27 years ago Dan Marino set the NFL single season yards passing record and now that record has been passed along to New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees during his NFC South title clinching  45-16  victory over the Atlanta Falcons

To capture the record Brees threw for 307 yards and four touchdowns, setting the record on a 9-yard pass to Darren Sproles with 2:51 left to go in the game.

That final pass of the game for Brees left him with 5,087 yards on the season, 3 yards better than Marino’s 5,084 yard record. Brees in the meantime still has one game left to play.

After the Superdome erupted it was Dan Marino who congratulated Brees, taking to Twitter where he tweeted:

“Congrats to @drewbrees. Great job by such a special player.”

The four touchdown passes also gave Drew Brees 276 career touchdowns which allowed him to pass Joe Montana (273) and Vinny Testeverde (275) on the all-time passer list where he now sits in ninth place overall.

Falling just short of Marino’s record in 2008 with 5,069 yards this special occasions makes him the first quarterback in NFL history to pass for 5,000 yards two times.

On route to his record Brees also helped set a club best with 6,857 offensive yards, beating out their 2008 club record of 6,571 yards. If the Saints can rack up 504 yards during their final game they will beat the NFL record set by the St. Louis Rams in 2000.

While his feat is none-the-less impressive Drew Brees also holds another recent record, since the start of 2010 through week eight of the current season Drew Brees has managed to turn over the ball 32 times in 24-games, a record that not even Jay Cutler or Eli Manning can match in their own disasterous outings with their respective teams.

Are you surprised that Drew Brees was able to topple Dan Marino’s 27 year old record?

[Image via Walter G Arce / Shutterstock.com]

Drew Brees Breaks Dan Marino’s Single Season Passing Record is a post from: The Inquisitr

NFL Falcons tight end Tony Gonzalez has caught 1,103 catches in his NFL career placing him second on the league’s all-time receiving list.

Gonzalez is only surpassed by all-time great Jerry Rice who caught 1,549 receptions during his career, a number the 35-year-old Gonzalez could surpass if he stayed healthy enough to play for several more seasons.

Tony passed to of his fellow NFL players on Sunday, those players included Cris Carter (1,101) and Marvin Harrison (1,102).

Gonzalez moved into second place on a 1st-and-10 two-yard passes while lined up on the Detroit 20 during the second quarter of Sunday play.

Not bad for a guy playing in the tight end position. What do you think about Tony Gonzalez’s accomplishment?

Tony Gonzalez Now 2nd On NFL All Time Receiving List is a post from: The Inquisitr

The Atlanta Falcons are in a pretty good position. They are a near elite team, that is returning a large number of star players including QB Matt Ryan, and their coaching staff is coming back. That means the lockout will not affect them a ton. They used the NFL draft to get a few players that should make big impacts on this team from day one. The hope is the addition of Julio Jones put this offense over the top. There is no doubt they are in a win now mode.

Right now it seems their biggest roster hole is at corner. Brian Williams is coming off a late season injury, and has been unable to stay healthy over the last two years. Chris Owens was the nickel back, but he was unable to hold that job. Owens also struggled in the playoffs so an upgrade is likely needed here. Once the NFL gets back to business I think they will add a veteran there.

Other than that is looks like the Falcons are good to go for the 2011 season. They could use a young talent at DE to develop into John Abraham’s one day replacement, and they could use a developmental QB to develop behind Ryan. Falcons’ fans should expect big things out of this team in 2011.

Related Links:

• Atlanta Falcons news and notes
• Joshua Lobdell.com

Atlanta Falcons to do list is a post from: The Inquisitr

Atlanta Falcons General Manger Thomas Dimitroff will run the Falcons war room in 2011 for the fourth time. He has been unafraid to draft guys with long injury issues, and at times that has really hurt him. In 2008 he took Peria Jerry, even though Clay Matthews was still on the board, if the Falcons had Matthews this is an entirely different defense. The good news here is they have acquired 9 of their 22 starters over the last five drafts so overall he has done quite well.

Dimitroff has a long history in the ranks of pro football as a scout. He has strong family ties back to the Canadian Football League, but he learned the American game from Bill Belichick and Scott Pioli. He has a knack for drafting guys that fit his team’s system, something he likely learned as a scout for the Cleveland Browns, Detroit Lions, and New England Patriots.

Overall he has made 25 draft picks for this team and 20 of them are still in the ATL. Seven are starters and one has played in a pro bowl. 15 more are backups and only two play on other teams. Two players from his first draft class are currently out of the NFL. Granted some of these players were drafted to a very good team and have yet had opportunities to make significant impacts but he did draft Matt Ryan and so far that has worked quite well.

Related Links:

• Atlanta Falcons War Room
• Joshua Lobdell.com

Draft day decision makers: Atlanta Falcons is a post from: The Inquisitr

One year ago I was a little down on the Atlanta Falcons 2010 draft class. Of course I was down on their third round selection of DT Corey Peters but he really came on in camp and played very well for this team. In the end this was a draft class delivered to a very good team so they did not need big time production immediately from it. This team still went 13-3 and these players will get more time to develop.

A quick look at the 2010 Falcons draft class:

• Round One- LB Sean Weatherspoon
• Round Three- DT Corey Peters
• Round Three- G Mike Johnson
• Round Four- C Joe Hawley
• Round Five- DB Dominique Franks
• Round Five- WR Kerry Meier
• Round Six- DB Shaun Schillinger

So Weatehrspoon missed some time with a knee injury but racked up 42 tackles and a sack. Peters ended up with 32 tackles and a sack. Johnson was a game day inactive for all 16 games. Hawley saw some special team action and may end up as a starter. Franks had an early pick, but sat out the final 13 games. Meier spent the year on injured reserve. Schillinger played on special teams and had eight tackles there, and eight tackles playing on the defense is a reserve role.

All in all it was not terrible, and I think as time moves on we will see these players take on a larger role for this team. For now I feel like they have earned a pass. I give them a pass for now based on their 13-3 record and the fact that these players were drafted to a very good football team.

Related Links:

• Atlanta Falcons War Room
• Joshua Lobdell.com

2010 NFL Draft one year later: Atlanta Falcons is a post from: The Inquisitr

I have given this team high marks for adding a couple of stars and making depth picks along the Offensive and defensive lines. However it now looks like one of those picks was a miss, so this draft class may come down to fining a starting strong safety and a bunch of depth picks. I don’t think a successful draft class  that makes, and after giving them a mulligan after year one a failing grade seems appropriate.

A quick look at the 2009 Falcons draft class:

•Round One (24)- Peria Jerry DT
•Round Two (55)- William Moore DB
•Round Three (90)- Chris Owens CB
•Round Four (125)- Lawrence Sidbury DE
•Round Five (138)- William Middleton DB
•Round Five (156)- Garrett Reynolds OG
•Round Six (176)- Spencer Adkins LB
•Round Seven (210)- Vance Walker DT

So Peria Jerry was hurt in year one, and has yet to live up to being the 24th overall pick. William Moore also went down with an injury in year one, but rebounded well and had an excellent year two. Chris Owens has developed into a pretty solid backup CB. Lawrence Sidbury has done next to nothing, and William Middleton was released in training camp. Garrett Reynolds has done nothing, and we can say the same about Spencer Adkins. Vance Walker is also a solid backup.

On one hand most of these picks are still on the roster and likely filling the roles for which they are drafted, but when you whiff on the first round pick the rest of the class never looks very rosy.

2009 NFL Draft two years out: Atlanta Falcons is a post from: The Inquisitr

The Atlanta Falcons finished the 2010 NFL regular season with a 13-3 record. They won the NFC South, and earned a first round bye and then lost a home playoff game to the eventual champion Green Bay Packers. This team looked unstoppable at home, as they only lost one home game in the season but of course that did come late in the year to the New Orleans Saints. That is a little troubling, but this is still a very good football team.

The offense scored 414 total points or 25.9 points per game on average. Matt Ryan is the team’s starting QB and he completed 62.5 points per game for 3,567 yards, with 28 TD’s to just 9 INT’s. Very impressive numbers from the kid they call Matty Ice. The running game behind him averaged 118.2 yards per game, and the O line allowed 23 sacks.

The defense is also pretty good as they gave up just 288 total points or 18 points per game on average. Their take away differential was +14, and one of the best in the NFL in 2010. They forced 14 fumbles and picked off 22 passes. They also racked up 31 sacks. All of their numbers in terms of team defense have they ranked in the top third of the 32 NFL teams and overall they were a top ten defense.

With a 13-3 record there is no question that this is a very good football team, however they keep coming up a little bit short and that seems to indicate that they still are a piece of two away from being a great team. Whatever that piece is they need to find it sooner rather than later.

Related Links:

• Atlanta Falcons news and notes
• The Business of the NFL
• Joshua Lobdell.com

2010 Atlanta Falcons season in review is a post from: The Inquisitr

“32-year-old” Real Housewives of Atlanta star Kim Zolciak is pregnant, and the father is Atlanta Falcons player Kroy Biermann.

Zolciak, who has a 13-year-old and a 9-year-old from a previous relationship, says the pregnancy was “definitely” not planned. (Zolciak and Biermann met in May.) Confirming the pregnancy, she said:

“While it wasn’t planned, God clearly has a bigger and better plan for us and we’re excited.”

She then tweeted the news, and although she says she is three months along, a picture where she appears visibly pregnant:

We are happy and excited to announce that Yes we are expecting. http://twitpic.com/3966lh

On Twitter, Zolciak says that she never technically lied about the pregnancy- news of which was allegedly leaked before the customary three month mark by a “jealous” ex- merely that she avoided answering questions about whether she was or was not with child. She chides followers:

Go learn exactly what a lie is!! Thx u and sit down RT @janesinsane: @Kimzolciak – Wow! You lied about this as …http://tmi.me/3rSB7

[Image]

Real Housewife Kim Zolciak knocked up by Falcon Kroy Biermann is a post from: The Inquisitr

This is a pretty young team, and if it were not for that they might be considered legitimate Super Bowl Contenders. They have finished the last two regular seasons with a winning record and are looking to make a deep playoff run in 2010. The Sporting News is picking them to go 12-4 and win the NFC south, I don’t know if I am that high on them, but no question this is a very good football team. Owner Arthur Blank has built up a nice foundation that should keep this team winning for many years to come.

The offense will be led by QB Matt Ryan, and if they can stay healthy he has a very nice backfield behind him. RB’s Michael Turner and Jerious Norwood both have injury concerns, but they do have Jason Snelling who is a bruiser unafraid to go out and run fools over. The WR corps is pretty good with Michael Jenkins, Roddy White and TE Tony Gonzales. The O line is set, and has impact potential with LT Sam Baker, LG Mike Johnson, and RG Harvey Dahl.

This team will run a 4-3 base defense, and it should sport a lot of blitzing and be very aggressive. The D line may be aging but they did add Corey Peters in the draft. This group is not yet set as position battles will play out over the course of the pre-season. The LB corps got a big boost from the drafting of Sean Witherspoon and it seems likely he will win one of the OLB spots. The concern last year was the secondary and they did draft Dominique Franks but it looks like Dunta Robinson and Brian Williams will be the starting corners with Thomas Decoud and Erik Coleman will be the deep guys.

On Special Teams Matt Bryant will likely be the kicker, with Michael Koenen handling the punting duties. Their team will probably use Franks to return kicks and punts.

Related Links:

• Atlanta Falcons news and notes
• The Business of the NFL
• MTR Football

2010 Atlanta Falcons Preview is a post from: The Inquisitr

The Atlanta Falcons calmly took the best player available (on their boards) with each of there first four picks. They did land a complete linebacker with the 19th overall pick in Sean Weatehrspoon. I am not going to say that OLB was not a need n this team, it just wasn’t their primary need. That may balance itself out if Weatehrspoon turns into something very special. However, when we consider that they did not have a second round pick not drafting to a primary need seems highly questionable.

The Falcons had to wait for 64 selections before selecting DT Corey Peters with the 83rd overall pick. In that time 10 DT’s came off the board. Peters was a three year starter at Kentucky, but Peters was the last DT the Sporting News ranked in their annual draft guide and they gave him a 7th round grade. The Falcons also failed to draft a DE, and the biggest areas of concern on this team was a lackluster pass rush and a secondary that had a hard  time stopping their opponents. They scored when Dominique Franks fell to them in the fifth round, but the failure to add a DE when John Abraham is 32 years of age has to be questioned.

With that being said here is a look at the initial grades for teh Falcons 2010 draft class:

•Round One: B, not their biggest need, but might be a special talent
•Round Three: C, Peters is not a sensational DT
•Round Three: B, Mike Johnson is a depth pick at Guard and a pretty good one
•Talent: B, Weatehrspoon has a chance to be something special we have to wait and see
•Need: B, Having Franks fall to them in the fifth really helps out the grade in the short term
•Average: B-

Related Links:

•Atlanta Falcons news and notes
•2010 NFL Draft initial team grades
•The Business of the NFL
•MTR Football.com

2010 NFL Draft review: Atlanta Falcons is a post from: The Inquisitr

This will be the third draft conducted by Atlanta Falcons General Manger Thomas Dimitroff. He and head Coach Mike Smith share the philosophy that a winning team is built through the draft not via free agency. They will be joined in the Flacons war room for the 2010 NFL Draft by Nick Polk the Director of Football Administration, Kevin Winston senior Director of Player Development, Les Snead Director of Player Personnel, and David Caldwell the director of College Scouting. Of course their full complement of scouts will also be in attendance.

So what do we know about this group’s tendencies? Well they are unafraid to take players who have been injury prone. Their first round picks in the last two drafts have gone down early with injuries, but that does not deter the Falcons front office staff. They are looking for value. Head Coach Mike Smith has stated that with their 8 picks in the 2010 NFL draft they are looking for as many quality players as they can find.

Over the last five years The Falcons have a below average grade in addressing their needs via the draft, and evaluating players. Over that time period they have made 43 picks. Only one of them has turned out to be a pro bowler, 10 have turned into starters, 16 are currently backups, and 17 are either out of the NFL or playing for other teams.

Related Links:

•Draft Day Decision Makers
•Atlanta Falcons news and notes
•2010 Falcons team needs
•2010 Flacons first round draft plan
•2009 Flacons draft, one year later
•MTR Football.com

Draft Day decision makers: Atlanta Falcons is a post from: The Inquisitr

Man how do you asses a draft where the first two picks went down with injury and rode out their rookie campaigns on the injured reserve list? It seems that we have to give the Falcons a mulligan, because it could very well be that this draft class turns into something special. A year ago I gave the Falcons high marks for getting two stars and adding depth along both offensive and defensive lines.

Let us take a quick look at the 2009 Flacons draft class:

•Round One (24)- Peria Jerry DT
•Round Two (55)- William Moore DB
•Round Three (90)- Chris Owens CB
•Round Four (125)- Lawrence Sidbury DE
•Round Five (138)- William Middleton DB
•Round Five (156)- Garrett Reynolds OG
•Round Six (176)- Spencer Adkins LB
•Round Seven (210)- Vance Walker DT

So Jerry and Moore missed significant portions of the 2009 season. Owens made two interceptions and had 29 tackles playing in every game. Sidbury made just five tackles but played in all 16 games. Middleton was cut in training camp. Reynolds played in 4 games, while Adkins made three tackles in 5 games. Walker pitched in 13 tackles in 10 games.

It would be very easy to give this draft class a failing grade, and it may get that one day. However we need to see what Jerry and Moore can do overall a whole season. It is a little disturbing that Middleton (138th overall) was cut in training camp. Teams that need to can find quality players in the fifth round, the Falcons could have used a contributor with that pick. With all that being said we have to stick with an incomplete grade one year out.

Related Links:

•2009 NFL Draft, one year later
•Atlanta Falcons news and notes
•2010 NFL Mock Drafts
•2010 NFL Team needs
•MTR Football.com

2009 NFL draft one year later: Atlanta Falcons is a post from: The Inquisitr

The Falcons have been around since the 1960′s and 2009 marked the first time they had consecutive winning seasons. They have been an inconsistent franchise, in 2009 that inconsistency led to two three game losing streaks, and that kept them from the NFL playoffs. It would be easy to say that the status quo on this tam is sufficient, but standing still does nothing, they have to get better, and get getter quickly.

The work on this team lies on the defense. The Falcons had just the 21st best defense in 2009, which was hurt by their first two draft picks being sidelined by injury early in the season. With just 28 sacks the primary need to upgrade the pass rush. The Falcons have done a decent job in upgrading their secondary by signing Dunta Robinson, and Matt Giordano, and they should get 2009 second round pick William Moore back for the 2010 season. That leaves the pass rush, which needs a big upgrade.

Falcons General Manager Thomas Dimitroff has done a pretty good job in his three years on the job and he and head coach Mike Smith seem to have a good working relationship. If I were in charge I would not meddle, but I would insist that the Falcons draft a DE with the 19th overall pick. I would find Everson Griffen or Brandon Graham both acceptable at that point.

Other than that it seems that the Falcons are on the right track. They have some age issues at DE, and OLB, and every team’s O line can always use some fresh talent. I would like to see them use their offensive playmakers a little more creatively, but a good number of them were battling injuries late in 2009. We can excuse that for now, if their non production continues changes will have to be made.

Related Links:

•How to fix the bad NFL Franchises
•Atlanta Falcons news and notes
•2010 NFL Free Agents
•2010 NFL Mock Drafts
•MTR Football.com

Fix the Franchise: Atlanta Falcons edition is a post from: The Inquisitr

A 9-7 record isn’t all that bad, but for the Atlanta Falcons coming off an 11-5 2008 it is somewhat of a step back. It seems the main problem for this club was its inability to bounce back from a loss. All the teams losses in 2009 came in bunches.  Of course they did not follow up their loss to the New England Patriots with a loss, but they did head into the bye week on that down note. Those stats suggest this is a team that just barely missed the playoffs, and that seems to hold up. What this team needs is a tweak to the defense, and they should be just fine.

The Falcons scored 363 points in 2009, or 22.7/game and that was good enough for the13th best offense in the NFL. QB Matt Ryan completed 58% of his passes, and threw for 2,916 yards, 22 touch downs. The bad side of that was he also threw 14 picks, not terrible but still a little high. On the ground they gained 1,876 yards with Michael Turner leading the way with 871 yards.

The defense wasn’t terrible but they did give up 325 points or 20.3 points/game. Their point differential was +38 so they out scored their opponents on average by 2.4 points/game. Their take away differential was +3, so if Ryan can throw a few less INT’s and the defense can actively attack the ball that number can come way up. Since they recorded 28 sacks and gave up over 4,000 passing yards the work that needs to be done is clearly of the defensive side of the ball.

It seems the plan should be to add a pass rushing Defensive end, and then some help in the defensive secondary. With the 19th pick in the upcoming NFL draft they should be in a prime position to address at least one of those needs.  Once they add a few playmakers to their defense we should see them back in the playoffs.

Related Links:

•Atlanta Falcons news and notes
•2010 NFL Draft news, notes, and rumors
•2010 NFL Mock Drafts
•2010 NFL Free Agents

2009 NFL season in review: Atlanta Falcons is a post from: The Inquisitr

Atlanta Falcons defensive tackle Jonathan Babineaux is likely to play a Sunday game against the New Orleans Saints despite an arrest for possession of marijuana along with some driving violations.

While the arrest is being reviewed under the NFL’s substance abuse policy, a spokesman admitted that the team was aware of the charges, but declined comment.

“We are aware of the situation concerning Jonathan Babineaux and are in the process of gathering information. Because this is a legal matter, we will have no further comment at this time,” a team spokesman said in a statement released by the team.

Babineaux was arrested Thursday night during a routine traffic stop during which an officer claimed to have smelled marijuana. A subsequent search allegedly turned up 40 grams of pot. In addition to possession, 28-year-old Babineaux was charged with a missing tag light, driving without a license and having an expired tag. Babineaux’s 25-year-old passenger Aaron Robinson was charged with possession with intent to distribute.

This isn’t Babineaux’s first brush with the law in Gwinnett County- he was arrested in 2007 for killing his girlfriend’s pet pit-bull, Kilo, but the charges were dismissed nine months later. Babineaux denied intentionally killing the animal and stated Kilo had a history of aggression and unprovoked attacks.

Falcons defensive tackle Jonathan Babineaux arrested for pot possession is a post from: The Inquisitr

The Chicago Bears came into Sunday nights game on a 3 game win streak, with a quarterback who had maintained a 100+ passer rating and a receiving corp who had largely surprised many NFL analysts. Then they met the redzone and everything came crumbling down.

Jay Cutler threw an interception at the 9 yard line of the red zone and Matt Forte fumbled twice along the goal line, situations that Atlanta was able to take advantage of for a 7 point win.

Forte was also held to a miserable 23 yards rushing on the night and the Bears blew their last chance at a comeback when Orlando Pace went offside on the five yard line with less than 30 seconds left on the clock and a fourth and one situation.

In the post game press conference Lovie Smith supposed up the teams lost “We had a lot of opportunities to win this football game…You can’t make those kind of mistakes. When you get the ball in the red zone, you need to get points.”

While the Bears lost there was some promise shown in young receiver Johnny Knox who once again showed his incredible speed by scoring on a 23 yard touchdown pass from Cutler in the second quarter. Unfortunately for the Bears Atlanta responded when Matt Ryan threw a 40 yard touchdown pass to Roddy White to tie the game at 7 a piece. Ryan then took the lead with a second half TD to Tony Gonzalez with only four seconds left in the 2nd quarter.

After the half Cutler connected with Greg Olsen for a 2 yard touchdown bass to tie the game at 14 with 6:14 remaining in the game. Unfortunately for the Bears Michael Turner turned a 5 yard touchdown run into the game winner, giving the Falcons a 4-1 start on the season, their best start since the 2004 season.

Cutler managed a season high 300 yards passing, unfortunately he also threw two interceptions, while also struggling the entire night in the red zone.

The Bears defense actually held their own with only 253 total yards allowed and only 68 of those on the ground. It definitely appears that the difference came from missed opportunities on the side of the Chicago Bears.

Bears RedZone Woes Lead To 21-14 Loss To Falcons is a post from: The Inquisitr

The Atlanta Falcons have some serious holes at the wide out position. Beyond Number one receiver Michael Jenkins the depth chart is very murky. #2 receiver Roddy White is not in camp because of a contract dispute, and third wide out Harry Douglas is out for the season due to a knee injury. So the Falcons have gone out into the free agent market and signed Robert Ferguson, and yesterday signed WR Marty Booker.

Booker, who was a third round pick in the 1999 draft by the Chicago Bears, once had the skills to be a number one receiver in his own right. Lately though his production has fallen way off. In 2001 and 2002 Booker could be counted on to catch 100 balls for for a thousand yards, but in the six seasons since that production has been cut in half.

Granted for four of those seasons Booker played on a awful Miami Dolphins team, but even last year back in Chicago was not all that productive for him. He played in 13 games and caught only 14 balls for 211 yards. That Falcons are betting that since Chicago wasn’t a team with a star QB that Booker can be more productive with them and QB Matt Ryan.

In every estimation that seems to be a pretty safe bet. Ryan, the first QB selected in the 2008 draft, won rookie of the year honors leading the Falcons to an 11-5 record. He through for over 3,000 yards in 2008 with just 16 TD’s. With the addition of Booker the Falcons front office is betting that those numbers can go up, but only time will tell if Booker is the answer for Ryan and the Falcons.

Falcons sign Marty Booker is a post from: The Inquisitr

You would think Atlanta Falcons players would be keeping their heads down after the Michael Vick dogfighting scandal, and to be fair to wide receiver Harry Douglas IV, he probably didn’t know anything about the alleged sexual assault at his house which just got him a visit from the cops.

The incident in question apparently took place during a party at Douglas’ home, in which a female reveler fell asleep and alleges that she was woken up by another partygoer who was sexually assaulting her. That person was not Douglas, and in fact the victim has provided the name of her assailant to police.

This is not the first post-Vick issue that the boys in blue have had with Falcon players, though. Back in May, Falcons OT Quinn Ojinaka was arrested for misdemeanor battery.

Police are now searching for the mystery man. Let us hope that the person in question is not one of Douglas’ team mates.

Atlanta Falcons player questioned by police… no dogs involved is a post from: The Inquisitr

Former Atlanta Falcons player Shane Dronett was found dead in his home in Atlanta Wednesday.

Dronett, 38, was a member of the 1998 Falcons Super Bowl team, and was defensive tackle for the Falcons from 1996-2002

Police received a 911 call early Wednesday morning about a possible suicide at Dronett’s home.

“The investigation is still ongoing relating to the cause and manner of death,” a spokesman said. An autopsy will be performed on Thursday, but the death was not considered suspicious at this stage.

Dronett was an All-American football player at the University of Texas, later joining the Falcons after 4 years playing defensive end for Denver.

Dronett is survived by his wife and two children.

Former Atlanta Falcons Player Shane Dronett Found Dead is a post from: The Inquisitr