No one can hurt you so much as a former significant other, or player. That's the quick takeaway from a chat with Brian Finneran on the outlook for the 2014 Falcons, printed in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Finneran currently contributes to a local sports radio show on 680 The Fan.
Where to start? Well Finneran says "heads will roll" if the team isn't a winner this year, that the team and coaching staff are stressed out with the expectations placed on them, and that the defense will be poor. As for replacing Hall of Fame tight end Tony Gonzalez? Uh, "That's not looking so good at all," he says.
"You’ve got Bear Pascoe, who can block people I think and maybe catch a ball in the flat every once in awhile off some play-action stuff, but he’s not going to get down the football field at all. You have Levine Toilolo... he has some ability. A very raw talent. But as far as what they were this year compared to last year, it’s a huge drop off and they will feel it in a huge way."
As for Steven Jackson and the running game stepping up, Finneran puts it at about 50-50. "But again, Steven Jackson has to stay healthy. If he doesn’t, then is Devonta Freeman, the kid out of Florida State, enough of a every-down back to help out? I don’t know."
Atlanta's offensive line should be better, and it will have a dangerous pair of wideouts if we can assume that Roddy White and Julio Jones will both stay healthy this season. Otherwise, and particularly for a defense that is switching to a 3-4 and just lost linebacker Sean Weatherspoon to an Achilles injury, things don't look good.
--Andy Richardson