While appearing on SiriusXMNFL radio on Friday morning, Atlanta GM Thomas Dimitroff indicated that the Falcons might be willing to be covered this year on HBO’s Hard Knocks.

“Two years ago we were approached and decided that it wasn’t right for us at that point,” Dimitroff said. “That’s not to say we wouldn’t go down that road if it was presented to us at another time. We are much closer to being in that spot where it’s not going to be as much of a distraction as it would have been another time.

“It’s such an individual thing. Hard Knocks could be right for some of the teams that are fairly entrenched. It could be right for some team that wants to kick off some more brand recognition.”

“I truly believe that an organization has to be in the right spot to jump into something like Hard Knocks,” Dimitroff said. “I think it sheds a lot of light on our league. This is a league of entertainment. There are some traditionalists that struggle with it, but they have to work against the grain a little bit and see that this is about entertainment. Hard Knocks is a good show for the fan base.”

Some Falcon fans might be worried that the show would become a distraction, but I would trust Dimitroff. He’s smart, calculated and he wouldn’t agree to anything that he believed would hurt his team. Outside of a few names that have come and gone, the Falcons have basically had the same coaching staff in place since 2008 and their core (Matt Ryan, Roddy White, Michael Turner, John Abraham and Tony Gonzalez) remains intact. This is a grounded organization that shouldn’t be rocked by a potential distraction such as Hard Knocks.

Of course, the Falcons would be the polar opposite of Rex Ryan and the Jets. Mike Smith can get as fired up as any coach in the league, but he’s always even-keeled and calm with the media. And while Roddy White can be flamboyant from time to time, I’m not sure if Ryan, Turner and Gonzalez have dropped an F-bomb in their lives.

In other words, if the Falcons are the next team filmed for Hard Knocks, don’t expect the same foul-mouthed program that the Jets produced last year. (Not that I’m complaining – Ryan and the Jets were highly entertaining.)

Heading into this year’s draft, the overall consensus was that the Falcons would use their first round pick (No. 27 overall) on defense after they gave up 48 points in an embarrassing Divisional Round loss to the Packers last January.

But that ugly showing inside the Georgia Dome that night must have showed GM Thomas Dimitroff that he had a more pressing need than defense. One that facilitated the biggest trade so far of the 2011 NFL Draft.

It was apparent in the Falcons’ loss to the Packers that they didn’t have another receiver opposite Roddy White to stretch the defense. In fact, the Falcons had an issue all season in gaining yards after the catch. Tight end Tony Gonzalez is still productive, but he’s lost a step over the years. Michael Jenkins comes up with a couple of clutch receptions every season and is a solid blocker in the run game (an important skill in Atlanta‘s offense), but he doesn’t threaten defenses with his speed. Slot receiver Harry Douglas does have good speed, but he’s been slow to recover from a knee injury that he suffered in training camp in 2010.

So Dimitroff packaged five picks (including his 2012 first round selection) in order to move all the way up to No. 6 (which was the Browns’ original pick) in order to select Alabama receiver Julio Jones in the first round on Thursday night. Jones is the ultimate blue-chip prospect. He can break tackles, make plays after the catch and yes, stretch defenses vertically. Assuming Jones isn’t a bust in the making, defenses won’t be able to double-team White and Matt Ryan now has even more weapons at his disposal.

In other words, Jones is exactly what Dimitroff knew the Falcons needed the night the Packers took it to them in January. (Not that they would have won either way – Green Bay was on a mission last year.)

Granted, it cost Dimitroff a small fortune in picks in order to get up to No. 6. This is the type of trade that could wind up setting the Falcons back for years if Jones doesn’t pan out. And hey, the Packers also showed that Atlanta has a massive need for another pass rusher and a reliable nickel back.

But keep in mind that the Falcons are built to win now and Jones makes an already dangerous offense even more potent (assuming he develops, of course). Yes, it was a lot to give up for one player – probably too much, in fact. But give Dimitroff credit for having the cajones to make a bold move like this. If it pays off, it could be one of those decisions that we look back and say, “This team doesn’t reach the Super Bowl if Dimitroff stays at No. 27 that year.”

Dimitroff’s work isn’t done. A team doesn’t give up 48 points in a home playoff game without having some major holes defensively. But assuming the lockout eventually ends, Dimitroff still has an entire free agency period to address the Falcons’ other needs (Ray Edwards anyone?). And it’s not like he has ignored that side of the ball; he’s spent the last three offseasons adding Curtis Lofton, Sean Weatherspoon, Peria Jerry, William Moore and Dunta Robinson. You don’t get to be a two-time NFL Executive of the Year like Dimitroff without having a game plan.

The game plan on Thursday night was to try and ensure that there isn’t a repeat of that playoff loss to Green Bay.

I don’t fault anyone who thought the Falcons should hire two new coordinators, set fire to the Georgia Dome carpet and draft seven new defensive backs in April after the Packers torched Atlanta 48-21 in the postseason.

But that would have been an overreaction and after the Falcons went 13-3 this season, there’s no need to panic just because they were humiliated in the playoffs.

Pardon the clichéd expression but Rome wasn’t built in a day. Owner Arthur Blank had a real mess on his hands when Michael Vick was hauled off to prison and Bobby Petrino left in the middle of the night to go call hogs in Arkansas. But he made one really great decision in hiring GM Thomas Dimitroff, who then made one really great decision in hiring Mike Smith as head coach.

Smith, who has guided the Falcons to a 33-15 record in three years as head coach, was just given a well-deserved three-year contract extension. Don’t be surprised if Dimitroff were given a new deal as well, which would be smart on Blank’s part. This is a team that needs to stay the course.

The Falcons’ biggest goal is shared by all 32 teams: Win a Super Bowl. But while they want to emulate the success that the Steelers and Packers have had this season, they can’t worry about trying to model themselves after either team. The Steelers have had great defenses for decades and Ted Thompson spent years building the roster that the Packers will feature this Sunday in Arlington. Just because the Falcons aren’t in the position that Green Bay is right now doesn’t mean they need to start over.

That’s why firing Mike Mularkey and/or Brian VanGorder would have been a rash decision based mostly on what happened in the Green Bay game. VanGorder took a lot of well-deserved criticism for his game plan against the Packers. It’s not that he failed to create pressure – his defenders reached Aaron Rodgers, they just rarely got him to the ground. His biggest failure came when he decided to keep his corners seven yards off the ball and never adjusted after Rodgers shredded his defense in the first half. Had the Falcons fired him walking into the tunnel that night, not many fans would have argued. (I wouldn’t have either.)

But the loss also proved that the Falcons’ defense is still a work in progress and keep in mind that Smith (who was a D-coordinator in Jacksonville before Atlanta made him its HC) has a hand in the defense’s success and failures as well. They need to add another pass-rusher. They need Sean Weatherspoon to stay healthy and develop quickly so that the team’s linebacker corps isn’t such a liability in coverage. They need a quality nickel back.

Simply put, they need to keep improving.

The same can be said for the offense. Smith wants to be physical on both sides of the ball, which is why Mularkey won’t be replaced unless he’s hired away as a head coach. Michael Turner and more importantly, Matt Ryan, fit Mularkey’s offense. Yes, the Falcons need to add a receiver opposite Roddy White because their inability to stretch a defense last year hurt them in the end. Michael Jenkins is a better player than people give him credit for, but he lacks burst and can’t separate from defenders. That’s why a player like Vincent Jackson or Malcolm Floyd would be a great addition to an already good offense.

But making additions doesn’t mean they need to go back to the drawing board. The Packer game was a disaster – period. But Green Bay has also proven to be a damn fine football team and it flat out just played better than Atlanta that night. The Packers played arguably their best game of the season, while the Falcons played their worst. The result was a 48-21 Green Bay victory. It happens. Learn from it and move forward. Look at the Packers a year ago. They came off an embarrassing defensive performance against the Cardinals, but Thompson didn’t panic. He tweaked his defensive personnel a bit and now Green Bay is in the Super Bowl.

Signing Smith to a contact extension was smart. Signing Dimitroff to a new deal will be even smarter. But being patient will be the keys to whether or not the Falcons wind up playing in a Super Bowl next year or beyond. They’re on the right track.

Using Atlanta GM Thomas Dimitroff’s exact words, the Falcons have publicly stated over the past couple weeks that they would be “fiscally responsible” when it comes to spending money on free agents this offseason. In other words, the Falcons are expected to be awfully quiet in free agency and instead focus on the draft.

But as of Friday morning, the Falcons appear to be a lock to land former Texan Dunta Robinson, who along with Leigh Bodden is one of the top cornerbacks on the market. Robinson is currently in Atlanta now and a deal could be wrapped up by the end of the day.

Despite Dimitroff’s stated plan to fly under the radar this offseason, the Falcons know that their number one need is in the secondary. They re-signed veteran Brian Williams to a one-year deal on Thursday, but he’s 31 and missed most of the 2009 season after tearing his ACL. Chris Houston (a 2007 second round pick) was eventually supposed to emerge as the team’s No. 1 corner and while he’s a tremendous athlete, he has trouble playing the ball when it’s in the air and often gets beat in coverage. Brent Grimes is arguably the team’s best athlete, but he can be beat by taller, more physical wideouts that tower over his listed 5-10 (that’s being generous) frame. Chevis Jackson and Chris Owens are bigger corners that Dimitroff drafted in the middle rounds over the last two years, but they still have a ways to go in their development.

For the Falcons, it’s all about matching up with the Saints. They know they need all the corner help they can get since they have to play New Orleans twice a year, which is why they’re willing to spend big on Robinson. Obviously we don’t know what the final contract numbers will be, but there’s a good chance Atlanta slightly overpays for Robinson because corner is such a need area.

Robinson failed to produce an interception last season, but still displayed the skills necessary to be a top-flight corner. He certainly wasn’t great in coverage, but with a new deal and a new team, he should be motivated to play well next year. If the Falcons do land him, they’ll be taking a significant step in their efforts to return to the playoffs.

12:20PM ET Update: Adam Schefter reports that the Falcons tried to acquire Robinson before the trade deadline last year. If that’s the case, whatever Atlanta signs Robinson for today will be a bargain, seeing as how they didn’t have to give up a draft pick on top of a long-term contract.

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]]> http://www.scoresreport.com/2010/03/05/dunta-robinson-a-falcon-by-the-end-of-the-day/feed/ 0 http://www.scoresreport.com/2009/08/26/did-the-falcons-give-up-too-soon-on-robinson/ http://www.scoresreport.com/2009/08/26/did-the-falcons-give-up-too-soon-on-robinson/#comments Wed, 26 Aug 2009 16:06:34 +0000 Anthony Stalter http://www.scoresreport.com/?p=23124

When the Atlanta Falcons selected receiver Laurent Robinson out of Illinois State in the third round of the 2007 draft, they envisioned the 6’2, 194-pound receiver becoming either a solid No. 2, or possibly even a No. 1 if Roddy White (who struggled in his first two years) failed to develop.

But after caching 37 passes for 437 yards and a touchdown his rookie year, knee and hamstring injuries limited Robinson to just five receptions in six games last season. With the emergence of second-year receiver Harry Douglas, Atlanta GM Thomas Dimitroff traded Robinson to the Rams this past April. In exchange, the Falcons and Rams swapped fifth and sixth round picks in the ’09 draft.

It’s hard to criticize anything Dimitroff has done in his first two offseasons in Atlanta. After all, he hired a solid head coach in Mike Smith, signed free agent Michael Turner, drafted franchise quarterback Matt Ryan, and traded for future Hall of Fame tight end Tony Gonzalez. It’s no wonder why Dimitroff was named the 2008 NFL Executive of the Year.

But a couple of years down the road (or possibly much, much sooner), I have a feeling that Dimitroff will look back on the Robinson deal as one of his bigger goof ups. And I don’t say that only because Douglas suffered a season-ending injury in camp this year and Atlanta is in a bit of a bind at slot receiver; I say it because Robinson could emerge as a quality playmaker very soon.

In two preseason games, Robinson has caught seven passes for 117 yards and has vastly outplayed Keenan Burton for the No. 2 receiver position in St. Louis’ offense. With his play thus far, Robinson is earning a starting job opposite Donnie Avery, as soon as Avery comes back from the stress fracture injury he suffered a couple weeks ago.

Some folks are probably reading this and thinking to themselves, “Wow Stalter, the guy has caught seven passes for 117 yards in two preseason games and you’re ready to compare him to Jerry Rice.”

I realize that Robinson has a long way to go to prove himself, but call it a hunch that he’s going to develop into something more than just a slot or No. 2 reciever. In the Rams’ second preseason game last Saturday against (ironically) the Falcons, Robinson was better than the stat sheet would indicate. He created separation from the defensive backs, caught everything that was thrown his direction, used his body well in traffic and on balls he had to jump for, he caught them at their highest point. In other words, he flashed all the skills necessary to become a quality receiver in the NFL.

I hate to criticize Dimitroff, even in the slightest. But chances are that he got robbed in the deal for Robinson, because the third-year wideout will probably be worth more than what Dimitroff got in return.

Traditionally, the WR2 in the St. Louis offense has been pretty productive. But Mike Martz is long gone, so how will Robinson fare if he is indeed the starter? Marc Bulger is still semi-capable when healthy, and with Steven Jackson in the backfield and Donnie Avery on the other side, defenses will not be able to focus on stopping Robinson. The Rams are likely to be playing catch up about 90% of the time, so I fully expect Robinson will rack up receptions and yards late in games. I wouldn’t expect too many scores, however, so he’ll hold more value in PPR leagues than in standard or TD-heavy formats. Considering what the Falcons got in return, Robinson’s 2009 campaign should make them regret their decision to trade him away.

Roddy White deserves to be paid like a No. 1 receiver – he just doesn’t deserve to be paid like Larry Fitzgerald.

White, the Falcons best receiver and top playmaker, is currently in holdout mode in hopes of getting a new contract. He’s in the final year of his rookie deal that will pay him $2.28 million this season and if he can’t reach a contract agreement with the Falcons, he’ll be a restricted free agent next year since the owners are opting out of the collective bargaining agreement. (2010 is heading for an uncapped year.)

Last season, White hauled in 88 passes for 1,382 yards and seven touchdowns while helping to lead Atlanta to a miraculous playoff appearance. But when the Falcons opened their doors for training camp last Friday, White was nowhere to be found and is reportedly working out on his own in Alabama. Making matters worse for the Falcons, they just lost slot receiver Harry Douglas (who has been subbing for White during the holdout) for the season after he tore his ACL on Wednesday.

According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, contract talks between White and the Falcons have soured, with GM Thomas Dimitroff indicating that the holdout could go deep into camp. With White seeking a deal similar to what Fitz got (four years, $40 million), the Falcons may soon pull their offer off the table and make Roddy play out the final year of his contract.

This situation could have been avoided had White and his agent showed a little more trust and humility from the start. While White certainly has put up fantastic numbers these past two seasons (171 receptions, 2,584 yards, 13 TDs), he also shorted the Falcons during the first two years of his contract when he only caught 59 passes for a messily 952 yards and three touchdowns.

White and his agent shouldn’t be held over the coals for wanting to get a new deal done before the season starts. After all, NFL contracts aren’t guaranteed and if White had hurt himself like Douglas did, then the Falcons could have low-balled him when it came time to renew at the end of the season.

But what’s puzzling is that White was almost ran out of town because he couldn’t hang onto the ball in his first two years and now he’s holding the Falcons at gun point while seeking a new contract. Receivers typically don’t mature until their third season, but White barely showed even a flicker of promise in his first two years and many NFL pundits were ready to deem him a bust. Yet the Falcons stood by him and when Bobby Petrino brought his gimmick passing offense to Atlanta in 2007, White flourished.

So this is how White repays the team that stuck by him? By demanding a new contract after he barely filled the requirements for his first one? Again, I don’t blame White for seeking a new deal; after all, this is business. But he should have reported to camp and trusted that Dimitroff (the reigning NFL Executive of the Year mind you) would have gotten a deal worked out at some point during the year, just as he did for Michael Jenkins and Jonathan Babineaux in 2008.

Chances are, White would have received a fair deal that worked out for both him and the Falcons. Yet because of his arrogance and defiance, he’s pissing Dimitroff off and who knows when (or if) a deal will get worked out.

And in case you’ve forgotten, Dimitroff cut his teeth in the Patriots’ organization, so he’s going to bend to athletes forcing him to dole out a new contract. Even with Douglas’s injury, Dimitroff isn’t going to feel pressured to get a deal done with White and chances are, he’s already got a backup plan ready in case Roddy wants to continue his holdout well into the fall. (Although I will say that Dimitroff screwed the pooch by trading Laurent Robinson to the Rams for a couple of practice tees this offseason.)

According to the National Football Post, the Falcons are interested in trading for Chiefs’ tight end Tony Gonzalez.

Lombardi reports that the Falcons may be willing to give up their second round draft pick (#55 overall) in order to obtain the services of Gonzalez.

The move makes sense as Justin Peelle, the Falcons top tight end target from 2008, caught only 15 passes for 159 yards and 2 touchdowns in 16 games last season.

Meanwhile, Gonzalez is coming off another Pro Bowl season in which he hauled in 96 receptions for 1,058 yards and 10 touchdowns.

More on this story as it develops.

If you’re looking for a connection, Atlanta’s GM is Thomas Dimitroff, who used to be the Director of College Scouting for the Patriots under former New England general manager and now current Kansas City GM Scott Pioli.

But even with that connection, this rumor is still a little far-fetched. None of the major media outlets have had anything to say about a possible trade and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that so far, there’s ‘nothing concrete about the rumor.’

Yes, the Falcons do want to give a pass-catching tight end to quarterback Matt Ryan. But to give up a second round pick for Gonzo is a steep price when you consider how many holes Atlanta has on the defensive side of the ball. The Falcons haven’t been major players in free agency this offseason, instead choosing to wait for the draft to fill their needs. It’s unlikely that Dimitroff would give up his second round pick when there are pressing holes at linebacker, defensive tackle, safety and defensive end. I’m not saying it wouldn’t be a good trade, it’s just seems a little unrealistic at this point.