Falcons get feisty, serve notice to Eagles

[SunMo]

Falcons get feisty, serve notice to Eagles
Columbus Ledger-Enquirer, Ga.
Sep. 13, 2005

ATLANTA - At least they had the decency to do their fighting before "The Star-Spangled Banner."

Give Atlanta cornerback Kevin Mathis and Philadelphia linebacker Jeremiah Trotter credit for showing some measure of restraint. Their perilous fight on Monday night came during pre-game warmups as their respective teams traded harsh glares and angry words after the Eagles had the audacity to dance on the midfield logo.

There are some transgressions that simply can't go unpunished in professional sports. One of them is allowing an opponent to treat your midfield logo like a welcome mat.

You let that go in your home and you might as well let them raid the refrigerator, track mud into the kitchen, prop their feet up on the coffee table and walk out with the good silverware.

So when Mathis took issue with Trotter's two-step, it produced the sort of exchange that you'd expect to see between Philadelphia quarterback Donovan McNabb and Philadelphia receiver Terrell Owens. Or T.O. and Philadelphia coach Andy Reid (It's so hard to keep up these days).

Mathis threw a punch and Trotter grabbed his facemask, resulting in ejections for both. In spite of those consequences, the teams met again at midfield at the end of warmups and another Under Armor commercial seemed poised to break out.

We must protect this house!

Didn't these people learn anything?

Maybe the animosity between the Falcons and Eagles reached full boil because they weren't huddling next to sideline space heaters as they were when they met in the NFC championship last January in Philadelphia. It's amazing how far arctic winds and a sub-zero chill factor can go in warding off hypertension.

But put them inside the Georgia Dome, with its steady 72-degree temperature that allow full use of limbs for throwing punches, a frenzied crowd and a Monday Night Football audience, and bedlam breaks loose before kickoff - before the part about the rocket's red glare and the bombs bursting in air.

O, say, does that yellow penalty flag still wave?

If you wondered how that January loss affected Falcons, how it settled in the pits of their stomachs this offseason, how it aggravated and motivated, you received your answer as Hall and Trotter went from jawing to sparring.

If Atlanta expects to get beyond where last season ended, it will undoubtedly have to beat Philadelphia to do it. Based on what they showed Monday night, the Falcons appear willing to drive a steamroller over the Eagles and back up and repeat the process, if needed.

They made a statement with a 14-10 victory as prime time gave way to Tuesday morning, with Warrick Dunn rolling up more than 100 of the Falcons' 200-plus rushing yards, quarterback Michael Vick hitting Michael Jenkins deep to set up a touchdown and an inspired defense preventing the Eagles from achieving any semblance of continuity.

Even the otherworldly Owens struggled at times, dropping catchable passes and occasionally displaying frustration against Atlanta cornerback DeAngelo Hall. Hall, who wears the No. 21 jersey once favored by Deion Sanders, thwarted the Eagles early on with a first-quarter interception of an underthrown ball intended for Owens.

As the Eagles' offense left the field, Owens could be seen barking at his teammates and generally doing his best to create more chaos than FEMA.

The Falcons should have drawn as much encouragement from that as they did from Dunn's darting runs through tiny cracks of daylight.

When the Eagles switch from pre-game melees to infighting, it reveals plenty about what the Falcons did right.

Atlanta may not have landed a knockout punch Monday night, but the Falcons served notice to Philadelphia.

They fully intend to be the last team standing.

ummmm, what?

[PhillyGirl]

WHAT?

Dude, WHO fargING STARTED IT? WHo threw the ONLY PUNCHES?

Are you farging kidding me?

Let me also add, that the TVs would have been ALL OVER TO barking at teammates.

[MURP]

expecting Atlantas hack writers to be any better than Phillys?

yawn.

[Father Demon]

Wow.

I just found a new definition for "stupid".

[shorebird]

Talk about being retar.....I mean mentally challenged.

[4and26]

Only comment required:     

[Feva]

This is the shtein I have to read every day.  Welcome to my world... 

[DH]

This is the shtein I have to read every day.  Welcome to my world... 

Feva -

How was the scene last night? There didnt look to be as many guys in green as I thought there would be...

[ice grillin you]

How was the scene last night? There didnt look to be as many guys in green as I thought there would be...

i thought the exact same thing....

i think some people went to hooters saturday nite...it was filled with eagle fans...and the next thing you know 10,000 strong are supposedly coming down for the game

[PhillyPhreak54]

Get used to it.

Every facial tick, turned back, frown, smile, hand gesture and even some writers will claim to be able to read TO's mind....is going to be dissected.

[rjs246]

There were a lot of us there, but it wasn't like most of the away games I've been to. Around town everywhere you went there were Eagles jerseys, but it didn't really translate into the crowd at the game. I actually had to give it up to the fans I met. They were knowledgable and loud and gave shtein back to us... very unlike the Falcons fans I've encountered on the interweb.

Oh and TO sucks.

[MDS]

I'm glad you were one of the Eagles fan representing us in Atlanta. Really. You're an awsome guy.

[PoopyfaceMcGee]

There were a lot of us there, but it wasn't like most of the away games I've been to. Around town everywhere you went there were Eagles jerseys, but it didn't really translate into the crowd at the game. I actually had to give it up to the fans I met. They were knowledgable and loud and gave shtein back to us... very unlike the Falcons fans I've encountered on the interweb.

Oh and TO sucks.

More important question:  Does Atlanta have a chapter of the "coalition"?

[rjs246]

I'm glad you were one of the Eagles fan representing us in Atlanta. Really. You're an awsome guy.

Why don't you cry about it some more?

[MDS]

I don't cry. I whine, nag and complain. After a while, I realize it doesn't matter and stop.