We mentioned yesterday that the only thing holding up a trade that would send Philadelphia Eagles CB Asante Samuel to the Atlanta Falcons was the re-working of Samuel’s contract. Samuel was due to make about $10 million this year, and he wasn’t thrilled about the idea of drastically reducing that.

Well, according to Jeff McLane on Twitter, the Falcons may have worked that out with Samuel.

“Per a league source, Atlanta has agreed to terms on a 3 yr 18.5 deal for asante samuel,” McLane tweets.

The compensation to the Eagles is expected to be minimal, this should all but complete the trade. The last we heard, the Eagles were getting a sixth-round pick in this year’s Draft. Woo hoo.

It’s widely known that the Philadelphia Eagles are trying to move cornerback Asante Samuel. Fans know it, the media knows it, Asante knows it and dogs know it.

The Atlanta Falcons are the latest team interested and it sources tell Philly.com that trade compensation isn’t what is holding the deal up. Apparently, it’s Asante’s willingness to restructure his contract.

He’s slated to make some $10 million this season, and while he’s willing to rework his contract, he’d like to keep most of that $10 million. This is the same thing that held up a deal with the Denver Broncos recently.

Still, the Eagles would like to get him moved before the start of Thursday’s NFL Draft and are likely to get peanuts in return.

The free agent market for linebackers this offseason has been tepid at best. While other players were signing as soon as free agency kicked off, linebackers were largely chilling out at home hoping the phones rang.

And perhaps the prize of the LB free agent class, Curtis Lofton, has sat the longest. A four-year man from the Atlanta Falcons, Lofton was supposedly asking too much, but whatever the reason, he got the New Orleans Saints to bit.

According to Greg Bensel, VP of Communications for the Saints, the team signed him to a five-year deal.

“Saints Agree To Terms With LB Curtis Lofton For Immediate Release: March 24, 2012 New Orleans Saints (cont),” he tweeted.

He actually tweeted a link to the official press release, which we’ll now add.

And while we don’t have official terms of the contract, we will add this handy dandy quote from GM Mickey Loomis, who should consider himself lucky that he’s even allowed to be quoted in press releases.

“Curtis is a versatile, hard-working player that has displayed a knack for being around the football, and more importantly, making plays on the ball,” Loomis said. “He has the ability to play all three linebacker positions and we feel that he’s just entering the prime of his career. We think he can come to New Orleans and fit in well and provide us with a significant contribution to our defense.”

Sure, the Saints already have a really nice LB in Jonathon Vilma, but he’s probably likely to be in a bowling league with Loomis, Sean Payton and Greg Williams for the foreseeable future. So yeah, Lofton is insurance.

The Atlanta Falcons have a decision to make with right defensive end John Abraham. He’s 34-years old and scheduled to hit free agency, but they don’t really have an in-house replacement for him.

And according to NFLN’s Steve Wyche, it sounds like they are going to let him test the free agent waters and probably will let him walk.

“Agent for Falcons DE John Abraham says he’s spoken to Falcons and believes the DE is bound for free agency. #NFL.com/#NFLNetwork,” Wyche tweets.

The Falcons aren’t going to commit any kind of decent money to Abraham and I don’t know that anyone else will either. He’s not toast, but guys whose games are predicated on speed tend to lose it quickly.

The Falcons will most likely explore other free agents and look to address the position in the draft.

You may remember back in 2006 when Jim Mora Sr., former head coach of the New Orleans Saints, went on the radio to talk about Atlanta Falcons QB Michael Vick. His son Jim Mora Jr., was the head coach at the time and there were issues then surrounding Vick that didn’t involve one dog biting the head off of another.

Vick was given a $100+ million contract from the Falcons and owner Arthur Blank had his back big time. But, while Vick had jaw-dropping ability, his awful attitude and approach to the game combined with his poor decision making on the field, were a big problem. With Vick, you had a chance to win any given game. But, chances are, this was not the guy that was going to take you to the promised land.

So, when Mora Sr. was asked if Vick was a coach killer back in 2006, he said that he was. The Falcons had a three-game losing streak, with Vick completing less than 50% of his passes and throwing more INT’s than TD’s during that stretch. Things weren’t looking good.

But, let’s quickly define why he was considered a coach killer. Basically, he was/is a guy, who is so immensely talented, but that you just can’t win with him. From management’s perspective, he is selling out your stadium left and right. The fans love him. They can’t get enough of him. He’s a marketer’s dream. Everyone is enamored with this player. He is making you tons of money. But, at the end of the day, he just doesn’t win enough. His style won’t allow it. And front office brass keeps thinking they need to find the right coach to come in and show this superhuman how to play football the right way, even if it’s not possible. Hence: Coach killer.

So then, of course, came the offseason and the dogfighting stuff for Vick. Which we’re all well aware of and he plead guilty and did a bunch of prison time then landed with the Philadelphia Eagles and blah blah blah.

He took over for an injured Kevin Kolb (thank god) in 2010 as the full time starter after doing a bunch of BS spot work in 2009 that was ridiculous. And during that 2010 season, he had a run that can only be considered magical. There was a stretch of about eight games where I can honestly say I’ve never seen the QB position played that well. His rifle passes were insanely accurate and he could still kill you with scrambling and broken-play runs. It was truly amazing.

But, it didn’t last. He ended 2010 struggling against the blitz and making one read and then taking off. He wasn’t bad, but he wasn’t the same guy we had seen previously playing at a level that maybe even the Falcons couldn’t have predicted when they traded up to make him the No. 1-overall player selected in the 2001 draft.

In 2011, the Philadelphia Eagles were staring down the barrel of the final year of his contract. He could either play with the franchise tag (they sure as hell weren’t sticking with Kolb. Thanks, Arizona), or get an extension. The Eagles chose the latter and signed him to another $100 million contract (even if some of it is typical NFL nonsense when talking about total value. But, you get the point.).

And in 2011, Vick regressed quite considerably. Maybe the Eagles didn’t expect him to play like the super stud that he was for much of the 2010 season, but they didn’t expect him to revert to full-on Atlanta days either. What they got this season was somewhere in between. But, it was closer to Atlanta Vick than 2010 Vick.

So then, the question still remains: Is Michael Vick a coach killer? Is he still someone that you just have to have out there due to his play-making ability, yet won’t win you anything in the end? And with Andy Reid’s record with quarterbacks and how well he gets them to perform, is it safe to say that this is as good as it gets? Vick’s goal after prison was to prove everyone wrong and to show people that he could come back from being incarcerated for about two years. Hasn’t he already technically done that? Is it possible that he’s content to collect his check at this point?

***** (I don’t really know what this means, but I see this crap inserted into lengthy articles in major magazines all the time)

After a huge free-agent spending spree this offseason (you know the names, Nnamdi, Babin, Jenkins, Brown, Young, Smith, etc), the Eagles were saddled with championship aspirations. And look, they were highly thought of regardless of what that Tyler Perry character Vince Young said about the “Dream Team.” Forget all of that. The bottom line is that everyone in the 215 area code thought that this team would win 11 games at a very minimum.

That is, until the season actually started and we got a whiff of the on-field product. The team ended up having to win its final four games against a slew of terrible quarterbacks just to get to 8-8.

And there were many reasons for the Eagles demise this season. But, the top two main reasons were Juan Castillo’s woefully deficient defense and the turnovers. Many of those turnovers had Michael Vick’s fingerprints all over them. He was intercepted 14 times and fumbled three more times. Some of those fumbles were the direct result of him being careless while running with the football (something he should be comfortable with by now).

Vick threw for 3,303 yards this season despite missing a few games with injury. He also had 18 touchdown passes and ran for another. But, let’s be clear, 3,000 yards is no more a bench mark for quarterbacks these days as 1,000 yards is for running backs or receivers. It’s a 16-game season in an offense-driven league. These aren’t the marks of a great season anymore. It’s not the early seventies and Dave Hampton isn’t killing himself to get 1,000 yards rushing anymore. Drew Brees shattered Dan Marino’s single-season passing record this year. Tom Brady beat it too. Drew Stafford had 5,000+ yards passing as well. And hell, Aaron Rodgers could have too if he didn’t sit out Week 17.

And, even if Vick didn’t miss those few games, he would have likely had a TD total in the low 20′s, with his INT’s rising too. We don’t know for sure, I’m just guessing. Regardless, these aren’t the stats of a franchise QB.

But, the truth is, he should be held responsible for missing those games anyway. You can’t blame players for getting hurt, but somehow you can blame Vick when he does. Do you know that the only time that Vick has played a full 16-game season was in that 2006 season when Jim Mora Sr. made his “coach killer” comment? That’s the only time? You’re supposed to rely on this guy? It’s not just that he’s injury prone, it’s that he does nothing to help himself stay healthy on the field.

He doesn’t slide at all and it’s maddening. It’s not just that he doesn’t slide, it’s that he says he can’t slide. That he doesn’t know how. The Falcons had brought in former Atlanta Brave Terry Pendleton to help him slide and apparently that didn’t work. I, for one, am not buying that raft of crap at all. You’re going to tell me that one of the most amazing athletes on the planet can’t do something athletically that Drew Bledsoe could? Puh-lease. It’s absolute nonsense and it’s a major flaw in his game because you just cannot count on this guy for a full slate of games.

It’s easy to look at the Eagles season and point the finger at Juan Castillo and his lousy defense as the main culprit in their horrific 8-8 season (he gets a heavy dose of blame from me). He was the Peter Principle personified and it would be a crime against humanity for Andy Reid to keep him around another season.

However, let’s go back to those turnovers and the role they played. The Eagles committed 36 turnovers this year. 36! 2.25 a game! Without looking it up, I find it tough to believe that you’re going to find too many Super Bowl winners with that many turnovers. You simply can’t win in the NFL doing that. Plain and simple. And you could probably go back and look and take away a couple Vick interceptions and this team makes the playoffs. Not to put the whole season on him, but when you are paid this kind of money to QB a team, you’re going to shoulder the brunt of the blame. Donovan did, Vick can too.

If it wasn’t for the final four-game win streak against future Hall of Famers such as Matt Moore/J.P. Losman, Mark Sanchez, Stephen McGee and Rex Grossman, there is a good chance that Reid would be gone. And the organization’s commitment to an undisciplined turnover machine like Vick would have to be a big reason.

After seeing Vick’s rocket-ship development as a quarterback in 2010 under Reid, we all thought that his Atlanta days were in the past. But, he reverted to those days relatively quickly in 2011 and was back to his old ways of not going through all of his progressions, turning the ball over too much, and getting hurt. Wonderful.

So, was Jim Mora right? Is Vick still nothing more than a coach killer? A guy who’s athletic gifts command tons of money, but will ultimately sink the whole ship with injuries, inconsistency and mental mistakes? I guess we’ll have to ask Andy after the 2012 season, which will be his last if Vick plays like he did in 2011.

The Atlanta Falcons have a tough matchup on Sunday against the Tennessee Titans. At 5-4, the Falcons are a game and a half behind the division-leading New Orleans Saints and could really stand to pick up a game while said Saints are on a bye.

However, according to Jay Glazer, they’ll be doing it without rookie Julio Jones (hamstring).

“Coaches want Julio in warmups to prove he can open it up pain free and hammy has healed but they don’t think he will, hasn’t done much all week. He’s NOT ruled out but they say he’s doubtful,” he tweets.

That means he’s not playing. Let’s be honest. Julio is not going to play in this game. Take him out of your fantasy lineups.

Many criticize the sometimes reckless play of Philadelphia Eagles QB Michael Vick. He likes to break off runs out of the pocket and he admits he doesn’t know how to slide. This leaves many fearful that he’s going to get hurt.

Well, he got beat up pretty good in Atlanta Sunday night, but it wasn’t because he was being reckless. He got ripped apart in the pocket, was splitting blood everywhere and ended up with a mild concussion. He didn’t return to the game.

On Monday, Eagles trainer Rick Burkholder said that Vick was “just a little bit off”in his concussion tests, which is a good sign. He also said not to rush to judgement as far as his availability for Sunday’s game against the New York Giants. There is a chance he could play.

We’ll see. One would have to think that Mike Kafka would get the nod Sunday after his fine performance on Sunday night in the loss to the Falcons.

It doesn’t look like former Atlanta Falcons (he played for so many f’ing teams, I’m not naming all of them) WR Andre Rison is going to enjoy his Labor Day weekend as much as some others. Some are kicking off the holiday with some beers and some grilling. Rison is kicking it off with some cold-brewed indictments.

Yep, a federal grand jury indicted Rison for failing to pay child support from August 2008 to August 2011. He’s said to owe more than $10,000. Way to take care of your kids!

“According to the indictment, the defendant failed to pay a substantial child support order that has been past due for over two years,” stated Ann Birmingham Scheel, Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of Arizona. “This indictment sends a message to others contemplating this same decision-that failing to meet your financial obligation to your child is unacceptable and you will be held accountable.”

A conviction on these charges would result in a maximum penalty of two years in a federal prison, a $250,000 fine or both.

When I was growing up, I was a huge fan of those Warren Moon-led Houston Oiler teams. They were tons of fun to watch with the run-and-shoot offense. First it was Lorenzo White in the backfield, but that gave way to the Gary Brown version. It was a show almost every Sunday.

And who can forget all the great wide receivers they had? Haywood Jeffires, Ernest Givins, Drew Hill, Curtis Duncan and even Gary Wellman. But now, one of them is gone. Rushed to an Atlanta hospital Friday with two massive strokes, Hill died last night at the age of 54.

He was one of the most popular Oilers from those teams.

“I’m shocked,” Moon said. “I can’t believe it. Drew meant so much to us as a player and as a person. I counted on him so much. He was the consummate professional. It’s just so sad.

“Drew was a great receiver, one who knew the offense and was always in the right spot. I always knew exactly where Drew would be. He had a low-key demeanor. He didn’t get upset. He was always cool under pressure.”

“I spent some time with Drew in Atlanta and December,” said Green Bay scout Alonzo Highsmith, who joined the Oilers in 1987. “I’m stunned. I asked him how he was doing, and he said he was doing all right.

“As a player, I remember Drew being all vertical. He was a great deep threat, fast but very smooth.

“As a person, Drew was quiet and humble. He never sought attention for himself. He was a great guy and a great teammate. We used to play poker at his house. We had so much fun. He’s going to be missed by many.”

Hill was drafted by the Los Angeles Rams in 1979. He played there for five seasons before joining the Oilers. In 1992, he played for the Atlanta Falcons where he spent two seasons.

R.I.P. Drew.

Minnesota Vikings QB Brett Favre saw his string of consecutive games played snapped at 297 regular season games on Monday. But, that doesn’t mean his streaks are over.

Nope, this Monday night, his Vikings will take on the Chicago Bears and he isn’t going to play. That means that he’ll now be at two consecutive games not played. He probably won’t play the rest of the season, meaning he’ll head into retirement with four consecutive games not played.

This is big news.

It looks like by the time he is 60 or so, he’ll be able to match his streak of 297 consecutive games played with his new streak of not playing. He’ll then have the largest back-to-back streaks of playing and not playing in NFL history.

But, in order to pull this off, he’ll have the resist the temptation of stepping back onto an NFL field somewhere in his early 50′s.

We’re with you, Brett. OTR knows you can pull this off. Godspeed!

It feels like the NFL just started, but after this week 25 percent of the season will be done.  In a blink of an eye we’ll be a quarter of the way through.  So, before anything else flashes by, let’s get right into this weeks picks.

Houston Texans (-3) over Oakland Raiders

What a disappointing loss last week for the Houston Texans.  They were denied a 3-0 start against the Dallas Cowboys, a team they have always been second fiddle to in the state of Texas.  But playing second fiddle is better than not being able to play a fiddle at all.  Ladies and gentlemen, the Oakland Raiders.  After losing against the Arizona Cardinals last week in Glendale, the Raiders now face off against 13-straight teams they are supposed to lose to.  Some would say that’s a tough road ahead.  The stretch starts this Sunday against the Texans in the Raiders backyard.  A backyard that used to be so intimidating, but now resembles Chicago’s comedy club The Second City more than anything.  They have a great cast this year.  Tom Cable returned for his third season as the token, funny, fat guy.  Is he going to punch someone?  How many ex-wives does he have?  Man o man, he’s crazy!  Here comes Jason Campbell and Bruce Gradkowski.  Which one is going to throw an interception this week?  Who was that pass thrown to?  Stop, my stomach hurts, you guys are killing me!  Oh no…here comes big bad Richard Seymour.  Why is he always so mean?  No worries, Sebastian Janikowski just teed up the ball.  He’ll loosen everyone up with a wide left kick.  Oh, it was wide right.  Who saw that coming?  What a funny twist!  If you have a chance, buy some tickets for the show.  It’s full of laughs and very entertaining.  I believe this week might be a replay of Week One.  The cast forgets to block, commits many penalties, and turns the ball over.  Darren McFadden might guest star in an ‘oops, I’m running the wrong way’ skit.  That always gets’em.  Houston Texans 38 Oakland Raiders 13

San Francisco 49ers (+7) over Atlanta Falcons

What?  The San Francisco 49ers?  Don’t worry, I still have them losing by 6.9 points, I’m just taking the seven.  But if we can keep things real for a moment or two.  The Falcons are coming off a huge win in New Orleans, so a little set back might occur this week against the 49ers, a team that is more desperate for a win than Heidi Montag is for another week of plastic surgery.  And remember, I’m keeping it real.  What was the deal with everyone hyping up Alex Smith after the second half against New Orleans a couple Monday Nights ago?  Was everyone waiting for him to have one good game, so we could talk about how he has arrived?  And it wasn’t even one good game.  It was one good half.  If you don’t know what I’m talking about, Ron Jaworski and Jon Gruden wouldn’t shut up about how impressed they were with his play.  And it had the trickle down effect with other analysts during the week following on ESPN.  We’re talking about the 28th ranked quarterback in the NFL.  Smith has thrown two touchdowns and five interceptions this year for an 0-3 team.  David Garrard has a better passing rating.  Yes, I said David Garrard.  I’m sorry Jaws and Chuckie, but your boy isn’t an NFL quarterback and Coach Singletary might get fired because of it.  I almost just talked myself out of San Fran covering, but I’m going with my gut.  My gut tells me to take the Niners and the points.  Kristy Alley’s gut tells her to eat.  Go with what works.  Atlanta Falcons 20.9 San Francisco 49ers 14

New York Jets (-5.5) over Buffalo Bills

The New York Jets have a simple bus ride up to Buffalo and guess who’s driving?  Braylon Edwards…and he’s two red bull and vodkas deep.  Northbound with the hammer down.  That’s how loose things are under Coach Rex Ryan.  Speaking of Edwards, what’s up with his new endzone dance where he pretends he’s slicking back his hair from front to back, right in the face of the defender?  Is that going to be his thing all season long?  I sure hope so.  I guess it’s good he’s acting like John Travolta, cause it means he’s getting into the endzone.  Two scores this year already after only passing the pylons seven times in the past two seasons.  It seems like such a long time ago when he caught 16 touchdowns in 2007.  Will Santonio Holmes coming back from suspension help him or hurt him?  Too bad there isn’t anyone coming back from suspension for the Bills to help them get better.  Man, what a mess up there.  At what point do the fans just give their team to Toronto?  “We’ve had enough, you take’em.”  Buffalo is off to an 0-3 start, including two losses within the division.  There can’t be anything more depressing than finding out the NFL team you root for every year is already done in September…AGAIN.  However, there is one bright spot.  C. J. Spiller, the Bills 9th overall pick this past April.  Last weekend he got into the endzone twice against the Patriots, including a 95-yard kick off return in the third quarter.  He’ll need plenty of them this weekend if the Bills want to upset the Jets, but it’s not happening.  The Bills’ offense is so cold right now you can see the blue mountains of the Colorado Rockies visible on their uniforms.  Yes, Bills fans, time to drink.  New York Jets 23 Buffalo Bills 17

Baltimore Ravens (+1.5) over Pittsburgh Steelers

One looks at this game and they think, ‘this is going to be one defensive battle.’  Nope!  This has the potential to be one of the most highest scoring games in NFL history.  Quick question, what was the highest scoring game in NFL history?  Answer is…Washington Redskins 72 New York Giants 41, November 27th, 1966.  And just like that game, this game is also a division rivalry.  One of the best division rivalries in all of football.  A close second to the infamous Houston Texans-Jacksonville Jaguars rivalry that has football fans across America sitting at the edge of their seats everytime they play each other.  While everyone is prematurely yelling out Michael Vick and Jay Cutler for NFL MVP considerations, the Steelers have a player that is more important to his team than anyone else in the league.  Troy Polamalu.  For real.  I mean, how spectacular of a player is this guy?  He’s Head and Shoulders above the rest.  Unfortunately, the Ravens don’t have their Troy Polamalu (Ed Reed) in their lineup yet, but they do have 35-year old middle linebacker Ray Lewis, who still is the scariest player in the NFL to play against.  Despite the defensive names I’m throwing out there, I’m still thinking this will be a high-scoring affair.  Take the over, whatever it is.  It’s probably around 15 or 20 or something like that.  Baltimore Ravens 61 Pittsburgh Steelers 60

Season record (1-3)

Odds based on Thursday’s NFL lines on Vegasinsider, MGM Mirage.

The New Orleans Saints lost to the Atlanta Falcons at home on Sunday in an overtime thriller. Atlanta has a pretty nice team and these things do happen, but a win was there for the taking.

This loss would have been easier to swallow if kicker Garrett Hartley hadn’t missed a 29-yard field goal that would have ended overtime. As soon as it happened, I thought ‘oh boy, the Saints will probably try out some kickers this week.”

Then, we heard from Peter King on NBC.

“Just said on NBC that the Saints will audition some kickers this week. Garrett Hartley (who’s missed 46, 32 and 29 yarders) is on thin ice,” King tweets.

This doesn’t mean that Hartley is absolutely out of a job, but it does mean that the Saints are getting sick of the inconsistency. This is a guy who was money in the NFC Championship game and the Super Bowl last year. He was instrumental in helping the team get its first Super Bowl championship, but now he’s close to the chopping block.

Think being an NFL kicker is fun? Help the team win it all one year and you are on the hot seat by Week 3 the following season.

Gold Rushers vs Old Indians (-3)

What are you buying? The Kansas City Chiefs as a 2-0 team or the San Francisco 49ers as an 0-2 team? I said in the preseason that I thought the Chiefs had a shot to win the AFC West. Over the last eight years, seven teams have gone from worst to first in their division…so why not the Chiefs? If “Over Dwayne Bowe” can get his act together and develop an ounce of chemistry with Matt Cassel then KC has a shot to make some noise. That said, I don’t believe this team will be as dangerous as they can be until they stop the Thomas Jones experiment and put the ball in the hands of their most dangerous player… Jamaal Charles.

As Alex Smith goes…so go the Niners. Following a disappointing week one, something clicked in the 2nd half against New Orleans. The question now is whether or not Vernon Davis’ hairline will continue to recede. And can Smith keep it up? Look for Michael Crabtree to get more involved this week as the Chiefs will work to stop Davis and RB Frank Gore.

Chiefs are a three-point dawg at home…and for good reason. San Francisco wins easily in a hostile environment. If the Chiefs win, simply revert to what I said in the preseason!

Genus Falco (-4) vs Boondock

They are calling for thunderstorms in New Orleans come Sunday, but I hear the leaks in the Superdome should be patched up by now… so don’t expect it to affect the game too much.

When Drew Sunday Brees is spreading the ball around two things happen: 1. The Saints move the ball with ease 2. Fantasy football owners consider trading Marques Colston. That said, with Reggie Bush sidelined with a fractured leg and broken heart (thanks Kim!), Brees will likely look to get the ball back to his #1 target with frequency.

The Falcons are a much better team then I think people are giving them credit for. Their one loss came in overtime and at the hands of a great (to this point) defense in Pittsburgh. Despite a huge game last week, Jason Snelling still has a terrible last name. He also won’t push the Falcons to a win. Atlanta will need production from Michael Turner to keep Brees and Co. off the field. I like their chances and think this is a game that will come down to the last few possessions.

If it were in ATL, the Falcons might win outright…but I simply don’t think they can keep N.O. out of the endzone. I’ll take the Saints by seven.

Stuffers vs Paul Bryants (-3)

Green Bay is one of the favorites to come out of the NFC this season. They have one of the best QB’s in the game, a great receiving corp and a running back… oh wait… HAD a running back to complete the trio. I really think people are underestimating the loss of Ryan Grant. Do I think he is a stud? No… but I do think he is a big upgrade over Brandon Jackson. The Pack have the defense to apply pressure on opposing QB’s, but if they can’t sustain long drives and pick up first downs via the run game, they will quickly become one dimensional.

The Bears on the other hand are quietly surprising a few folks. Mike Martz finally (so far) has his guy that can make the throws in his offense. Built on speed, the Bears wide receivers are just good enough to make some plays down field and Matt Forte seems to have gotten over his sophomore slump. Dare I say the first two weeks have been a Marshall Faulk sighting? Provided Jay Cutler doesn’t come out and play like Jay Cutler the Bears will seriously challenge the Pack.

All for not. The Packers will have enough on D to slow down the big plays by the Bears, but Chi-town will struggle to keep Aaron Rodgers in check. Look for the ageless Donald Driver on a hovearound down the sideline!

Pack by 6.

Thieves vs Dolla’ Dolla’ Bills Ya’ll (-3)

What is more impressive? The fact that the Steelers have all but won two games on defense alone or that the Bucs have won two games… period? Josh Freeman has been a very productive QB thus far and has minimized his mistakes. Simply put, beating the Browns and Panthers doesn’t impress me much and this Buc stops here.

Photo Caption: Micah once carried this guy’s bags at a celebrity golf tournament.

The Steelers shut down an underrated Falcons offense and made Chris Johnson look like he belongs on the couch at home writing for OTR. I’m pretty confident Troy Polamalu’s hair could be taking snaps and the Steelers would find a way to win this one. Unfortunately, Head and Shoulders isn’t that lucky and it will most likely be Byron Leftwich. Getting off to a 3-0 start with Ben “its too easy to make a joke here” Roethlisberger is beyond what anyone would have/could have expected. In a low scoring affair, the Steelers still take this one by 10.

It’s a good thing Jason Snelling is so good, because the Atlanta Falcons just got a little thinner at running back. Jay Glazer of Foxsports.com is reporting that Jerious Norwood is finished for the year with a torn ACL.

“Another tough season-ender. I’m reporting Falcons RB Jerious Norwood has a torn ACL and will be placed on IR today,” Glazer tweets.

The Falcons had been worried about the knee, but now the bad news is confirmed. In Sunday’s blowout win over the Arizona Cardinals, Norwood was carted off the field. Never a good sign.

Michael Turner left Sunday’s blowout destruction of the Arizona Cardinals with a pulled groin. Turner’s fantasy owners then threw stuff at the television as Jason Snelling had three TD’s.

But, the good news is that the injury doesn’t seem to be serious.

“I’m told Michael Turner’s groin issue is mild and Falcons opting to rest him as a precuation in what quickly became a blowout,” Jason La Canfora tweets.

Whew! Still, with Jerious Norwood hurt, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to grab Snelling if he’s available.

The Atlanta Falcons selected DE Jamaal Anderson with the #8-overall pick back in 2007 out of Arkansas. He was expected to be beast for the Falcons, but now it seems that he’s viewed as much as a defensive tackle as he is an end. This usually means you weren’t kicking a lot of rear end at your natural position.

“He’s still going to be viewed as a defensive end slash defensive tackle,” said GM Thomas Dimitroff. “He’s a guy that has some versatility and Coach Smith has talked about it a number of times. There will be scenarios where he’ll be reduced (inside) and other times where he’ll be expected to be outside in the regular defense. We’ll be creative with our sub defense as far as getting the right mix of who we feel are the right pass rushers from play to play.”

Anderson has 2.5 sacks in 44 games and this just illustrates the point we’ve been making about this whole NFL draft weekend. People are talking about draft grades and who did well and who didn’t. You have no f’ing clue who did a good job or a bad job. No one knows if these guys can play yet and if you pretend like you know, you are a liar.

Here is what Charles Robinson of Yahoo! Sports had to say immediately following the 2007 draft:

Atlanta Falcons: Fantastic overall value for this class with 11 bodies. Atlanta addressed a lot of needs, and might have gotten three immediate starters in defensive end Jamaal Anderson, offensive tackle Justin Blalock and cornerback Chris Houston. The fast and feisty Houston might end up being the steal of this class, and he should pair well with DeAngelo Hall. Linebacker Stephen Nicholas should be a quality special teams player and improve the depth at the linebacker spot with his versatility. Wideout Laurent Robinson has the raw skill to be a playmaker, but he seems more likely to be another frustrating wideout for the Falcons.
Grade: A

He was at least right about the last part.

A source tells Steve Wyche of NFL.com that the majority of the deal is in place between former Houston Texan Dunta Robinson and the Atlanta Falcons. He expects a deal to be finalized by the end of the weekend.

This would be a good move for the Falcons, who desperately need help in the secondary. At this point, it seems like they are just dotting “i’s” and crossing “t’s” on the multi-year deal. According to Wyche, no problems are expected.

Why on Earth Atlanta Falcons fans still give a rat’s rear end about their former QB Michael Vick, we’ll never understand. This guy is a Turd Ferguson from start to finish. Forget about the fact that he fought dogs, tortured them and killed them. Let’s just talk about his actions on the field. He never tried that hard and even went so far as to flip off the fans at one point. Yet, they still love him.

Will they still love him after he admitted to 790 AM The Zone in Atlanta that he didn’t try that hard when he was with the Falcons? They probably will, but still, he recently said once again that he didn’t put forth that much effort for a team paying him north of $100 million.

“There was a lot more I could have done off the field and in the film room that could have elevated my game to a different level,” Vick said. “I was complacent at the time, somewhat lazy, and I settled for mediocrity. I thought what I was doing was enough.”

Vick, the QB of the Philadelphia Eagles who turns 30 in June, says he’s busting it now to prepare for another chance to start in the NFL, even if we don’t think he remotely deserves it.

“I’m stronger, I feel fast and I’m back to my old-school workouts,” he said. “I think you’ll see a big difference this year.”

Uh huh, whatever. But before the interview was done, he reiterated that he didn’t give his all for the Falcons or the city of Atlanta.

“I want to play my best football up until the age of 34 and 35, and I’m going to put everything into it,” said Vick. “Just imagine what I could have been doing if I really would have been applying myself. That’s a regret I have.”

And if Atlanta fans still want to put this dude on a pedestal than we don’t know what to tell you.

A DEA informant told federal agents that Vick was overheard talking with a steroid/HGH dealer and telling him that he “liked his product,” according to the Smoking Gun.

When asked by investigators back in 2007, Vick said that he “never used steroids or any type of human growth hormones,” according to an investigative memo.

Apparently, Vick was overheard saying this at a 2006 Atlanta Falcons team party.

The rest of the documents that were part of this just detailed his brutal killing of dogs and the fact that he seemed to get an adrenaline rush out of it. We still don’t think he should have been allowed back in the league.

But still, we’d love to know more about the steroids. It’s not like this guy is cut from a higher moral fabric and would never do something like this.

UPDATE:  Michael Turner is officially listed as active.

Alright, we never hear of Steve Wyche, but this guy is saying that Atlanta Flacons running back Michael Turner is expected to play on Sunday despite suffering from a high ankle sprain.

PHOTO CAPTION:  Michael Turner follows his block

This means that Steve Wyche is laying everything on the line with this prediction, because Turner still has to go on the field later today and test out his ankle.  The Falcons are hosting the unstoppable Tampa Bay Buccaneers when the sun rises on the 29th of November.

Jason Snelling is rubbing his hands together in preparation for another start.

Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Roddy White (knee), who has been listed as questionable all week, will play today against the New York Giants according to Jason La Canfora of NFL Network.

Roddy hasn’t found the endzone in the past two weeks after scoring touchdowns in the four previous games.  If the offensive line can protect Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan, don’t be surprised if Ryan throws up some big numbers today against a Giants secondary that is very weak.

Overpaid Washington Redskins cornerback DeAngelo Hall wants to file a formal complaint with Roger Goodell over what he called cheap shots from Atlanta Falcons coaches as he tried to break up a scrum on the sidelines. He says that his former team’s director of athletic performance, Jeff Fish, tried to “get some licks in.” He also claims that Falcons head coach Mike Smith “cussed me out.”

“I’m going to get on the horn with commissioner Goodell and we’re going to figure out a way how to nip this in the bud,” Hall said. “It’s different with me coming in trying to break stuff up and as a strength coach, if you coming at me and you’re trying to get [expletive] licks, that ain’t how you do things.

“They need to have some repercussions and something needs to happen to them, too. I’m definitely going to get on the phone with some of my guys up there and we’re going to try to figure out a way to nip this thing in the bud.”

Redskins head coach Jim Zorn thought the melee was under control.

“I thought everybody kept it together,” Zorn said. “I thought the officials handled it very well.

“I was watching on the big screen and I knew that DeAngelo was over there and I knew that was a bad place for him to be so I tried to get over there and help the situation. But even DeAngelo coming back to me, he had a real sense of control about the situation, too.”

We’ll see what comes of this. Hall is known to be a bit of a baby, but maybe he has a point here.

The Atlanta Falcons will be sans first-round pick DT Peria Jerry for the remainder of the season with a right knee injury. Supposedly, it’s more bone related than ACL related and he should be ready to go by next summer.

Of course, that is dependent on the injury not spreading to the brain, which could cause paralysis or death.

The Atlanta Falcons have brought in reinforcements to deal with the loss of Harry Douglas for the season. They signed former Bears WR Marty Booker and former Packers second-round pick Robert Ferguson.

The team also released WR Bradon Godfrey, like anyone knows who the hell that is.

According to NFL.com, Falcons holdout WR Roddy White wants more money than Green Bay Packers WR Greg Jennings got this summer. Jennings’ deal gives him $16 million in guaranteed money, but the deal could shoot to $30 million with incentives.

Well, we know that White ain’t gonna get Larry Fitzgerald money. He received a four-year, $40 million deal last year. That’s not happening for White. While we think he is an elite talent that will just get better as Matt Ryan grows, we don’t see him getting more than Greg Jennings. He should be happy to match that deal.

According to Matt Ryan’s teammates, he’s looking like he has improved dramatically this offseason….and he was pretty damn good last year.

“By leaps and bounds,” Atlanta fullback Ovie Mughelli said of Ryan on Wednesday. “It’s actually scary how much he’s improved and it’s only his second year. People thought he couldn’t get much better than last year.

“In the weight room, what he’s done out here, his arm strength, the way he reads plays, he’s gotten better in every aspect.”

This would be scary considering he looked so good as a rookie.

“The thing you see out there across the board is confidence, starting with Matt at quarterback, all the way down,” said center Todd McClure. “Everybody just has a different confidence than we had even last year, because we were trying to learn a new system. Now we have a year under our belt and that confidence can take us a long way if we can just stay together.”

The Atlanta Falcons have decided that it’s all not worth it anymore and have released QB Michael Vick.

“We spent a significant amount of time this off-season trying to trade him to another NFL club, and we had some conversations with a few teams, but nothing materialized,” said General Manager Thomas Dimitroff. “At this point, we feel releasing Michael is best for him and best for us. Our entire organization sincerely hopes that Michael will continue to focus his efforts on making positive changes in his life, and we wish him well in that regard.”

Vick will now hope to be reinstated by Roger Goodell, but if that doesn’t happen, look for Vick to join the fledgling UFL.

Uhhh…yeah. And in other news, Sammy Sosa is suspected of steroids use.

Bob Glauber of Newsday says that a source familiar with the situation says that the Falcons plan to release Michael Vick in training camp after they hear what Roger Goodell plans to do with him. The theory in holding on to him is that they still might be able to get something for him in trade at that point. Even though….they couldn’t even get a 7th-round pick for him in the last few months.

We think Vick will just get cut at some point regardless of when that is (what does that even mean?). We can’t see anyone giving anything up to get a guy that is probably most suited to run the Wildcat formation, which is run probably 8% on offensive snaps. If that.