Welcome to AtlantaFalcons.com managing editor Jay Adams' blog-style posts where Jay jaws about the Falcons. JAWS, of course, stands for Jay Adams Writes Stuff, which means all the Falcons news and information that slips through the cracks — and some that doesn't — can be found right here in these posts
Last week, I shot a blog post out about the numerous ways you can get your questions about the Falcons, or anything else for that matter, answered.
The response was overwhelming and I received a lot of good questions during the weekend, which allows me to start a new feature I'll call Mailbag Monday (because, around here, we're pretty big on alliteration; i.e, Wordle Wednesday, Photo Friday, etc.).
If you're interested in having your questions answered, check me out on Formspring, where you can anonymously submit questions to me without having to sign up for anything. You can always ask your questions on Twitter and Facebook, if you prefer those methods.
I'm just going to select a few questions this week and keep a few for the next few weeks, so if your question isn't answered here, don't be discouraged. You'll likely see it in the next few weeks.
One more thing, I'll always take the questions and apply them here as you write them. I won't edit them at all, so that in most cases we don't lose the meaning or context of a question. Therefore, if you're a stickler on grammar, spelling and punctuation, check your question before submitting. If not, no worries. I can decipher darn near anything.
Anyway, on to the mailbag:
Question: do u know u r the luckiest guy? to be able to hang with th Falcons all the time? Jay i may not know every single detail about the guys but i have been a Falcon fan since i was little. i love my Falcons.....
Answer: Yes, I do know that I'm extremely lucky to be doing what I'm doing right now. Every morning I walk in the building, I take a moment to remind myself of where I started out and the dreams I had and how I've accomplished those goals I set for myself. It's an amazing feeling when you get to a point you've always hoped you could, so if you're currently working toward a goal right now, I highly recommend seeing it through, no matter how difficult things get. The payoff is totally worth it.
Q: Will Gonzalez be back next season?
A: Yes, from all indication, [Tony Gonzalez will be back for the 2011 season.
Q: What is the status of Jerious Norwood? Will he be back as a Falcon this year?
A: I've heard nothing new about Jerious since he went on injured reserve, so I don't know if he'll be back this season. As soon as I know something, I'll be sure to post it, but as of right now, he's still a Falcon.
Q: do you have any inside information on the Falcons cheerleaders?
A: They're currently in a very busy time of the year. Preliminary auditions took place yesterday and the field was cut down to, I believe, around 40 finalists. Those finalists will audition again Thursday night and then the final 2011 team will be named after that round. We'll be streaming the final auditions live Thursday night, so definitely check that out. That's all the inside information I have on the cheerleaders, but something tells me that wasn't the purpose of the question...
Q: What position would you personally like to see the Falcons address in the first round?
A:I've said several times that people are going to have a hard time pinning me down to one pick I'd like to see the Falcons take in the first round. Positions are another story, but I doubt my answer is going to be all that satisfying to folks who want to get that one, solid, concrete answer from me (which, by the way, would likely be incorrect come the first round anyway). I'll say this: I could see defensive end or offensive line addressed in the first round. I've looked at all the mocks and the roster and I've basically narrowed it down to these two positions. Is that what will happen? Possibly not. Well, probably not. The front office doesn't ask my opinion on who we should draft, and rightfully so. But those two positions seem to make the most sense. I'll also say that I could see a trade-back scenario or a best-player-available scenario happening. It's too soon to tell and we're picking too late to get a good read on something so specific.
Q: When did you decide you wanted to cover sports and why?
A: Honestly, I don't know if it was ever a conscious decision. Sports have always been a huge part of my life. You name it, I played it. I played offensive line throughout high school and a year at the D-III level, but decided I was way too short to get any significant playing time, so I hung up the spikes. I guess a huge part of me wanted to keep sports in my life in some capacity, and since I was in school to become a writer, covering sports just seemed to be the natural fit. I spent six years in newspapers, covering every sport under the sun — from wrestling to regattas — but pro football was and will always be my passion. Covering sports allows you the leeway to have fun with what you're doing. After all, at the end of the day, these are just games. What's more fun than that? If you're looking to get into covering sports, my biggest advice to you is to not take yourself too seriously.
Q: The extra draft picks the Falcons receive from the Quinn trade to NE and the Chris Houston trade to Detroit (especially) are all over the place. Which picks do the Falcons get, per the Falcons?
A: Excellent question, and to preface, the asker is referring to the compensatory picks the Falcons are due to receive because of the trades of Quinn Ojinnaka and Chris Houston. The answer is that there is no answer yet. These picks are usually named during the owners meetings, which are occurring this week in New Orleans. What I'm hearing is that those picks will now be announced at a later date. So, sit tight. We may not know for a bit.
