Falcons and Hawks offer healthy ‘fix’ for Atlanta

Published in The Sunday Paper, Atlanta on November 16, 2008.

There’s a buzz around the ATL that is gaining momentum by the week.

The buzz is about the new ‘fix’ in town that provides relief to the stress of multi-billion dollar wars, historical home foreclosure numbers and it eliminates the foul stench of national recession that is in the air.

It works like potent medication but with no side effects. Be forewarned though, it can become addictive.

This ‘fix’ comes in the form of two birds . . . Hawks and Falcons.

The Atlanta Falcons, (6-3 overall and 4-0 at the Georgia Dome) and Atlanta Hawks (6-0) both sprinted out the gate with ferocious starts in 2008 and are putting the ATL back on the sport’s map. It is the Hawks best start since 1997 and after underachieving seasons by both the Braves and Thrashers, the timing couldn’t be better.

For years, sports fans have leaned on their teams to provide an escape from life’s stresses and when those teams are winning, it helps pull the city and fans out of their funks.

Detroit is a great example of that. The Motor City holds the crown for most troubling economy and severe collapse in real estate values but when their Red Wings or Pistons take home a crown, millions take to the streets to celebrate, leaving their troubles locked up at home (if it hadn’t been taken back by the bank yet).

The spirit of Atlantans is being lifted. Sports chatter is picking up steam at the local coffee houses and on the streets.

Vinings resident Megan Harpring is no stranger to sports. Her brother plays for the NBA Utah Jazz and she played basketball at Georgia Tech.

When asked about the current Falcons and Hawks run she said, “The sports bars have been packed with local fans. It’s filling everyone’s lives with something positive, something exciting. The success of the Falcons . . . it’s a motivator. We’re getting excited about the next game, the next weekend.”

Lawrenceville resident Derek Wheeler, another avid sports fan who played baseball for UGA attended the Falcons miraculous last-second comeback against the Bears this year at the Dome and last year’s Hawks Game 6 win against the Celtics. He is thrilled with his local teams, “It’s unbelievable isn’t it! Ryan is unbelievable. I never would have thought the Falcons would have a year like this. And the Hawks–last year wasn’t a fluke at all.”

This excitement and attitude is quite different from the aura that hovered over the city in recent past.

When Atlanta’s All-Pro, hometown favorite, Michael Vick was sent off to live behind bars, doom and gloom set in for the sports fans in this city.

Their star player was in shackles, their head coach Bobby Petrino like the ‘Cowardly Lion’ snuck out of town with his tail between his legs and many of the Falcons’ star players abandoned ship or were traded away for pennies on the dollar.

A lot has changed since then. Sundays suddenly have a new meaning and Atlanta’s sports have injected new life into the city and its people.

The Falcons, under the leadership of rookie head coach Mike Smith and rookie-of-the-year candidate QB Matt Ryan, continue to find ways to overcome the underdog role and win.

New questions on the street are Michael who? Bobby who?

The NFL is certainly taking notice of the new Falcons. The league pushed the November 23 Falcons/Panthers kickoff to 4:15 and upgraded the matchup to a national game. Coach Smith commented on that compliment from the league, “I think that it is confirmation that we are doing things right. It’s an honor for our football team for that to take place.”

The 23-year-old Ryan out of Boston College replaced Vick who is still listed as ‘Suspended’ on the Falcon’s team roster. After Ryan’s hot start, most expect Vick to be released soon after he swaps his prison garb for civilian clothes sometime during 2009.

At the Falcons’ side are the over-achieving Atlanta Hawks led by All-Star Joe Johnson who always manages to shine while coasting under the NBA radar.

The Hawks’ performance in last year’s NBA playoff series against the heavily favored Boston Celtics brought life back to the lackluster franchise. Those young inexperienced Hawks were expected to be swept off the planet in four merciless games but refused to go down without a fight, taking the NBA Champion Celtics to seven games.

Six games into this 2008-09 season the Hawks are continuing where they left off and were the only unbeaten team in the entire Eastern Conference, that’s right, a hotter start than the Celtics, Pistons and Cavaliers.

The 2009 NBA All-Star Ballot includes five of our Hawks; Joe Johnson, Josh Smith, Mike Bibby, Al Horford and Marvin Williams. Callers into popular radio shows on 680 The Fan are sharing in the excitement with recent comments about the Hawks like, “They’re playing with passion” and “It’s awesome to watch.”

The hosts of some of the shows on 680 The Fan shared their thoughts. Christopher Rude of “The Rude Awakening” show believes, “Sports fans in Atlanta are guardedly optimistic.”

His afternoon counterparts Buck and Kincade said, “The black cloud that was hanging over the Falcons the last few years with Vick and Petrino is gone. There’s an attitude change in the locker room. Joe Horn was griping. Horn, Crumpler and DeAngelo Hall all moved on. The old stuff was washed out and new leaders like Matt Ryan have stepped up. There has been a locker room purge.”

Marc Stein’s week two NBA power rankings on ESPN.com had the Hawks ranked 5 out of 30 teams in the league and wrote this about our Hawks, “Atlanta has deservedly gate-crashed the top five with its first 5-0 start in a decade.”

It’s incredible how these overachieving teams whose rosters recently contained unknowns and rookies considered fortunate to be wearing a pro uniform, have stepped up and are quickly making names for themselves while bringing pride back to the city of Atlanta.

I was at Ryan’s first game against the Detroit Lions and witnessed his first NFL pass in front of his hometown fans. The pass was snatched up by Michael Jenkins who galloped 62 yards into the end zone.

Last week against the New Orleans Saints, 22-year-old
rookie, Chevis Jackson intercepted a Drew Brees pass and raced 95 yards for a TD with 1:17 left to play to seal another victory for the Falcons at the Dome.

Plays like these are like paper shredders. They take those heart-wrenching, negative headlines we’ve been force-fed all week and shred them to dust at least for that moment.

We all need heroes.

The heroes in the summer blockbuster films sweep us away from the doldrums of our current world. Young enthusiastic athletes like Matt Ryan and Al Horford and men like Joe Johnson and John Abraham who show up every day playing their hearts out, determined to overcome the adversities they face do the same.

Contact Tom via email: tom@tomferda.com