Falcons really ready to 'Rise Up'

[Falcons_own_nfc_south]

http://espn.go.com/blog/nflnation/post/_/id/26334/falcons-really-ready-to-rise-up

[WHODAT BEAST IN THE CELLAR]

Notice, the campaign itself does not mention or even hint at the New Orleans Saints. When the coaches, players and front office talk about rising up, they don’t talk about the Saints and are careful not to make any direct implications about the reigning Super Bowl champions, who just happen to also be in the NFC South.

Doing anything like publicly projecting themselves ahead of the Saints would create undue pressure and set the Falcons up for possible failure. That’s the last thing anyone involved with this franchise wants or expects. The Falcons walked a fine line in establishing the “Rise Up’’ campaign. They easily could have botched it with a wrong word or two or fired up the Saints with any implication about taking over the division.

Problem is the media is doing just what the quote says the Falcons are trying not to do. Couple this "rise up" campaign along with the media hype, with the looming defending super bowl champs in the division, and we should see some pretty amped up Saints this season.

[xxstealth]

Problem is the media is doing just what the quote says the Falcons are trying not to do. Couple this "rise up" campaign along with the media hype, with the looming defending super bowl champs in the division, and we should see some pretty amped up Saints this season.

They need to be amped up, because they SUCK....They all rode the jocks of the zebras to victory.

The Vikings were clearly the better team last year.

Brees will get the Madden curse and your team will go finish 3rd in the division just above or tied with the bucks. Without Brees the saints are worthless...

[dmite]

Well, I think the "Rise Up" crap is stupid. I preferred last year's slogan, "The Hunt is On" and it had much better commercials.

[WHODAT BEAST IN THE CELLAR]

They need to be amped up, because they SUCK....They all rode the jocks of the zebras to victory.

The Vikings were clearly the better team last year.

Brees will get the Madden curse and your team will go finish 3rd in the division just above or tied with the bucks. Without Brees the saints are worthless...

Haha, what does your team have that's any where close to elite? An offense? defense? none of the above is more like it, and that isn't what consists of a championship caliber team. bunch of fluff is all.

[FalconPio]

Let’s play a little game here. I want you to watch the television commercial where actor Samuel L. Jackson is telling the world it is time for the Atlanta Falcons to "Rise Up."

But, before you watch it, a couple of other ground rules. Pretend that every reference is not to the Falcons, but to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers or Carolina Panthers. Then, pretend you’re Bucs coach Raheem Morris or Panthers coach John Fox. Watch the commercial through their eyes with their rosters in your hand.

Then, still posing as Morris or Fox, leave your office and drive home. On your way, you’ll see a half-dozen or so billboards with “Rise Up’’ in really big letters. Do that a few times and the only thing that’s going to rise is your blood pressure.

What the Falcons are doing with this campaign would not work everywhere. Heck, it wouldn’t even have worked in Atlanta through most of the franchise’s existence. They’re not exactly Babe Ruth calling his shot or Joe Namath guaranteeing a Super Bowl victory. Heck, they’re not even the Oakland Raiders touting a “tradition of excellence’’ at a time when even mediocrity would be a step up.

But there is no doubt the Falcons are out on a bit of a limb with this one. Ownership, the marketing department or whoever made the ultimate decision on this campaign has turned up the heat on the team. In Tampa Bay, where the Buccaneers are rebuilding, or in Carolina, where Fox is in the last year of his contract and the Panthers have a lot of question marks, this theme just wouldn’t fit.

It would create undue pressure and would open the entire organization to ridicule if the team struggles.

But you know what? “Rise Up’’ fits perfectly in Atlanta right now.

“We have something special going on here right now,’’ middle linebacker Curtis Lofton said. “Everyone knows it. We feel like we’re about to rise up to the occasion and hopefully make it to the Super Bowl.’’

Lofton went a little beyond the company line when he brought up the Super Bowl. But, let’s be honest, why shouldn’t that be the goal?

Nobody -- I’m talking coaches, front office and players -- within the Falcons has a problem with the “Rise Up’’ campaign. In fact, it pretty much rhymes with the goals they all share for the season.

If ever there was a time for the Falcons to rise up, this is it. They’re coming off back-to-back winning seasons for the first time in franchise history. They’re built around a young group of core players who might be just entering their primes and they’ve got a handful of important veterans.

They’re on board with the idea of rising up. In fact, just by doing what they’ve done the last two seasons, they’re the ones who unknowingly hatched the whole idea.

“The very interesting thing and the very positive thing about this organization is that it’s a very collaborative effort on so many levels,’’ general manager Thomas Dimitroff said. “Although [coach Mike Smith] and I don’t work on the business side of the building, we interact very well with them and we have discussions about everything. They were very forthright with their ideas. We talked about it and certainly there was concern about not coming across as too brazen. There’s no question it has some aggression about it as sort of rising to another level and that connotation. We’re fine with that.’’

The Falcons should be fine with it. Although last season’s 9-7 finish was disappointing because the Falcons failed to make the playoffs after getting there in the 2008 season, they’re sitting in a pretty good spot.

[+] EnlargeAP Photo/Dave Martin

Quarterback Matt Ryan said "we have the kind of talent to take it to the next level."They’ve got a whole bunch of injured guys back from last year. They’ve got a 2008 draft class -- guys like quarterback Matt Ryan, Lofton, Harry Douglas, Kroy Biermann and Thomas DeCoud -- that already has been good and should only continue to get better. They’ve got running back Michael Turner back in good physical condition. Their defense was a little shaky last year so they signed cornerback Dunta Robinson and drafted linebacker Sean Weatherspoon and defensive tackle Corey Peters.

“We know that this is the time that we need to continue to ramp up our abilities on the field and off the field to make sure that we bring this fan base along and give them reason to continue to believe in the Atlanta Falcons,’’ Dimitroff said. “Although seemingly aggressive, both Smitty and I were very comfortable it.’’

Aggressive? Yeah, maybe a little. But let’s be real honest, Dimitroff and Smith probably could have killed the “Rise Up’’ campaign if they didn’t think it fit. The fact is, they’re just like everyone else in Atlanta. They look at the current Falcons and they realize that anything less than a winning season and a playoff berth will be a disappointment.

“I think our team’s arrow is pointing up,’’ Smith said. “We are rising up. I think it is an appropriate campaign. In our third year, I think we continue to add to our roster. Barring any unforeseen injuries, I think we will continue to progress. Does that mean we’re going to win more games? We don’t know that. But I believe the arrow on this team is definitely pointing up. It’s not flat or going in the other direction.’’

Even Ryan, who's the face of the Falcons and generally is very careful to be politically correct, believes it really is the time for the franchise to rise up.

“I feel like we have the kind of talent to take it to the next level,’’ Ryan said.

Notice, the campaign itself does not mention or even hint at the New Orleans Saints. When the coaches, players and front office talk about rising up, they don’t talk about the Saints and are careful not to make any direct implications about the reigning Super Bowl champions, who just happen to also be in the NFC South.

Doing anything like publicly projecting themselves ahead of the Saints would create undue pressure and set the Falcons up for possible failure. That’s the last thing anyone involved with this franchise wants or expects. The Falcons walked a fine line in establishing the “Rise Up’’ campaign. They easily could have botched it with a wrong word or two or fired up the Saints with any implication about taking over the division.

The Falcons didn’t do any of that. They got this one right simply by staying within themselves. After all, the feeling by everyone at the team’s Flowery Branch headquarters is that it truly is the time for the Falcons to rise up.

“It’s the third year in the system for a lot of us,’’ Lofton said. “It’s time for us to take that next step. There’s no surprises. It’s the same coaches and it’s the same players with a few upgrades that we needed. We’re just ready for more.’’

[kschreck]

Problem is the media is doing just what the quote says the Falcons are trying not to do. Couple this "rise up" campaign along with the media hype, with the looming defending super bowl champs in the division, and we should see some pretty amped up Saints this season.

I think it's great there will be two teams really ready to go at it this fall. I also know that history is not on the Saints side. Then again, it isn't on ours either. Something has to give.

[WHODAT BEAST IN THE CELLAR]

I think it's great there will be two teams really ready to go at it this fall. I also know that history is not on the Saints side. Then again, it isn't on ours either. Something has to give.

History was against the Saints all last season and they kicked history in the arse.

Edited August 20, 2010 by SAINTªANGER

[~SEAMILL~]

Haha, what does your team have that's any where close to elite? An offense? defense? none of the above is more like it, and that isn't what consists of a championship caliber team. bunch of fluff is all.

You forgot referee help and bailouts.

[WHODAT BEAST IN THE CELLAR]

You forgot referee help and bailouts.

Every time I read this I will simply throw down the Saints margin of victory of the 16 games won while defeating 3 future HOF QBs on their way to the Lombardi. Those refs really had to bail them out because they won by the skin of their hides hahahaha

Game 1: 18 points

Game 2: 26 points

Game 3: 20 points

Game 4: 14 points

Game 5: 21 points

Game 6: 12 points

Game 7: 8 points

Game 8: 10 points

Game 9: 5 points

Game 10: 31 points

Game 11: 21 points

Game 12: 3 points

Game 13: 3 points

Playoffs

Divisional : 31 points

NFCCG: 3 points

Super Bowl : 14 points

[Supes™]

I cringe when anyone, including and especially Falcons fans, try to imply that anything and/or everything was "given" to the Saints last season. If it were true, which it's not, it would cast an ugly shadow on the integrity of the NFL and its' officiating rules and policies. It would be like the Watergate of sports.

If and when the Falcons get a Lombardi, would we want folks claiming it was a "gift" because the refs, the NFL and the nation felt sorry for us? Think about it.

It's past time some of our Falcons fans got over the fact that if winning a Lombardi can be likened to the moon race, the Saints got there first and that's all there is to it.

[Beef]

Every time I read this I will simply throw down the Saints margin of victory of the 16 games won while defeating 3 future HOF QBs on their way to the Lombardi. Those refs really had to bail them out because they won by the skin of their hides hahahaha

Game 1: 18 points

Game 2: 26 points

Game 3: 20 points

Game 4: 14 points

Game 5: 21 points

Game 6: 12 points

Game 7: 8 points

Game 8: 10 points

Game 9: 5 points

Game 10: 31 points

Game 11: 21 points

Game 12: 3 points

Game 13: 3 points

Playoffs

Divisional : 31 points

NFCCG: 3 points

Super Bowl : 14 points

Yeah that's a brilliant point. Confirm for us there were 4 very close games that could have just as easily taken your team from 13-3 to 9-7 & fighting to even make the playoffs.

You're so smart. If everyone on your side thinks like this, I'm liking our chances.

[WHODAT BEAST IN THE CELLAR]

Yeah that's a brilliant point. Confirm for us there were 4 very close games that could have just as easily taken your team from 13-3 to 9-7 & fighting to even make the playoffs.

You're so smart. If everyone on your side thinks like this, I'm liking our chances.

So you're saying the team with the largest margin of victory in the league last season was not large enough? Wow, how dominating do the Saints have to be, to be considered legitimate? And if and when your team ever wins a Lombardi, prepare for the same horde of conspiracy theorists to question it's legitimacy....especially if it wasn't as dominating winning 13 straight and touting the largest margin of victory in the league with a record breaking offense.

Edited August 20, 2010 by SAINTªANGER

[MR2]

You forgot referee help and bailouts.

The Vicodin didn't hurt either.. yay for stolen drugs!

[~SEAMILL~]

I cringe when anyone, including and especially Falcons fans, try to imply that anything and/or everything was "given" to the Saints last season. If it were true, which it's not, it would cast an ugly shadow on the integrity of the NFL and its' officiating rules and policies. It would be like the Watergate of sports.

If and when the Falcons get a Lombardi, would we want folks claiming it was a "gift" because the refs, the NFL and the nation felt sorry for us? Think about it.

It's past time some of our Falcons fans got over the fact that if winning a Lombardi can be likened to the moon race, the Saints got there first and that's all there is to it.

Sorry, but the NFC championship was given to the Saints. part refs, part Vikes. But they did not deserve to win that game.

[Supes™]

Sorry, but the NFC championship was given to the Saints. part refs, part Vikes. But they did not deserve to win that game.

You don't have to be sorry. We can agree to disagree.

[WHODAT BEAST IN THE CELLAR]

Sorry, but the NFC championship was given to the Saints. part refs, part Vikes. But they did not deserve to win that game.

The Saints didn't get bogus calls against them in that game? I seriously want to get your take on that.

[WHODAT BEAST IN THE CELLAR]

And what particular calls/non calls by the refs do you say made it that Saints didn't deserve to win the game? I won't even bring up the "Vikes gave Saints the game" because the Saints caused those turnovers, they weren't gifted.

[~SEAMILL~]

The Saints didn't get bogus calls against them in that game? I seriously want to get your take on that.

I'll be honest with you, I dont remember every penalty called on both teams and I dont plan on rewatching that game ever again. Whether you want to admit it or not the Vikes should have blown you guys out. All I know is when the Vikes when getting close to the red zone they turned it over. 3 lost fumbles that I recall. Thats the only reason it was close. Like someone else said, there were many games that you should have lost. Either a fluke missed field goal, fumble or soem other crazy fluke #### that saved you guys. It was indeed a "miracle season", because it took a few of them for you to get to the Super Bowl. It's all water under the bridge now becauseyour team took advantage. But, I will never admit they didn't get bailouts (one way or another) all season long. Its cool if you think I am some bitter Falcons fan. It maybe true, but many of my other NFL fans that dont care one way or the other have said the same thing. Congrats, our time is coming.

Go Falcons!

Edited August 21, 2010 by ~SEAMILL~

[The Falcon Jedi]

After watching last night, this team has a lot more "Rise Up" left to do...

[apl2g]

love the article.. Just hope the team really means what they say.. not so sure after last nights game.

[Falcster]

They need to be amped up, because they SUCK....They all rode the jocks of the zebras to victory.

The Vikings were clearly the better team last year.

Brees will get the Madden curse and your team will go finish 3rd in the division just above or tied with the bucks. Without Brees the saints are worthless...

By George! He's absolutely RIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Like the Saints Fans all say:

GEAUX FALCONS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!