For once, I’ve gotta give the Atlanta Falcons some credit. When they dealt egomaniac problem child cornerback DeAngelo Hall to the Oakland Raiders, they got the best of both worlds. Not only did they get the Raiders 2nd round pick (the 2nd pick in the second round), they sent Hall to dwell in the quagmire that is the Raiders franchise under Al Davis.

Atlanta Journal-Constitution columnist Jeff Schultz said it best on his blog yesterday when he wrote:

“When Hall gets his money, it will sooth his ego for a time. The problem is, he’s a great player on a good team but a divisive player on a bad team. He will alienate teammates and drive his coach and owner crazy (although in the Raiders’ case, he probably can’t do Al Davis any further harm). It is unfortunate that the Falcons have to say goodbye to their best player. The problem is, Hall’s not a leader. He is immature, egomaniacal and petulant. The ego part isn’t unusual for a great cornerback. But the other aspects of his personality make him a bad fit for the Falcons, Raiders or any bad or rebuilding team.”

My problem with DeAngelo Hall has always been that he think he’s a much better player than he actually is. He is as flashy, attention-starved, and loud as Deion Sanders with about half the talent. It’s hard to argue that the Falcons are better off without a player of Hall’s ability but as they try to rebuild this franchise, they just might be.

In case you hadn’t heard, Bobby Petrino bailed on the Atlanta Falcons after Monday night’s schlacking by the Bush-less, McAllister-less New Orleans Saints and took the head coaching job at Arkansas.

The Atlanta press have shown the veracity of their New York brethren in going after Petrino, calling him a quitter and saying that it wasn’t the downfall of Michael Vick or injuries that saddled the former Louisville head coach in the ATL.

In today’s Atlanta Journal-Constitution, columnist Jeff Schultz writes, “Bobby Petrino. Not a man. He’s running like a coward.”

The AJC’s beat writer Tony Barnhart says Petrino has “absolutely no communication and people skills.”

Simply put, Petrino is a rat. He jumped ship in the Derby City (not before trying to take Tommy Tuberville’s job at Auburn, whom had hired Petrino to work on his staff) for the glitz (and the cash) of the NFL but wanted none of the responsibility of being an NFL head coach. But worse than Steve Spurrier and Slick Nick Saban, Petrino didn’t even make it through a single year at the helm of an NFL franchise.  And that’s the guy you want to lead 18-22 young men in Fayetteville? No, thanks.

If there was any doubt that Felix Jones was packing it up and heading for the The League a year early, this seals the deal. Darren McFadden was a done deal but with Jones, Arkansas still had a viable offensive weapon. What about now? Who’s going to lead that offense in the future?  Casey Dick? You can’t be serious.

And what does this hire say about Arkansas football? Is this how desperate they are to win? I know after Tommy Bowden, Jim Grobe and Tommy Tuberville all declined the job, there must have been some scrambling in the AD’s office for some viable candidates but there are a lot of good coaches out there (Ron English, comes to mind) and none with the character issues that Petrino has. But this is really a reflection of how out of whack the expectations are at Arkansas. After the team won the SEC West, that fan base legitimately lost their mind and thought they were Alabama or LSU. With this hire, Arkansas has cemented its position as a second or even third tier SEC program for the forseeable future.

For the record, I do not, in any way, feel bad for Arthur Blank. He hired Bobby Petrino and he entrusted the future of his franchise in the hands of a young man that never exhibited any indication that he was mature enough to handle it and now the franchise is in tatters. As the saying goes, you made your bed, now you’ve gotta sleep in it.

I like….

Coldplay is almost finished with their new album, which unfortunately is promised to be no more than an already-measly 42 minutes in total run time.

Bottom Line fave Anthony Bourdain sits down for a Q&A with Time Magazine.

The grossly overrated D’Angelo Hall isn’t talking to the press for the rest of the year. Who does this guy think he is? I really think that he believes that he is a captivating superstar on par with what Deion Sanders was in the mid-90s. Someone needs to inform him that that isn’t the case. I’m really beginning to wonder what it is about Virginia Tech that it keeps producing this guys with behavior and character issues. D’Angelo Hall, Mike Vick, Marcus Vick, I mean what’s going on with Frank Beamer’s program that the kids who pass through end up being so troubled.

I don’t like….

We Are Scientists drummer Michael Tapper has quit the band. My favorite parts of WAS’ spectacularly average songs have been Tapper’s drum parts and I’m not sure what will keep me listening to this band, given this announcement. Guess we will find out whenever they stop touring England and hit the studio.

Watching last night’s Falcons/Bengals preseason game, something very profound occured to me: I really like Joey Harrington.

Watching the former Lions/Dolphins quarterback run down the field after throwing a touchdown pass in a PRESEASON game, you begin to understand what Harrington has been through. In Detroit, he had absolutely terrible teams around him.  George Blanda, Johnny Unitas, Joe Montana, Dan Marino, John Elway, Tom Brady or Peyton Manning couldn’t have won with those Detroit teams. Frankly, Lions GM Matt Millen is a clown and that he still has that job today is mystifying.

Now that Harrington is going to be the Falcons starter, you really want the guy to succeed and do well. He badly wants to be embraced by his teammates, by the fans and by the city and I hope all of that happens for him this season. He wasn’t embraced by any of the above in Detroit, which many sportswriters claim in the worst sports city in the America. I figure there must be some truth to it because everytime someone says something negative about Detroit, people from Detroit get all tight. My guess is that they know their town’s a hellhole and the way they treated Harrington is disgraceful. Good luck, Joey.

__________

No, seriously… 

Man, roller skating must be getting really competitive.

Vodka, a hot headed wife and a naked husband make a really bad (and painful) combination.

__________

SI’s Stewart Mandel with five players that redefine their positions.

The demise of Sam Keller at Arizona State.

The AJC’s Mark Bradley sums up yesterday’s Michael Vick plea as nicely as anyone.

Kirk Herbstreit’s “Herbies.”

The Vikings feel really good about Tarvaris Jackson.  I’m not impressed. Yet. 

Lovie Smith doesn’t believe Lance Briggs abandoning his $300k car on the highway at 3 in the morning had anything to do with booze.  Come on, coach.

Vick an afterthought on Virginia Tech campus.

DeAngelo Hall should think twice before using his hair to trash talk.

Jeremy Bloom is a better skier than a football player. Who knew?

Can the ACC show its a power conference again?

Which Brady Quinn haircut do you prefer?

The Bills will start rookie linebacker Paul Posluszny.

Vick should be an example to young stars, says Milwaukee columnist.

Nike is done with Mike Vick.

Big 12 will be ruled by parity, Omaha paper says.

No starting spot for Cards corner Antrel Rolle.

___________

Well-rounded news… 

Tom Welling as Superman in Justice League flick.

New ‘Lost’ cast members.

More Scott Baio on VH1.

Fall movies to look forward to.

The 10 best foods you’re not eating.

One week from the release of the first season of Heroes on DVD. Can’t wait. I started to watch the show on iTunes earlier this summer and got hooked but couldn’t stand watching television on my computer without being on a plane.

____________

No, seriously…. 

Getting drunk and feeding bears is a really bad idea.

___________

Iowa State fans will get a chance to vote on the Cyclones’ new helmet design.

Interesting piece on Louisiana native and Hoosier corner Tracy Porter.

A scathing indictment of Michael Vick by AJC columnist Jeff Schultz.

The Dallas Morning News’ Jean-Jacques Taylor argues that Vick should not get a lifetime ban from the NFL.

The Eagles have parted ways with veteran linebacker Jeremiah Trotter.

___________

Well-rounded news… 

HD DVD scores in battle with Blu-ray.

Is MTV scared of internet music?

Rumor has it, Ryan Reynolds will play The Flash in a future Justice League flick.

The Movie Blog advocates banning cell phones in movie theaters.

Wolfmother frontman gets into it with groupie over cell phone picture.

Disney concludes that Harry Potter theme park would be an expensive nightmare, says Slate.

Of course the news of the past two days is (soon-to-be former) Atlanta Falcons QB Michael Vick entering a guilty plea to his federal dogfighting charges.

As the word “guilty” left his lips in a Virginia courtroom, Michael Vick’s NFL career fell by the wayside. Michael Vick will have to confirm that every grisly detail in that indictment is true and in so doing, he will, once and for all, bury his NFL career and leave everyone wondering what might have been for Mike Vick.

Vick is likely to serve at least a year in federal prison and last I checked, prison’s don’t staff strength and conditioning coaches. Yes, I do think that once he gets out of prison, some owner or GM somewhere in this league will remember the athlete Vick once was and give him a tryout but he will never again be the star he once was. Michael Vick is, without a doubt, an incredibly famous football player but yesterday he became infamous.

But looking back on Vick’s career, the buzz word has to be “potential.” After all, that’s all Vick’s career really amounted to. Every training camp the Falcons would go to camp hoping that this would be the year that Michael Vick would finally come into his own as a quarterback. That year never came for the Falcons and now it doesn’t look as if it will ever come for Michael Vick.  I mean, let’s face it, Michael Vick was never even a very good quarterback in this league and once he’s released from prison, he’ll be lucky to fill the third slot on a depth chart.

Everyone is waiting to see how NFL commish Roger Goodell will take to being lied to. My guess is not very well. Vick is done for this season, serves ‘08 in prison and looks to make his return to the league in ‘09 but  Goodell will remember sitting across from Vick and being assured that the quarterback had nothing to do with dogfighting and suspend him for 2009 as well. Good riddance.

VICK STEALS HEADLINES 

Having seen the girlfriend off to college, the weekend was a pretty eventful one that had me tethered to the couch for a majority of it. Having watched some football and a ton of TV. I have a number of things to rant about this morning. Let’s start chronologically.

I TiVo’d Friday nights Minnesota/Jets preseason game knowing full well that I was really only interested in the first quarter to see how rookie Adrian Peterson would do along with first year starter Tavaris Jackson for the Vikes. What I saw was Chad Pennington put in the worst preseason performance by a starter that I’ve seen in a long time. On the flip side, Adrian Peterson looked fantastic. He is a strong, quick runner that will be giving tacklers fits all season long. I am not sure that is a more dangerous runner in the open field than AD. The jury is still out on Jackson. Because of Pennington’s slip-ups, Jackson only saw 2 or 3 series of work and spent a great deal of time handing the ball off to Chester Taylor and Peterson. The Vikings could be a very interesting team to watch this year.

Saturday, I watched an absolute ton of Survivorman as it was apparently the wrong weekend to sign up for a season pass of the show. I think at last count, I watched 5 episodes of the program and 7 still remain unwatched on my DVR. It’s pretty incredible stuff. I’ve also become addicted to the travel/food show No Reservations with Top Chef guest judge and blogger Anthony Bourdain. A really fun watch.

Last night, I caught the first bit of the Giants/Ravens preseason game and shook my head at how ineffective Eli Manning is as a quarterback. The Peyton comparisons are warranted and inevitable but ultimately pointless. Eli is and never will be half the quarterback and leader his brother is. But forget Peyton for a second. Where does Eli list on the greater list of NFL quarterbacks? Top 10? Absolutely not. He’s probably one of the top 15 quarterbacks in the league. One could argue that he may be the 15th-20th best quarterback in the league given that he has not exhibited, so far, anything closely resembling leadership qualities. If the Giants are going to be successful this year, they will need Eli Manning to take control of the reins and make this his team. I just don’t see that happening.

__________

No, seriously…

The mayor of Cincinnati might be a little too sensitive.

Brazil to offer free sex changes.

A plastic cut-out cop shooting a radar gun is slowing drivers down in Tennessee (insert Tennesee joke here.)

___________

ESPN’s Mark Schlabach makes five predictions for the SEC this year/the power in the conference is moving east.

Nets forward Richard Jefferson gives $3.5 million to his alma mater.

Giants defensive end Michael Strahan expected to end holdout by this weekend.

SI’s Peter King is reporting that Falcons owner Arthur Blank feels deeply betrayed by Michael Vick.

The U.S. Open holds tryouts for “ball people.”

THE DAILY BIRD 

• Philadelphia Inquirer’s Ashley Fox: Team has questions to answer.
• Les Bowen has something similar.
• Inquirer’s Phil Sheridan: All is right with Eagles, McNabb

New York Daily News writer dubs Virginia Tech “America’s Team.”

Brady Quinn a “knockout” in Browns debut.

Alabama corner Simeon Castille arrested for disorderly conduct.

Former USC tailback Emmanuel Moody not blaming USC for this transfer.

Dan Hawkins names son starting quarterback at Colorado.

___________

Well-rounded news… 

The Federal Trade Commission is still trying to block the Whole Foods/Wild Oats merger.

Dickens World will make your bratty kids grateful for what they have.

Veronica Mars’ Kristen Bell will join the cast of ‘Heroes.’

Kanye samples Steely Dan on new record.

J.K. Rowling is reportedly working on a detective novel.

Currently loving Common’s new record, Finding Forever. Simply put the guy is one of the most clever and talented lyricists in history. The beginning of the record reminds me of the Black Star and Common’s collaboration with Lilly Allen is amazing and infectious and as always Kanye’s appearances on this record are memorable and bump-worthy.

Monday I mentioned seeing the trailer for The Kingdom and being really excited about it. One of the other trailers before the Bourne Ultimatum was for Ridley Scott’s American Gangster staring Denzel Washington, Russell Crowe and… Common. Check it out.

__________

No, seriously…

A 10-year-old accidentally locked himself in a gun safe at a Massachusetts’ Sam’s Club.

An Australian cattle rancher spent a week in a tree after falling off his horse in a swamp chock-full of alligators.

__________

ESPN has launched bracket-style tournament to decide which conference will be strongest in 2007.

• ACC vs. Big 12
• Pac 10 vs. Mountain West
• WAC vs. Conference USA
• WAC vs. SEC

SI writer says USC freshman Joe McKnight is the second coming of Reggie Bush.

Fanhouse’s Pac 1o preview.

• Coaches on the hot seat.
• The teams not named USC or Cal.
  
• Top 5 games.
  
• Most underrated players.

A member of the Rutger’s Women’s Basketball team is suing Don Imus for defamation of character. This woman doesn’t have a snowball’s chance of winning this suit because her attorneys will have a very difficult time showing that she was specifically damaged by a comment that was made about a group of individuals, comments where no one was named individually. It would be the equivalent of someone saying that all Destin Log reporters were illiterate and possibly in-bred and then me trying to sue that person for defamation. You can’t sue someone for hurting your feelings — at least not yet.

John Smallwood on why it’s ok to overreact about the Eagles’ preseason snooze-fest. The Eagles are apparently not worried.

The New York Times says the greatest threat to Michael Vick’s future in the NFL may not be dogfighting specifically but rather the money he may or may not have gambled on dogfighting.

Giants rookie wideout Steve Smith has the Giants very excited.

Indiana football players will wear a helmet decal and a patch on their jerseys in memory of Coach Hep.

Photo: Sam Riche/ Indianapolis Star

The AJC’s Tony Barnhart lists his must-watch games of 2007.

With a bunch of youth and inexperience, the Orlando Sentinel’s Dave Curtis says Florida will experience some growing pains in ‘07.

Going to Broncos’ games help Darrent Williams’ mother cope with her son’s death.

Ankle problems seem to be plaguing Florida wide receiver Percy Harvin.

An interesting piece on hetero-lifemates, Urban Meyer and Billy Donovan, which features this photograph:

Whoever pranked neanderthal tight end Jeremy Shockey is officially my new hero.

Dan Patrick is back on ESPN radio for the next three days and word is Colin Cowherd will not be taking his place.

Peter King’s All-Future team.

Apparently there was a confrontation at a UCLA pick-up game between Baron Davis and USC FRESHMAN O.J. Mayo. You don’t think this kid’s going to be a total headache, do you Tim Floyd? Good luck.

The AJC’s Terence Moore thinks if Michael Vicks takes a plea deal, he’ll likely be banned from the NFL for a long time.

__________

Well-rounded news… 

An interesting take on journalistic objectivity and politics.

Peer-to-peer file sharing network Lime Wire appears to be going legit.

My So-Called Life movie not likely, says Claire Danes.

The Knocked Up dvd will hit stores Sept. 25 with three editions.

Daft Punk is looking to release a live CD.

Site of Coachella 300 years overdue for a massive earthquake.

Finally saw The Bourne Ultimatum over the weekend and loved it. It was everything that The Bourne Supremacy should have been but wasn’t. Matt Damon proves, once again, that he’s one of the greatest actors of our generation and turns in another powerhouse performance. The supporting performances are great, Joan Allen manages not to ruin this film like she did in Supremacy, Julia Stiles is actually really terrific and you really can’t say enough about David Strathairn, the guy is liquid on screen. The action sequences were top-knotch and even had me smirking like a geek with their awesome-ness (a smirk which drew several wayward glances and eye-rolls from my girlfriend who enjoyed it but clearly not as much as I did). Behind Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Ultimatum was my favorite movie of the summer.

I also saw Ron Howard’s The Paper with Michael Keaton, Glenn Close and Robert Duvall and really enjoyed it. I think it was very true to life at a newspaper and the actors were really convincing newspeople. I don’t think this film is as true to form as a picture like Shattered Glass but was every bit as enjoyable. The flick is perfect for a rainy day. Definitely worth a spot on your Netflix queue.

Currently blasting the speakers on my MacBook and in my car is Kanye West’s new single Stronger which features an amazing slowed-down sample of Daft Punk’s “Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger.” The song is fantastic and really embodies everything that I unashamedly love about Kanye West. The guy is inventive and not at all afraid to take risks. Can’t wait to pick up Graduation when it comes out on Sept. 11.

Worth mentioning was the trailer for Peter Berg’s The Kingdom that I saw before The Bourne Ultimatum, which I am more excited about then I can even describe. Jamie Foxx, Hillary Swank, Jason Bateman and the imcomparable Chris Cooper in what looks like it could be one of the best films of the year.

__________

No, seriously…

British teen OD’s on espresso.

Some moron paid more than $1,500 for an oil smudge on a garage floor in Virginia. It doesn’t even look like Jesus. Frankly, it looks like a goat.

__________

ESPN’s Mark Schlabach lists college football’s biggest secrets in ‘07.

Lawrence Taylor tells Michael Strahan to hang it up.

Saints linebacker Scott Fujita sets the record straight on his water park foot injury.

Pair of pieces from ESPN’s Pat Forde on Kentucky quarterback Andre Woodson and on Darren McFadden going pro after this season.

DC United player pissed about ESPN’s Beckham-centric MLS coverage.

Jon Gruden is still sifting through his pack of quarterbacks.

Not really news but I find it interesting that every week there is a letter from a reader in the Buffalo News about how awful Sabres management is. Every week, never fails.

Hoosiers hope to improve their pass rush. It really can’t get any worse.

The AJC’s Terence Moore wants Michael Vick’s staunchest supporters to wake up and smell the roses.

A nice piece in the Houston Chronicle on Texas A&M quarterback Stephen McGee.

Packers first-round pick Justin Harrell sees limited time in preseason opener. This might have been the worst first-round pick in last year’s draft.

In case you live in a cave: MADDEN COMES OUT TOMORROW!

Drew Henson fighting for his football life in Vikings camp.

Titans players defend their ownership of pit bulls.

The AJC’s Tony Barnhart on why the SEC is smiling and the things college football fans have learned a week into practice.

Oklahoma quarterback race still not decided.

__________

Three consumer groups have spoken out against the Whole Foods/Wild Oats merger.

Google to launch iTunes competitor, gBox.

Who owns what in today’s online media landscape.

Microsoft is hoping the release of the Halo 3 this winter can help the system rebound from hardware failures and slumping sales.

Christopher Nolan debuts some ‘Dark Knight’ footage at Chicago comic con. I can’t wait for this but it seems that the producers have gone 0-for-2 in my mind in the casting of Rachel Dawes’ character. First they casted Katie Holmes, who was the worst thing about Batman Begins and now they’ve gone out and gotten Maggie Gyllenhaal who is my least favorite actress on the planet. I have never seen a single film that she’s been in that I enjoyed. I hope she can change my mind.

Cinematical lists seven movie stars who are about to fall off the A-list.

Stereogum has the real cover of Kanye’s new record, Graduation.

Facebook makes the cover of Newsweek.

Newsweek’s 25 hottest universities.

As if you needed another reason to buy Kanye’s new record, 50 cent says that if West’s Graduation outsells his record, which comes out the same day, he’s going to stop making music. (Your lips to God’s ears, sir.)

Top Chef’s Sam Talbot on the now-infamous Rocco episode.

Last night’s Top Chef was pretty fantastic, as usual. What you tend to notice with these shows is that after the first three weeks it begins to become very apparent who has it and who doesn’t and for the five or so weeks proceeding, it is just chipping away at the weaker chefs week-by-week.

I plan on watching some NFL exhibition football for as long as I can stand it tonight (which could end up being the first quarter or so) but hey.. football’s back! Can’t feel too bad about that!

__________

No, seriously…

Beavers attacking the elderly.

Cops shouldn’t wear cowboys boots.. no one should really.

__________

ESPN’s Mark Schlabach looks at which college football coaches are on the hottest seats in 2007.

Arizona Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt takes his team to see The Bourne Ultimatum.

ESPN Ombudsman: ‘Who’s Now?’ draws venomous response from ESPN faithful.

Another story on the Virginia Tech football team, this time by SI’s Stewart Mandel.

More of Fanhouse’s Big 12 Preview:

• Toughest schedules
• Coaches on the hot seat
• Underdogs

ESPN’s Pat Forde on the war of words between Michigan and former player and current Stanford coach Jim Harbaugh. The Detroit Free Press’ Mark Snyder.

ESPN/ABC has released its schedule for the 2007 college football season.

Notable opinions: Mike Lupica, Michael Wilbon on Barry Bonds.

Racism in European soccer targeted at American DaMarcus Beasley.

Introducing, Steely McBeam, the new Pittsburgh Steelers mascot.

It’s never too early for an Indiana basketball story.

Brady Quinn expects to earn his lumps at Browns camp after holdout.

Steven Jackson shrugs off hard hits at Rams camp.

Another story from a paper outside Indiana about the start of Hoosiers football practice.

Joey Harrington says he was handcuffed by Lions.

Frank Beamer says he wasn’t accusing Georgia of spying on his practices.

Oklahoma defensive back Reggie Smith might be the best player you’ve never heard of.

Things get testy at USC camp.

__________

Well-rounded news…

30 percent of X-Box 360 owners don’t know the system performs in hi-def. I’m not one of them. It’s amazing.

What makes sweet tea so special in the South?

Kevin Smith on losing Rosario Dawson and his birthday.

Blockbuster acquires movie download service MovieLink.

Kevin Smith is not directing SuperMax.

Wild Oats profits fall through the floor.

Last night’s Top Chef

• Gail Simmons
  
• Ted Allen
• Anthony Bourdain