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Tue. Sep 13, 2005

Monday Night Smash Mouth Football

I tuned into the Falcons-Eagles pre-game show at 8:35, a half hour before kickoff. And two players had already been ejected from the game for fighting. Before it had begun.

Moments later, another brawl nearly broke out. As the Atlanta players were trotting back to the locker room, they noticed the Eagles gathering on the Falcons logo in the middle of the field.

The Falcons ran en masse back to the 50-yard line and fought for position with the Eagles, forcing the officials to separate the teams again. No punches were thrown, and both teams went off slowly in opposite directions to their respective locker rooms.

Gawd I’m glad the NFL season has begun! Now we can deal with matters of consequence. Like huge men facing off and growling over some paint in the center of a field of fake grass.

Are you ready for some football?

Too ready, apparently.

They should have saved it for the game. It was smash mouth football, with bodies flying all over the field. The Way It Was Intended. The Falcons won, 14-10. As It Should Be.

People tune in for Michael Vick and the Atlanta offense, to see how he’s matured and grown from last year, but I’ll tell you, tonight it was the Atlanta defense that showed how they’ve matured and grown. They came out strong from the start, and held a potent offense to one touchdown. Other than that drive, they bent but didn’t break, and stopped them when it counted all … night … long.

I think the Atlanta offense is still a work in progress. Granted, they were facing a defense that has been one of the best in the NFL for years, but they still only seem to be running on five cylinders sometimes. After all, both of their touchdowns came in the first quarter, and nothing but sputter after that. Still, it was enough.

And the laughs have returned. I’ve mentioned before, Michael Vick brings a response from me that is pretty unique in my 27 years of following the Falcons; he makes me laugh like hell sometimes. He’ll fly by four defenders as if they were, well, me, and I’ll just bust out like a hyena. It’s like watching the Road Runner blow by the hapless Coyote. Again. All he lacks is the “Meep-Meep” sound effect.

Laugh inducing Michael Vick moments tonight: 4.

Whatever their problems off the field, McNabb and T.O. seem to still communicate pretty well when the game’s on. But tonight, when a drop of sweat fell off T.O.’s arm, it landed on #21, DeAngelo Hall. T.O. may have 7 catches for 112 yards … but no touchdowns. No huge gainers. Because Hall was on him like spots on dice all night.

It was like that for the Eagles all night long. They moved the ball. Made some plays. But not when it counted. The Falcons made those plays.

Meet the new boss. Not the same as the old boss.