Sam Baker News

Sunday's Redskins-Falcons game didn't disappoint those of you still reeling from the Fedor fight on CBS Saturday night.

FLOWERY BRANCH Falcons wide receiver Brian Finneran, who battled back from missing two seasons because of a knee injury, suffered an undisclosed knee injury against the Washington Redskins.

Three keys to the game 1. The Falcons entered the game with the 31st-ranked pass defense in the league.

The Falcons' Friday injury report listed six starters, including WR Roddy White ,A who areA questionable for Sunday's game against the Redskins .

Posted by Anthony Stalter With how exceptionally well he played as a rookie last year, it's easy to forget that Matt Ryan only has 24 career starts under his belt.

Falcons running backs Jerious Norwood and Jason Snelling were inactive for the nationally televised game against the Saints on Monday night.

Posted by ESPN.com's Pat Yasinskas The Atlanta Falcons are the final stop on our tour of team-by-team mailbags.

When the Washington Redskins face the Atlanta FalconsA next week, they need to take a look at the Falcons blueprint from 2008 on how to turn this franchise around.

Matt Ryan usually spends his off days during the season watching film at the Falcons' team headquarters.

When watching film of the Atlanta Falcons offense, a few things stand out to me.

With the specter of facing Saints safety Darren Sharper , Atlanta's second-year quarterback is grateful to have an extra day before visiting New Orleans on Monday night.

Turner-Cowboys connection? Michael Turner has developed into one of the league's top running backs since leaving the San Diego Chargers for the Falcons last season.

Mike Smith's stable of coaches is one of the reasons for Atlanta's revival. Posted by ESPN.com's Pat Yasinskas When he found out he was interviewing for the coach job with the Atlanta Falcons in 2008, the first thing Mike Smith did was assemble an imaginary three-deep depth chart.

There's a reason the Atlanta Falcons traded up in the first round of the 2008 NFL draft to claim Southern Cal offensive tackle Sam Baker.

The Football-viewing public probably gets what it wants when quarterbacks garner all the attention.

FLOWERY BRANCH A Running back Jerious Norwood is serious about his footwear. He wants to make sure his shoes agree with the surface he's about to play on.

If this was the big test and benchmark we could gauge ourselves with, the returning grade is not good.

In the N.F.L., the "genius" label can only be rented. A few individuals, like Bill Belichick, get to lease it on favorable terms.

He is about to make up for lost time. Because of a season-ending knee injury Sunday to Falcons first-round draft pick Peria Jerry , Johnson is set to start at defensive tackle against the New England Patriots this weekend, head coach said Monday.

Sam Baker, the Falcons' starting left tackle, did not play in either game against the Carolina Panthers last season.