J.Mike's Missives

The Falcons are heading to Dallas.

Get ready, Texas.

I spent a football season living in Houston back in college. As a 21-year-old intern I had no preconceived notions about Texas or its unique love affair with football. But in just a few weeks I couldn’t help following high school football in the Lone Star State.

And that’s where it begins.

With this in mind, I found a nice YouTube feature that pulls together clips from “Friday Night Lights.” I know it’s a movie, but it gets the blood flowing and captures some of the essence and passion of high school football in Texas.

When I made a trip to Texas Stadium for a Thanksgiving Day game in 2005 I realized fans in Texas aren’t just rowdy on Friday night. Football is a way of life that carries through the weekend and year.

It may not be as colorful as a trip to Oakland or Philadelphia, but Texas can pack a punch for a visiting team. The Cowboys have history, tradition and the honor of playing what seems to be an endless number of nationally-televised games no matter what’s on the line or either team’s record.

Atlanta is facing “America’s Team” this weekend. So, to be honest, a Falcons win Sunday would make me as excited as Homer Simpson when he got his hands on Tom Landry’s Hat.

I hope Falcons fans feel the same.

What to Watch For in Week 7, AF.com
Special thanks to New Media Intern Nate for using his knowledge of the game to compile a few notes on what the key stats could be come Sunday evening. Click here for additional numbers related to Falcons-Cowboys.

The NFL is trying to crackdown on flagrant fouls, Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Being physical is one thing. Breaking the rules is another.

Smith sings praises of backup RB Snelling, ESPN.com
Jason Snelling’s game has gotten better and better as he’s matured in the league. Now he’s having to prepare to play a game at two different positions — fullback and tailback. Oh yeah… There’s special teams too.

Doraville doesn’t see stadium idea as a winner, Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Just doing the customary “keeping up with stadium” post.

Cowboys vs. Falcons: When Stats Lie, Blogging the Boys
Some comments on Falcons stats from the other side.

Falcons-Cowboys game day package, Atlanta Journal-Constitution
If the Cowboys  top three running backs are healthy enough to play the Falcons may have their hands full.

Smith on how Falcons decide on no-huddle offense, ESPN.com
The no-huddle offense is a great tool. But it’s not something that can be used straight out of the box. It takes conditioning and skilled hands at operator.

Falcons not worried about Brooking passing secrets, Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Let’s be real for a moment. Yes, teams try to find out each other’s secrets. Since everyone knows this, great care is taken to prevent it from working. Thus, nothing to worry about.

Dahl is one mean, dancing dude, Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Don’t look for any Falcons offensive linemen on “Dancing with the Stars.”

J. Michael Moore Birdseed AF.com, AJC, Blogging the Boys, Dallas Cowboys, Dancing with the Stars, ESPN.com, Friday Night Lights, Friday Pep Talk, Harvey Dahl, Jason Snelling, Keith Brooking, New Media Intern Nate, Texas, The Simpsons, Tom Landry, travel

Shameless plug alert…

If you saw my rather ambiguous tweet Sunday night about a “surprise” coming to AF.com, you’re probably wondering why I have to be so secretive and coy.

Simple. Matt Moore will crack a camera on my head if I reveal too many details about his special project.

Sunday night the AF.com team began work on the Motorola Players’ Challenge — a new feature for the 2009 season that, well, challenges players on their knowledge of Falcons teammates.

It’s a season-long tournament, with the first head-to-head matchup airing on AF.com the week of the first regular-season game.

Shameless plug over. Begin Birdseed download…

Roddy White ends holdout, inks new deal with Falcons, USA Today
Big news of the day, Falcons fans. More from Roddy White later on AF.com (for more on contract numbers from ESPN.com, click here)

Blank learning to stay in background, Atlanta Journal-Constitution
In any business, it’s important to surround yourself with good people. Now entering my sixth season in the NFL, I can say — without a doubt — some of the smartest people in the game work on the other side of the building scouting for the Falcons and forming a franchise.

Memories stir for Elam at Friday Night Lights, AF.com
Special thanks to John Manasso for helping the AF.com team and running all over Brookwood Community Stadium to get info for this story.

Peterson talks a big game, Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Mike Peterson. Master of on-the-field chatter.

Falcons, Elam return to Gwinnett, Gwinnett Daily Post
I don’t know who enjoys Friday Night Lights more, fans or Falcons players.

Atlanta Falcons live and under the lights of Friday night, Examiner.com
Yeah, it was a scrimmage but that doesn’t mean nothing was on the line. Players fight for jobs during training camp. Nothing like a little live-action football to show the full body of skills.

Mailbag: Atlanta Falcons edition, ESPN.com
I’ll be sure to catch up with Pat Yasinskas when he makes it to Flowery Branch for another YouTube interview.

Falcons try to work through distractions, The Anderson (S.C.) Independent-Mail
Losing Harry Douglas for the season wasn’t easy. But in the past few days the Falcons responded by getting two veteran receivers.

The 2009 Falcons: A worse record but a better team?, Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Now that headline just seems odd and backwards. But, I see the point.

Thomas DeCoud ‘penciled in’ to be the starter for the Atlanta Falcons at safety, Examiner.com
The injury to William Moore, which could keep him off the field for up to a month, makes the starting picture at safety a little clearer. Perhaps.

NFL Photos: Falcons ‘Roam the Dome,’ Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The video boards. The cheerleaders. The fans. Hard not to get ready for some football.

Dimitroff shapes scouting department to his liking, Atlanta Journal-Constitution
See earlier comments about surrounding oneself with smart, hard-working people.

Falcons hold tryouts for punt returner, Atlanta Journal-Constitution
No question the team has players with the appropriate skills to be a punt returner. Just one problem. Catching punts isn’t like working the outfield in church-league softball. It’s an art.

J. Michael Moore Birdseed, training camp AF.com, AJC, Allstate All-Access Weekend, Arthur Blank, Brookwood High School, ESPN.com, Examiner.com, Friday Night Lights, Gwinnett Daily Post, Harry Douglas, Jason Elam, John Manasso, Mike Pterson, Motorola, Pat Yasinskas, Roam the Dome, Roddy White, The Independent-Mail, Thomas DeCoud, William Moore

Sitting in the press box at the Georgia Dome fighting back feelings of nostalgia and listening to D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution sing along with “One Thing Leads to Another…”

The Falcons plan to kickoff the mock game at Roam the Dome around 12:30 p.m. but thousands of fans are already filing into the Dome.

Roam the Dome doesn’t offer the same, live action scrimmage feel from Friday Night Lights, but the trade off comes in the game day atmosphere. The team plans to show the 2009 NFL Films highlight real on the new, HD scoreboards and a full-scale team introduction will push out from the tunnel.

Why? To get the team used to a game-day atmosphere and all the non-football bells and whistles from an NFL game.

The coach-to-player headsets are plugged in and ready to go. The music is pumping and the team will go through a routine, pre-game warm up.

No wonder Head Coach Mike Smith’s teams are comfortable at home.

More photos and some Flip video to come from the event…

J. Michael Moore Georgia Dome, News, training camp AJC, Allstate All-Access Weekend, D. Orlando Ledbetter, Friday Night Lights, Georgia Dome, Roam the Dome

BLOGGER’S NOTE: For an archive of the live blog from Friday Night Lights, click here.

Some names and faces on the roster have changed, but there’s nothing like a little rematch to get the juices flowing.

The Falcons defense took an early lead in the second Allstate All-Access Friday Night Lights, this time at Brookwood High School, but the offense stormed back to walk away with a 37-34 win.

The team’s defense won the inaugural event, which uses a unique offensive and defensive scoring system 29-28.

Defensive play makers included Brent Grimes, who expanded his group’s lead in the first half by stripping the ball from tight end Justin Peelle, recovering the fumble and racing 35 yards for a touchdown.

Minor scoring continued with points being awarded for defensive stops, three-and-outs and offensive drives into the defense’s half of the field (click here for detail).

The offense turned to the running game to wear the defense down and got three scores — touchdown runs by Jerious Norwood and Thomas Brown and a 20-yard pass to Michael Jenkins from Matt Ryan.

J. Michael Moore News, training camp Brent Grimes, Brookwood High School, Friday Night Lights, highlights, Jerious Norwood, Justin Peelle, Matt Ryan, Michael Jenkins, Russell Falcons Training Camp, Thomas Brown

BLOGGER’S NOTE: I’ll be live blogging the events at Allstate All-Access Friday Night Lights for those who can’t make it out to Brookwood or into the state of Georgia. You can access it at www.atlantafalcons.com/live.

Football in the south is serious business.

Any time I start to doubt this assertion, something comes along to slap me back to reality.

Take a look Falcons fans at the facilities at Brookwood High School.

When Sam Baker gets to the Dave Hunter Sports Complex in a few minutes he’ll surely shake his head in approval when he takes in the locker rooms.

Football in the south is serious business.

The only way an event like Friday Night Lights works is if it’s held at high schools that can handle the masses of an NFL football team and its legions of fans.

Judging from the thousands of fans that were at the gate nearly an hour before opening, the Falcons will be in good shape on both fronts.

J. Michael Moore Feature, training camp Allstate All-Access Weekend, Brookwood High School, Fans, Friday Night Lights, high school football, Sam Baker

Curtis Lofton injured his hamstring Saturday but, after a few days of working on the side with trainers, he’s close to a return to the field.

“Curtis, I think is getting closer,” Head Coach Mike Smith said Monday. “If it was during the season and we were closer to a game. I think it would be a different situation in terms of getting him back.

“We’d like to get him back as quickly as possible.”

Lofton started 15 of 16 regular season games last season at middle linebacker. He was working with the starting unit again this preseason before the injury.

MORE NOTES FROM PRACTICE BEFORE FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS…

… Wide receiver Robert Ferguson finished his second practice with the team on Friday morning. Recently acquired receiver Marty Booker was not at practice. Smith said the team expects Booker, who signed late Thursday night, should join the team before the end of the weekend.

… Quarterbacks will wear blue jerseys at Friday’s scrimmage (makes sense considering the classic “red” jerseys for QBs would blend in. Remember, red means stop).

…So what will the coaching staff look for at Friday Night Lights? “We know there’s going to be mistakes in the scrimmage tonight,” Smith said. “We’re looking for the guys to go out and communicate, play with a lot of effort and play with a lot of enthusiasm. If you communicate properly, it means you’re all on the same page.”

… Ferguson, a seven-year veteran, said he hopes to provide some leadership to the Falcons. “It doesn’t matter how long you’ve been playing. I think leadership is a personality; it’s definitely a personality trait of mine. I feel like I carry myself as a leader all the time. That comes with the territory, being around young guys and just going out there and working hard.”

J. Michael Moore News, training camp Allstate All-Access Weekend, Curtis Lofton, Friday Night Lights, Head Coach Mike Smith, injury, Marty Booker, Robert Ferguson

Want to loop everyone in on the plans for tonight at Allstate All-Access Friday Night Lights. I’ll be doing a live blog via CoverItLive (click here to get a peek and set a reminder).

The Falcons will conduct their first live scrimmage at Brookwood High School and, though it’s offensive against defense, Head Coach Mike Smith developed a scoring system to make it like a real game.

I understand many Falcons fans won’t be able to attend so I’ll give you as much insight and play-by-play as possible, especially since this is the first time the Falcons will really hit and take each other to the ground.

More from practice later this morning and more from Brookwood tonight. But, for now, enjoy a late Birdseed breakfast.

Falcons sign free agent WRs, Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Busy night in Flowery Branch. It’s all about press releases, roster moves and bio building!

Team examines options in absence of Douglas, AF.com
Before the roster moves, John Manasso wrote about the players that could help fill in for Harry Douglas all ready on the roster. They still could have an impact.

Roveto back at Brookwood with Falcons, Gwinnett Daily Post
If the Falcons practice facility is “Cheers,” Roveto is Norm. Veto! Happy to see your name in the headlines. Now you’re never going to hear the end of it.

White’s agent discusses holdout, Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Starting to think we’ll see a story a day on this.

Falcons add WR Booker, ESPN.com
Between the addition of Marty Booker and Robert Ferguson the Falcons added a combined 18 years of NFL experience to the roster on Thursday.

Staying focused becomes the top priority for Atlanta Falcons, Examiner.com
It’s an old but proven saying. Something about how a man handles himself in the face of adversity.

Roddy’s rude awakening: WRs aren’t held in high esteem, Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Interesting perspective. Ranking receivers can get you in trouble but throw in the idea of “interchangeability” (is that a word?) and it makes the argument more diverse.

Blank found paradise in solitude of Montana, Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Having spent some years living out west, I can say it’s one of the most beautiful locations on Earth.

J. Michael Moore Birdseed, training camp AF.com, AJC, Allstate All-Access Weekend, Arthur Blank, CoverItLive, Examiner.com, Friday Night Lights, Gwinnett Daily Post, Harry Douglas, Head Coach Mike Smith, John Manasso, John Roveto, Marty Booker, Robert Ferguson, Roddy White

The Falcons released dates and times for Russell Falcons Training Camp practices Thursday, so get the calendars ready and start making plans.

A total of 14 practices will be open to the public in Flowery Branch. Two more events — Friday Night Lights and Roam the Dome — will be open to fans on the weekend of August 7.

Both are part of Allstate All-Access Weekend, which will feature a live scrimmage at Brookwood High School (Friday Night Lights) and a practice open to all fans at the Georgia Dome (Roam the Dome).

For anything and everything training camp, click here.

J. Michael Moore News, training camp Brookwood High School, Friday Night Lights, Roam the Dome, Russell Falcons Training Camp