playing well on that day. It's going to be ALL about the run defense. And in that sense, losing Abe is not a huge issue because he's probably our 4th or 5th best run defender up front.

Look its not about ABE its about being professional!!

Professional's earn what they get. With 14 days till the next game Coach Smith
is doing the right thing!! If better players would have been hurt, I'd say "thats
tough" (they needed to play this whole week.)

We lost 3 games to all of the NFC South teams.

I understand what your saying Gus, but I guess we could have rested players last week too. Now coaches can come in and practice; for tackling without getting your arms around; practice hours on the kickoff team; practice running routes; and the whole deal....Glad to see Douglas in on punts.

respectfully, that is some pure, unadulterated horsesh*t. There simply was no good reason to have Abe playing this team at this time, deep into the fourth. Now, ya'll make excuses, but Im not. Mike Smith OWNS it. He made a stupid gamble, and it bit him in the ass. Random is him getting hurt in the first 2 or 3 defensive plays. Random is NOT deep into the fourth.

This was a stupid move. stupid. Nothing was 'gained'. This was the time to get secondary players some time. Did we do that? No we kept all our starters in, so we could 'win'. And we lost. Total all around failure. In terms of a car accident, dont get in the damn car, you wont 'have' an accident.

Were lucky we didn't lose Samuels. WTF? Even he got injured AND THEY KEPT HIM IN TOO!

Yeah, Im seeing 'reports' that Abe's going to 'be fine'. Really? How many times have we heard that one?

Y'all make all the excuses you want. Saying we wont 'need' Abe is flat out ridiculous. That is excuse-making of the highest caliber. Mike Smith is a dumbass, and if we go one and out in our house: start packing, Shrek. There were 5-6 players we needed to sit. Roddy,Julio,Abe,Samuels,Moore, Ryan..They should never have seen the field in the 2nd half. At least he kept Moore off the field.

http://www.foxnews.com/sports/2012/12/3 ... 7-loss-to/

"Defensive end John Abraham, Atlanta's best pass rusher, left with an apparent left ankle injury in the fourth quarter. Abraham couldn't put his weight on the ankle as he was helped off the field.

Abraham's injury came after starting cornerback Dunta Robinson sustained a head injury in the first quarter and did not return. His helmet hit Martin on the running back's 3-yard gain. Robinson walked off the field and was escorted to the locker room.

Asked if he considered removing his starters after Abraham's injury, Smith said "Absolutely not. We've said from the very beginning that we were going to continue to play this game to win."

WEll, you lost and you injured a key player on a meaningless game. WTG, Einstein.

Well, I don't think Smith should be fired, we have had a fantastic year, but I do agree that it was ridiculous for any of our starters to be playing in the second half of a meaningless game. After having a day to think about I'm less upset and more confused than anything. It was quite clear the Falcons weren't into the game yesterday, thus what were we gaining having guys half ass it?

At the same time, it is unlikely that we will end up in this situation again, so I don't think it's worth getting to upset over now. What's done is done. Let's hope the training staff can put these guys back together again.

You're missing the point. I'm not really arguing against you about Smith's decision. You're right, he should have pulled those guys, particularly after Martin's TD run. They were down 12 points at the start of the 4th quarter, and had Smitty had access to an iPad, he would have known "cute stats" said at that point we only had a 9% chance of winning the game. At that point they should have rotated in more of the young guys, pulling most of the key starters like Abraham, Babineaux, Weatherspoon, DeCoud, and Samuel. Franks, Mitchell, Massaquoi, Matthews, and Jerry should have gotten their reps. The same goes for the key guys on offense like Ryan, Clabo, Baker, Jones, and Roddy.

He did not, and that was a mistake made more so by the hindsight of Abraham going down. It was an unnecessary risk.

But I'm arguing against your overreaction. You, being particularly paranoid about injuries, IMO are overreacting to Smith's mistake. This is no more grievous a mistake than any of the questionable game management decisions he's made over the past 5 years. That is basically what this was, poor game management. No different than going for it on 4th down vs. the Saints last year, or any of the nitpicks/second guessing we've pointed out over the years.

My opinion of Smith is basically the same as my opinion of Ryan. He's not perfect, but he's pretty darn good, and you'll be hard-pressed to find someone better. And I'm not going to be like he should start packing his bags because every now and then he messes up.

My opinion of Smith is basically the same as my opinion of Ryan. He's not perfect, but he's pretty darn good, and you'll be hard-pressed to find someone better. And I'm not going to be like he should start packing his bags because every now and then he messes up.

This. The voices calling for Smith's firing are just unfathomable to me. We would be the laughing stock of the NFL....again. I didn't think he would play the starters but had no problem with it. Did it "make sense"? Probably not. What bothered me more than his decision was the players reaction to it. They looked much like they did versus CAR--lethargic. OTOH, Abe actually was having a pretty good game. The notion that every time something goes bad that someone has to be fired and that fixes it is very "Washingtonian." As to putting in the 3rd stringers---hey, they kept using Turner, didn't they?

pure nonsense. Im sorry Pudge, but you are wrong here.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WkqgDoo_eZE

Look, I get it. Y'all think Im paranoid about injuries. But this should be more about the coach and less about the 'injuries'.

Did Flacco play 4 qtrs yesterday? Dp you think thier coach made a mistake?

http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/ba ... story.html

"With an AFC North title and a home playoff game next weekend already secured, the Ravens treated their regular season finale at Paul Brown Stadium like a glorified preseason game. The end result — a 23-17 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals in front of an announced 61,565 on a frigid afternoon in the Queen City — hardly mattered.

All that did appear to matter to the Ravens was staying healthy — a feat they seemingly accomplished — and setting themselves up to be at their best when the fifth-seeded Indianapolis Colts come to M&T Bank Stadium next weekend for a first-round playoff game at the fourth-seeded Ravens.

“The goal was two-fold: to put ourselves in the best position possible going forward into the playoffs and to win the game,” said Ravens Coach John Harbaugh, who substituted his starters much more quickly and liberally than his counterpart, Bengals Coach Marvin Lewis. “We obviously didn’t win the game and we’re disappointed with that, but we feel like we’re in the best position we could have been going forward in the playoffs. That’s really all that matters.”

“Yeah, it’s a loss, [but] this game is totally different than any of the other games,” Ravens cornerback Corey Graham said. “You don’t really look at it that way. This is more of a get healthy, get ready for the playoffs. Some losses mean more than others and this one here don’t mean a lot.”

get it? This is what a 'smart coach' does. And dont give me the 'two weeks' response. Either him or M Lewis would have done the same thing if they locked up HFA and had a 'bye' week. Because they 'get it'..

The way it is being 'splained to me is that we needed to keep our starters in and try to win the game or we would become suscepticle to 'rust'. Well, Great Coaches dont let that happen. Good coaches do.

This was the game to get some other guys playing time. Did we accomplish that? No.

This was the game we needed all our starters in to prove we weren't 'sleepwalking'.
Did we accomplish that? No.

The players quit on the coach. That's not what GREAT coaches do.

Now what should concern everybody is Mike Smith is showing he does not yet understand how this works. If this were 2008-09, I wouldn't care too much. But at this point in time, he should know better. He should have at least a rudimentary understanding of 'risk/reward' and yesterday showed he is lacking. Get it? This coach doesn't understand, and that is a problem.

http://aol.sportingnews.com/nfl/story/2 ... gless-game


Now cue the Greek Chorus " Fun Gus, I'm glad Mike Smith isn't as 'smart' as you...All he has done is come in and take a flaming dumpster fire and turn them into perennial playoff contenders".

But thats BS. All Mike Smith has shown me is a defined regression in every playoff game we have ever played in. I swear I will never understand this city and it's fans. Maybe y'all can be 'Braves Happy' about Mike Smith's successes. Not me. I want at the very least a playoff win. Earn my $.

risk/reward.
risk/reward.
risk/reward.

The man does not get it.

The margin of error in the playoff is razor thin. You need every advantage you can get. Coach Smith does not understand this. That doesn't trouble you guys? We gambled not only our one marginally decent ( when he shows up) outside rusher: AND OUR ALREADY INJURED CORNERBACK.

FOR WHAT? So we can act 'tough'? To prevent 'rust'?

"And I'm not going to be like he should start packing his bags because every now and then he messes up."

Messing up is like the piss poor clock management yesterday. I ain't bitching about that. That has no bearing on the playoffs.

Losing your one outside rusher and gambling your already injured CB is not 'messing up'. It's criminally stupid. It is the definition of 'hubris': means extreme pride or arrogance. Hubris often indicates a loss of contact with reality and an overestimation of one's own competence or capabilities, especially when the person exhibiting it is in a position of power.

Now maybe Smith gets the job done and we win on Jan 13th. In that case, Im going to come back here and tell you I was overreacting and Coach Smith knew that he would not really 'need' Abraham. But, if Im sitting there in the Dome and I witness another one and out: I'm am going to say 'Coach Smith needs to go.' And I am going to point to his questionable decisions. He gambled, he lost. Dont try and tell me different

I'll go one further. Barring a squeeker game or one that is decided on a bad call, if we get blown out again at home and lose a 'sleepwalker', then I think TD AND Smith need to hit the road. I would then hope Blank opens the checkbook and promotes Nolan to HC, finds another GM with the emphasis on beefing up our lines, and begin to look down the road to Ryan's replacement in about 2-3 years.

Now thats what an owner who says '"Good is the Enemy of Great" does when discussing what has transpired these past four years.

Good is four winning seasons in a row. Good is awards and accolades. Good is three playoff appearances in four years.

Great is beating teams you should beat. Great is three playoff wins in a row. Great is hoisting that national symbol of the ultimate NFL season.

We want great. Not ok. Not good. Not pretty good. Great. The goal is not preseason wins, season wins, or accolades. It's rings. Arthur Blank agrees. He wants this team, its fans, and its city to enjoy the fruits of a long, successful, Super Bowl-winning season. Back to back winning seasons? Been there, done that. Mr. Blank wants to give us the Lombardi, and if that means telling Smitty to hit the bricks: I gotcher back Artie.

How soon we forget last January, the Giant Fiasco(tm), and the subsequent presser. Were blinded by the regular season record. But lets not forget the goal here.

And if the coach does something so unbelievably dumb that put's that in peril: Im gonna call him out.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Otm4RusESNU

Sit down and take a breather.

First of all, comparing us to the Ravens is a little off. The Ravens have regular success in January, as Harbaugh is 5-4 in the playoffs, and won a playoff game every year he's been there. So the idea that he doesn't have to "push" his guys in Week 17 makes sense because they are "proven winners." The Falcons OTOH are not. But while Harbaugh sat guys like Flacco, Rice, Ngata, he still was risking guys like Michael Oher (75 snaps played). What would you have said if Oher had gotten hurt? Dunta Robinson got injured on the 6th play of the game. Rice (9), Flacco (16), Torrey Smith (16) and Ed Reed (9) all played more snaps than that. What would have happened if they had gotten hurt on their first 6 snaps? Would Harbaugh still be a good coach in your eyes?

Secondly, if you're saying the decision to play the starters was the wrong call, then I vehemently disagree with that. I won't go into a 500-word treatise of why that is, but I couldn't disagree with you more. It's not a matter of right/wrong on the decision to not play the starters or to play them, it's purely a matter of preference: http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/NFP ... -3645.html

Now if you're saying that the decision to not pull the starters at the end of the 3rd/start of the 4th quarter is the wrong call, then I agree 100% with you.

But if you're saying the consequences of that wrong decision should be that he loses his job or is several steps closer to that, then again I 100% disagree. Because that is an in-game management decision, and unless you have a series of grievous bad decisions happen over and over again, then it's not a fire-able offense. We have questioned/called out Smitty for several decisions over the past 5 years, but when you think about it is maybe 2 or 3 a year. And basically you're saying, "Mike Smith deserves to be fired because every month or so he makes a dumb decision." That's dumb.

You need to pump the brakes. Losing Abe isn't as big a deal as you think, and there's no reason to treat this anything more than a minor setback.

first of all, I neither need to 'sit down' or 'pump the brakes'. Last time I checked this aint North Korea.



"Now if you're saying that the decision to not pull the starters at the end of the 3rd/start of the 4th quarter is the wrong call, then I agree 100% with you."

I think I made it pretty clear no starter should have played in the 2nd half.
"First of all, comparing us to the Ravens is a little off. The Ravens have regular success in January, as Harbaugh is 5-4 in the playoffs, and won a playoff game every year he's been there"


Okay, the Bengals ALSO sat thier starters. They dont have a culture of winning in January. Why didn't M Lewis keep his guys in?

"But while Harbaugh sat guys like Flacco, Rice, Ngata, he still was risking guys like Michael Oher (75 snaps played). What would you have said if Oher had gotten hurt? "

That's a strawman argument. I dont know why he left Oher in, but if he had been injured, and he got injured in a meaningless game, then yeah I would say Harbaugh gambled and lost, too.

"But if you're saying the consequences of that wrong decision should be that he loses his job or is several steps closer to that, then again I 100% disagree. Because that is an in-game management decision, and unless you have a series of grievous bad decisions happen over and over again, then it's not a fire-able offense. "


Thats all fine and good for you, but if I see 4 playoff losses, then Im seeing a pattern. And so will Arthur, and can you blame him? Matt Ryan aint going nowhere. Coach Smith has never won a playoff game. He gambled with our key players, and he allowed one to get injured when it was unneccesary. Period. If his decision to allow Abe to play and get injured late in the game, and this has an effect on the possible loss, then Im saying he's got to GO. And just because Samuels did not get injured, it doesn't make his decision to leave him in as a 'good one'. He just got lucky with him, and unlucky with Abe. But neither was a good decision, and Im not going to 'go along' just because he's 'my coach'.

I hope we win a playoff game, but hope in one hand, and sh*t in the other and see which one fills up first. The time for 'gambling' is not game 16, but round 2 of the playoffs. One and done means hit the road jack. Nothing more, nothing less.

Matt Ryan has not won a play off game and his numbers are not very good in them. Cut him if we lose in the first round. Install Kim Gus Il as God Emperor.

As I noted, it's a matter of preference, with two schools of thoughts highlighted in the article I linked to. And there isn't enough evidence to clearly suggest that one school > than the other.


Exactly, it boils down to luck. On one hand, you say it's "smart coaching" and on the other it's "idiotic coaching" but the only real difference is the amount of luck/random chance that happens with one. Again, I'm not defending Mike Smith's decision. But I do think you're going too far with your criticism of that decision.

I think you gotta pump the brakes a little. Abe may wind up playing, and teh Falcons may wind up winning.

Your attempts to link this decision to a potential Falcons playoff loss is flimsy at best. If the Falcons lose then so be it. And that gave will be judged on its own merits. If Bruce Irvin/Chris Clemons sack Ryan 6 times in that game, then I don't think his decision to pull/not pull Abe is the reason why. If Adrian Peterson rushes for 228 yards, 135 of which come after contact, then I don't think Abe's getting hurt made that much of a difference.

It's just like the 2-point conversion thing from earlier this year. The issue then was that hopefully Smitty would learn from his mistake (and he did). The same goes here. I constantly criticize Dimitroff. It's not because I think he deserves to be fired, far from it. I just think he needs to do his job better.

It's the same reason I'm constantly butting heads with people on this board over Matt Ryan. If Ryan has a bad game or makes a poor throw late in the game, then I'm fine with people criticizing his play in that game. But the problem is people start wanting to make it a referendum on his entire career, and write him off for the next 8 years because he had 1 bad game or 1 bad half.

You're more than welcome to rail against this decision. I have no problem with that. Say he was stupid, idiot that deserves to be kicked in the balls. Fine. What I have issue with is that the steps you've taken beyond that which is he now needs to be on watch for his job over this decision. This isn't the final straw or the next to final straw as you seem to believe. And if it is for you, then short of the Falcons hiring Belichick, then I don't think you can be happy with any coach.

Again, I don't think losing Abe is this devastating loss, so while I acknowledge Smitty made a mistake, it's not as huge one as I think you perceive it to be. If Abe misses the game (and that still has yet to be determined), then it'll be a hit, but not one that dooms the Falcons. They can still win without him. Now if he were to miss the NFC CHampionship game where we'd probably be playing GB or SF, that's a different conversation. But we can cross that hurdle/bridge when we get to it.

who is saying cut Matt Ryan? He is here, regardless. I get the funny, but it's not sarcasm if there is a ring of truth in it.

"As I noted, it's a matter of preference, with two schools of thoughts highlighted in the article I linked to. And there isn't enough evidence to clearly suggest that one school > than the other."

really? this from cute stat guy? I listed my stats. Since the inception of the 'wild card' 2/3rds of the time the WC team does not win the SB. Now, we had a 'run' but lets not ignore the obvious. Prove me wrong. looking at the entirity of the years, not the last 5-6. That's what we call a 'small sample'....



"Exactly, it boils down to luck. On one hand, you say it's "smart coaching" and on the other it's "idiotic coaching" but the only real difference is the amount of luck/random chance that happens with one. Again, I'm not defending Mike Smith's decision. But I do think you're going too far with your criticism of that decision."

Bullsquat. you are doing exactly that. What is the disconnect here? How many times did I say in this and other threads it was stupid to play EITHER of these guys at any time in the 2nd half? Just because Asante did not get injured is not a viable 'argument'. Esdpecially keeping him in when he should have been sat. This is a big problem/disconnect... Chess, not 'checkers'. Sit both, and you have a 100% chance of them playing in 2 weeks. Play them in a meaningless game? You have a 'percentage' they will not.


" But they will get RUSTY"

That's on the coach then. No sir.

Pudge, you and BnB seem to be of the mindset that ' it's not that big of a deal'. Okay, fine. Ask the Buffalo Bills or the Chargers about that. It really does not matter if your prize is 'selling out' a stadium. Forgive me for wanting more. What's wrong with me? I must be an unreasonable Fan. Wanting to win it all, and such. Of course, Im not saying you and Pudge or anyone else would prefer the coach staying to the Lombardi. But 4 years, 4 playoff losses? If this team comes out and plays flat again, or the fact that our non existant rush suddenly is even worse, due to the 'in game' decision? What happens if RG3 uses the outside to consistantly target our one good outside guy who will either be playing less then 60-70% or in a boot? Yeah I get it, they have a run game. BUt if Im a smart coach, after slugging it out in the WC, I use this. Without edge pressure these 'mobile' QB's are dangerous. We dont need Sidbury watching the wing: we need Abe. Just like we dont need Franks or Owens lining up at CB we need Asante, and playing him late was downright frightening,IMO.

You guys will either not understand the stakes here ( postseason success) or are content with it. I dont blame you. I get it. But this was literally a 'no-brainer'. I mean, cmon. We accomplished absolutely nothing exept hurting an important part of our team, for a meaningless win with a coach and team that did not need it.

And please dont anyone link up the 'it's not that bad' crap. Really? Willy Mo Always ready? Spoon expected back in a week? Good f*cking grief.

Now I am off to the Northside Tavern for a night of forgetting Sunday, Bloody Mary Sunday

I wish you all well in the New Year. The 'process' continues. We are now in year 5-6 in the three year plan. Rejoice comrades, victory is upon us! I may be alone in my criticism. I can deal with that


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UEaKX9YYHiQ

There's no one
Just me onry
Sitting on my rittle throne
I work rearry hard and make up great prans
But nobody ristens, no one understands
Seems like no one takes me serirousry

And so I'm ronery
A rittle ronery
Poor rittle me

There's nobody
I can rerate to
Feel rike a bird in a cage
It's kinda sihry
But not rearry
Because it's fihring my body with rage

I'm the smartest most crever most physicarry fit
But nobody else seems to rearize it
When I change the world maybe they'll notice me
But until then I'rr just be ronery
Rittle ronery, poor rittle me

We are going to be fine. As has been stated, our pass rush isn't very good anyways so losing Abe isn't going to wreck our defense. But we aren't losing Abe anyways, he will play. I guarantee we are winning our first playoff game. Our guys will come out fired up. I really don't care that we looked like s*** against TB. We will win our first playoff game. SHIP IT!!!!

Gus, you are certainly not the "only one" who thought Smitty shouldn't have played the starters. I didn't expect it and would have understood if he didn't. It was a bit of a gamble and it blew up in his face--a little. But this race isn't run and, I'm sorry, even if he loses in the playoffs and whether he had done what he did Sunday or hadn't firing him is madness. Who comes to a team that just fired a coach who went 13 and f**** 3?

THE HUGE DIFFERENCE is these other teams play Saturday or Sunday and we don't.
We had a chance to get back in the game but didn't. The game was meaningless but
the repetitions and our execution we're not!!

Coach Smith IMO made a decision before Sunday that everyone was playing. Sure Matt
Ryan could have broke his neck, but that could happen in our first series in the playoff game.

What if we'd only lost one game this season, should no one play the last two weeks then sit during the buy.?? I'm not making excuses for Coach Smith but playing that whole game was bad for Abe, and probably good for everyone else.

Look, I get it. This is your Saints moment fun gus. By that I mean that moment a year ago where the Falcons lost to the Saints. I had built up that game to be the defining game of the season. The Falcons poised to get that Saints monkey off their back, it appeared to be a must-win game to justify their off-season "excess" and say this team will not falter like the previous year's 2010 team did?

And guess what happened? The Saints kicked the Falcons in the teeth. Interesting enough that game was following a Thursday night game vs. J-ville. Looking back on it, I think that shoddy defensive performance is what got VanGorder out the door.

After that Saints game, I knew that this Falcon team wasn't ready for primetime and it was going to be another 1 and done season. By the time gameday arrived, my loyalty/hope (*cough*naivete*cough*) got the better of me and I was back in the Falcons camp. But then the Giants stomped us.

Interesting thing about those three games: 2010 Packers, 2011 Saints, 2011 Giants, all of them followed "lay-offs." Obviously we had the bye in 2010 vs. the Packers. In 2011, we were coming off the Thursday nighter vs. Jacksonville, so we had an extra 3 days of rest. And against the Giants, Smith pulled the starters before halftime as they rolled over the quitting Bucs team.

And then each time after that layoff, they go into those big games and looked overmatched and frightened. I think that's the method to Smitty's madness. He sees this layoff, and he knows this year and every year in memory, this team has come out flat when they got some extra time off. They have two words for that: mentally soft.

I think Smitty is trying to get them out of that, and that means they can't coast, they have to play hard every week. Unfortunately, they failed him this week against the Bucs, because they played uninspired. That is worrisome.

And for you this whole situation with Abraham and this meaningless game vs. the Bucs, becomes a referendum on Smitty's job, similarly when I was doing the same following the Giants game last January. But you know what I've realized, I'm comfortable with Smitty still trying to figure these things out now. There are going to be those times when he makes mistakes and it costs a game or even a season. But I'm willing to be patient and let him grow.

Cyril constantly brought up the Rooneys and the Steelers when he was defending Smitty from me last January. And I understood what he was saying, but I didn't really "get it." He was right, you gotta have patience like the Rooneys have with their coaches. You gotta trust that you got the right man for the job. So he messes up from time to time, well we've seen a pattern that Smitty learns relatively quickly from his mistakes. It's about growth. Just like it would be with a QB. When he's young, he's going to mess up but you keep developing him so that one day he's going to blossom into that franchise guy you thought he was. You don't jump ship anytime there's a small bump in the road.

Now whether losing in 2 weeks is a "small bump" in the road is debatable. Fun gus you and I both know it will be a mountain of crap that starts to roll downhill if the Falcons are 1 & done this year. But I don't think it should be that way.

Well, lets play the 'what if?' game.

What are we to do if we go one and out? You also consider we may be out one if not both our coordinators..So you got a HC that's presided over FOUR playoff losses, a QB that is going into contract negotiations, and an owner that loudly and publically has proclaimed nothing shy of a playoff win would be considered a 'sucess'. An owner that just greased through the new stadium deal.

Im sorry, but I dont see Smitty surviving this if we lose... I know you guys believe it 'should' go down as he has been our most winningest HC. This guy saved the franchise. So they only way this happens if they have yet ANOTHER January presser, where Artie says " look, I know I said a playoff loss is not acceptable. And it's not. But Im not ready to fire our HC that has done so much for this team. I respect Mike Smith and Im the owner and I am giving him one more chance".

Fellas, I just cant see that scenario. Not with the mans shiny new stadium about to break ground. In this case, it is all about 'deserves'. I think if nothign else, in order to save face, Smith must go. Blank is all about 'perceptions'. He is a salesman. But he cant 'sell' four playoff losses. Not in this city.

However, I've been wrong before. If we go one and out and Smith remains that will mean nothing less then Blank is not about winning rings, but instead wants to be the Braves of the NFL, just in new digs.

Hopefully all this will be moot if Im walking out of the Dome sunday the 13th happy with the win. Before my gig last night a buddy of mine got some free tix to the chikfila bowl. we went for the first qtr and I was wearing my Falcons cap. Legions, and I mean LEGIONS of LSU fans taunted me with 'ha ha Matt Ryan cant win a playoff game' IN OUR OWN HOUSE. I dont think a one and out is survivable, barring some freak early game injury to Ryan or one of our WR's.

And I remain convinced BVG was told to start looking on the plane ride home from that Saints game, and I think that came from one Mr Blank. You just dont get blown out in the playoffs and 'find' a college gig 1 1/2 days later....