Petrino Out

[Pope Flick]

Okay, no offense Bill. You obviously don't know the owner of the team. Arthur Blank will NEVER, I repeat NEVER move this team from Atlanta. He is not in it strictly for the money. This is were he has roots. This is where he founded Home Depot. He will NOT move the team. He wants it to succeed. He wants it to be his project to make the Falcons a respected NFL franchise. He took some great steps and got kicked in the groin by a dumba$$ QB, and a terrible choice as Head Coach. However, he will eventually turn this thing back around,like he did when he first took ownership in 2002. It's just been a VERY ruff (pun intended) year. Same with his co-owner of Home Depot, Bernie Marcus. He opened the WORLD'S LARGEST Aquarium here in Atlanta because he wanted to give back to the city that gave him his start/status.

 

It might take some time, but, the Falcons will eventually go back to selling out their games because of, not inspite of Arthur Blank.

 

 

Billionaires don't get rich staying in money losing schemes. While I appreciate your optimism, good old fashion capital losses might not force Blank to make the move, but it might force him to sell to someone who would be more inclined to do so.

 

The Falcons as a tax shelter probably provide only so much relief.

[Missoula Griz]

The way he left makes me upset.

 

He has Montana roots. Looks like the big city changed his mind set. Too bad.

[Ursa Majoris]

You want to fire Lovie? Not sure I'd go that route. Lovie's a pretty good HC, IMO.

Not to hijack the thread or anything but I've seen that blank look on the Bears sideline before. Jauron wore it and before him Wannstedt. While I'm not saying Smith is in the class of those two, especially Wannstedt, he doesn't look like he has too many clues about what to do when adjustments are necessary. As Collinsworth at Thursday's debacle said, the Bears got beat in a previous game (don't recall which one) when the opposition ran the same play over and over and over. That happens a lot, most notably at the SB last season. If it's the job of the coordinators to make the adjustments, then fine, but it begs the question why bother with a head coach at all? If those of us who merely watch can see what the opposition are doing, why can't Lovie?

[Jolly Rodgers]

http://www.nbcsports.com/mobblog/2007/12/petrino_finito.html

 

McKay to Blame

 

Hey, coach...remember that time when you went to Atlanta to coach that football team? And that quarterback, the running guy? He got busted for playing doggie Gladiator in his backyard? And he couldn't play and then all the guys on the team hated you because you were as much fun as crabs and approachable as an alligator? And then they didn't listen to you and you guys kept losing all the time? Remember that? That was awesome.

 

Bobby Petrino balled up his napkin, threw it on his plate and pushed away from the Atlanta Falcons table with three games left in the 2007 season on Tuesday. A stupid idea coming to a merciful end.

 

People can "Vick this" and "Vick that" all they want but there was ample evidence before Petrino was hired away from the University of Louisville that hiring college coaches to take over NFL teams doesn't work.

 

But Falcons GM Rich McKay, a man who has gone from respected front office guy to being a boob's boob in his Atlanta tenure, wanted to be the smartest guy in the room.

 

So he ignored the evidence - and led owner Arthur Blank down the primroooose path - and hired Petrino.

 

Offensive genius, they said. Figure out how to coach Vick, they said. Bring out the best in him, they said.

 

Petrino, apparently, was going to be different than Nick Saban, Steve Spurrier, Butch Davis, hell, even Lou Holtz. He was going to get it done at the professional level after making the leap from a campus.

 

The truth is, the NFL is too hard, too soul-draining to dive into with no foreplay. Even at Louisville, where Petrino was prior to Atlanta, you could count on about six wins a year. There are no I-AA schools in the NFL (though the Dolphins are close).

 

And McKay has done a tremendous job stocking the Falcons with a roster devoid of talent. They have wide receivers that can't catch, offensive linemen who are amazingly disinterested and too many defensive players just picking up paychecks (Monday night's loss to the Saints provided ample evidence).

McKay should be taking the hit for this. But he won't. He's the teflon GM. Don't believe it?

 

Listen, on McKay's watch, Atlanta gave a $130 million deal to a guy who owned a property in Virginia dedicated to dogfighting. DId they do a little security check on his holdings before signing him? Maybe have a firm do a flyover of the place? Knock on the door? Ask around town? Check it out on Google Maps? Naaah.

 

When you already have all the answers, why go looking for questions?

[Bill Swerski]

Okay, no offense Bill. You obviously don't know the owner of the team. Arthur Blank will NEVER, I repeat NEVER move this team from Atlanta. He is not in it strictly for the money. This is were he has roots. This is where he founded Home Depot. He will NOT move the team. He wants it to succeed. He wants it to be his project to make the Falcons a respected NFL franchise. He took some great steps and got kicked in the groin by a dumba$$ QB, and a terrible choice as Head Coach. However, he will eventually turn this thing back around,like he did when he first took ownership in 2002. It's just been a VERY ruff (pun intended) year. Same with his co-owner of Home Depot, Bernie Marcus. He opened the WORLD'S LARGEST Aquarium here in Atlanta because he wanted to give back to the city that gave him his start/status.

 

It might take some time, but, the Falcons will eventually go back to selling out their games because of, not inspite of Arthur Blank.

 

Uh, OK, if you're so absolutely sure about Blank not moving the Falcons. But it's very possible that Blank decides to sell the Falcons two or three years from now when they're drawing 20,000 a game and can't secure a new stadium in Atlanta. And at that point, it's very possible that the new ownership takes them elsewhere.

 

No offense, but Atlanta isn't exactly known for its legions of hardcore, ticket-purchasing pro sports fans. Do people actually go to Hawks or Thrashers games? And it's not like the Falcons have won over a generation of fans with consistent playoff appearances and a championship, like the Braves have. If they're still toiling in mediocrity in that dump of a stadium five years from now, I'm not sure I like their chances of sticking around. San Antonio seemed pretty interested in the Saints a couple years ago. Toronto has apparently already agreed to let the Bills play a pre-season game at the Rogers Centre, and we all know how the NFL is interested in exploiting foreign markets.

[Bill Swerski]

Not to hijack the thread or anything but I've seen that blank look on the Bears sideline before. Jauron wore it and before him Wannstedt. While I'm not saying Smith is in the class of those two, especially Wannstedt, he doesn't look like he has too many clues about what to do when adjustments are necessary.

 

Lovie took both the Rams and Bears defenses from the craphole to the Super Bowl. That sounds like a pretty good "adjustment" to me.

 

As Collinsworth at Thursday's debacle said, the Bears got beat in a previous game (don't recall which one) when the opposition ran the same play over and over and over. That happens a lot, most notably at the SB last season.

 

I'm not sure how the Bears defensive Front 7 getting physically dominated at the line of scrimmage in SB XLI is Lovie's fault.

 

I'm not saying that Lovie is a HOF coach or anything, but he's a proven winner as both a DC and a HC. Singletary is an unknown and has done nothing of note in SF or BAL. If it were me, I'd stick with Lovie for a couple more years.

[Goopster24]

I think Lovie bought himself some extra time bringing this team to the Super Bowl. And that was in spite of the quarterback position, arguably the WHOLE offense.

 

It is clear that this team is inept on offense. Along with that, something didn't click on defense this season. Whether that was injuries or Rivera's deperature, I am not sure. The defense has talent, that is for damn sure.

 

This team will need to address the offense in the offseason. This draft for the Bears might the most important one since I have been a Bears fan, my humble opinion. The offensive line, running back, quarterback, possibly wide outs. Many problems indeed.

 

As for the Falcons, if they continue down this road, I see no reason why Blank would stay. THAT is a business move. And when he does sell it, they very easily could move. To think otherwise is crazy, sorry.