By Andy Benoit, www.NFLTouchdown.com

Predicted: 4^th

2007 Record: 4-12 (4^th NFC West)

Head Coach: Mike Smith (1^st Year)

Roster Quick View

*rookie

**new veteran

Offense

QB: Chris Redman Is Matt Ryan ready yet?

RB: Michael Turner** Excellent combination of power and speed. Should see sixty percent of the carries and be a 1,000-yard back.

FB: Ovie Mughelli Bruising style of play is a much better fit in the new, true power-run offense.

WR: Roddy White Emerged as a 1,200-yard receiver last season. Can still get a little better.

WR Laurent Robinson A potential star, thanks to long frame, field-stretching speed and impeccable quickness. Also capable of playing in traffic. Keep a close eye here.

TE: Ben Hartsock** Blocking specialist being forced into a starting role.

LT: Sam Baker* Must be more consistent than he was as a banged-up senior at USC. Quick, but how’s his strength?

LG: Justin Blalock Gradually improved as a rookie though, right now, nowhere near the run-blocker he could be. His pass protection’s not bad.

C: Todd McClure Veteran cog who has been holding down the fort inside for the better part of the past nine years.

RG: Kynan Forney Hasn’t been the same since 2006 shoulder surgery. Atlanta should ponder a change here.

RT: Todd Weiner Faces uphill battle after serious microfracture surgery on left knee late last fall.

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QB: Joey Harrington If he were a robot, he’d be a star. Unfortunately, he’s a deep-thinking human being with a good memory.

RB: Jerious Norwood Has averaged an insane 6.2 yards per carry over the past two seasons. When he gets around the edge, he could be the biggest home run threat in football.

WR: Harry Douglas* Lacks great size (5’11, 170), but scouts love his potential in the slot.

WR: Michael Jenkins Okay, so he hasn’t lived up to first-round billing. Doesn’t mean he’s not a solid blocker and special teams player.

TE: Martrez Milner Shows some positive signs as a blocker when used in motion.

OL: Tyson Clabo Performed admirably off the bench last season. Will probably eek into the starting lineup at RT in 2008.

Defense

LDE: Jamaal Anderson Eighth-overall pick last season who produced zero sacks. He’ll never be a good pass-rusher, but he’s terrific against the run.

NT: Montavious Stanley Deserves some playing time because he can be effective anywhere on the front line. But having him start at NT is a bit much.

UT: Jonathan Babineaux Significantly improved his quickness and mobility last season. Capable of starting but needs better players around him.

RDE: John Abraham Feared pass-rusher who should only be playing third downs. Becomes a cross between the Lion and Tinman when asked to stop the run.

SLB: Michael Boley Would be Atlanta’s best defensive player if he operated with a greater sense of reckless abandonment.

MLB: Curtis Lofton* Huge undertaking if he indeed starts from Day One. Not oozing with talent, but hard-working and productive. Will that be enough?

WLB: Keith Brooking Pro Bowler and leader who eagerly moves back to natural weakside spot after being stuck in the middle for two years.

CB: Chris Houston Survived as a rookie starter in 11 games last season, but in no way is he a No. 1 CB at this point.

SS: Lawyer Milloy Veteran captain who is almost certain to retire after the season.

FS: Erik Coleman** Couldn’t consistently get on the field in New York. You don’t mind his starting….when someone in front of him is injured, that is.

CB: Von Hutchins** Brought in to provide depth at all the DB positions. Atlanta’s scarcity of talent forced him into the first string.

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DL: Chauncey Davis Nowhere near being fast enough to reach the quarterback. Questionable strength makes him an iffy contributor.

LB: Stephen Nicholas The previous coaching staff loved him. Will find a chance to emerge as a starter at some point….just don’t know where, when or why.

NB: David Irons Second-year player who has performed well on special teams.

Key Players Acquired

FS Erik Coleman (NYJ)

K Jason Elam (Den)

DE Simon Fraser (Cle)

TE Ben Hartsock (Ten)

CB Von Hutchins (Hou)

FB Corey McIntyre (FA)

DT Rashad Moore (NE)

DT Kindal Moorehead (Car)

C Alex Stepanovich (Cin)

RB Michael Turner (SD)

Key Players Lost

TE Courtney Anderson (Buf)

TE Dwayne Blakley (Ten)

DT Rod Coleman

S Chris Crocker (Mia)

TE Alge Crumpler (Ten)

RB Warrick Dunn (TB)

OT Wayne Gandy

CB DeAngelo Hall (Oak)

QB Byron Leftwich

S Omare Lowe (Sea)

CB Lewis Sanders (NE)

LB Demorrio Williams (KC)

DB Jimmy Williams

GM Thomas Dimitroff and the new coaching staff came in and cleaned house. Hall, Dunn, Crumpler and Coleman were four of the team’s top veterans. Atlanta only got a second-round pick for Hall (and a fifth-rounder in ’09) because Hall’s public discontent compromised Dimitroff’s leverage. Leftwich was not worth having around. Demorrio Williams and Sanders were solid but, in the spirit of a roster overhaul, expendable. Jimmy Williams, a second-round pick in 2006, was a bust of monumental proportions. Of the players brought in, only Turner is of distinct significance.

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We’ve been mowing through the offseason with the best and worst, and to date covered each side of the offensive side of the ball, and have thrown out the five best defenses heading into training camp. Now we finish up our series with the five teams that we feel are going to have the worst defenses as training camp starts in the next few weeks:

1. Atlanta - The poor Falcons were not very good last season, and that fact will be the case again in 2008. In 07 they allowed 355.5 yards per game, and don’t forget they got rid of one of their best defensive players - CB DeAngelo Hall. They will count on 2nd round pick Curtis Lofton to play the MLB spot so Keith Brooking can move to his natural weak-side spot. SS Lawyer Milloy is winding down his career, and the team did next to nothing to improve the D-line. It’ll be a long season for the Birds.

2. Kansas City - In a full rebuild mode in KC, this unit is going to have its issues - again. They moved unhappy but sack happy Jared Allen, and hope that youth will be served on the line, and Glenn Dorsey will live up to the hype. We’ll see. In their 9-game losing streak last year, they allowed over 190 yards rushing in those games, and teams seemed to score in bunches. The starting secondary is old, and by the early to mid-part of the year there will be a lot of changes in this unit.

3. Detroit - The Lions allowed a whopping 377 yards per game last year, and they have plenty of question marks up and down the defense again this year. They traded Shaun Rogers, who underperformed to the Browns, and are counting on players like Cory Redding and pickup Chuck Darby to lead the D-line. They let LB’s Boss Bailey and Teddy Lehman go in free agency, and will have Ernie Sims, Jordan Dizon and Paris Lenon as the starters there. The secondary allowed passers to complete 70 percent of passes last year, a number they have to improve on in 08.

4. Miami - Sorry Fin Fans, the Dolphins D is going to be in a transition mode this season, and that means new coach Tony Sparano is going to have growing pains with this unit. There is talent here, as yougnsters Matt Roth and Quentin Moses should have time to develop on the line. They will miss the leadership of Zach Thomas, and the possibility of them moving Jason Taylor seems high still. The secondary has few playmakers, and the LB core needs more from mouthy Joey Porter and Channing Crowder, who needs to make more plays.

5. Cleveland - While the offense in Cleveland can score with the best of them, the defense still has work to do. This was an area the team looked to upgrade big time this offseason, which is why they traded for the Packers Corey Williams and Lions Shaun Rogers to help on the line. The secondary is a huge problem area, as they moved Leigh Bodden in the Rogers deal, and will need Eric Wright and Brandon McDonald to really step up. This unit can be better, but there’s still much to be concerned about here.

Training camps open in about a month, and it’s time to start getting deeper into some of the teams, and today we start with a rather interesting topic, the five worst offenses in the league entering training camp. Of course some of these teams did what they could to improve, but the bottom line is that it could be a tough year moving the ball for these five teams:

1. San Francisco - The Niners last year were awful moving the ball, putting up just 237 yards per game, and entering this year, they will count on Frank Gore to be better, Alex Smith to get back to form of being an up and coming QB, and the O-line to give him more time and open holes for Gore. As for the WR core, they hope that Issac Bruce has something left, and Bryant Johnson will be a playmaker. The Niners though still have a ways to go to prove they can be a decent offense.

2. Baltimore - Quarterback is a huge question for this team, and many think they should just throw Joe Flacco into the fire in week one. As for the other skill players, Willis McGahee ran for 1,207 yards, but even with that was not the game-breaking back they thought they were getting, and will need an even better year from him. The O-line is going to miss Jonathan Ogden big time, and the WR core has little to offer with players like Mark Clayton or Demetius Williams being nothing more than guys filling roster spots.

3. Chicago - For a team that has a very good defense, the offense is downright ugly. Rex Grossman or Kyle Orton can’t be trusted, and the running game is in a flux worse than ever with Cedric Benson gone and the team counting on rookie Matt Forte. They failed to address the WR spot with Bernard Berrian bolting to the Vikings. The O-line should be better with rookie Chris Williams, but gives not much help in the hope departement to fans.

4. Kansas City - Another team with a lot of questions at the skill positions, as Brodie Croyle again tries to prove he can win the starting QB job, which he failed to do in camp last season. The O-line has been overhauled, and they really need Larry Johnson to stay healthy this season and be the L.J. of old. Dwayne Bowe gives the WR core some hope, and Tony Gonzalez is a top 3 TE, but overall, this unit is still scary, and not in a good way.

5. Atlanta - First year QB Matt Ryan is going to give the team a new look, and free agent RB Michael Turner is going to get his shot as an every down back. Other than that, the line is not going to be very good, and the team is going to play a lot of catch up, which for a rookie QB in Ryan is going to be tough. They went just over 300 yards per game on offense last year, and doing that again is going to be a challenge.

We reported here a few days ago that the Cowboys may have an interest in unhappy Falcons WR Joe Horn, a player that could come in and basically be Terry Glenn if things between Glenn and the team don’t get settled.  Now the Dallas Morning News is reporting the Horn to Dallas tidbit is not going to happen, and it’s coming from the mouth of the man who signs the checks - Jerry Jones.

Jones told ESPN during the AFL Dallas Desperado’s game at the American Airlines Center that Horn is not in the teams plans.  “Yeah, that’s not correct,” Jones said. “I haven’t expressed any interest there and haven’t evaluated him. That’s just not correct.”  Horn is 36, so him coming in and having any sort of impact on the Cowboys in 2008 is probably just a pipe dream.

The Falcons are due to owe Horn $2.5 mil in 2008, and they likely with their recent movement to get younger want to either trade Horn or dump him.  Someone will likely give Horn a look this season, but right now, he does not look like he’s on the Cowboys radar.

Trial in Virginia for NFL quarterback Michael Vick on dogfighting charges has been delayed until next summer.  The prosecutor in Surry County tells the Richmond “Times-Dispatch” Vick and three codefendants won’t be tried until after July 20th, 2009, when Vick is expected to be released from federal prison.  The former Atlanta Falcons quarterback is serving a 23-month term on his guilty plea to federal charges in a dogfighting case.  He still faces two state charges in Virginia. 

The prosecutor ways tiny Surry County cannot afford to transport Vick and his codefendants from their federal lockups.  He also said the small courthouse in Surry isn’t equipped to handle the crush of reporters who would cover the trial.  Vick’s Virginia trial was first slated for April 2nd, then rescheduled for today.  Now, the trial will be sometime next summer, unless a plea bargain is struck.  Vick avoided a federal trial and pled guilty to federal dogfighting allegations last August.

The Cowboys are continuing to check the market for pass catchers, and one receiver that they may some interest in is Falcons WR Joe Horn, who is not happy with the Falcons.  NFL Network’s Adam Schefter threw out the report that the team is keeping an eye on the situation with Horn and the Falcons.

Schefter says Horn has become “plan 1A” for Dallas if Terry Glenn doesn’t sign his injury waiver and the Cowboys could send Atlanta a late-round pick.  Last season in 12 games for the Falcons Horn caught just 27 passes for 243 yards and one score.  He was expected to come in and be a big influence in the locker room, but after he was told that he was not going to get much playing time in 2009, he reportedly told the team he wanted out.

Horn does not have much gas left in the tank at 36, and is a far cry from even the receiver he was 2-3 years ago when he was making plays with the Saints.  His best season with New Orleans came in 2004 when in 16 games he caught 94 passes for 1399 yards and 11 scores.  The Cowboys will keep their options with both Glenn and possibly Horn open as training camp gets going.

Michael Vick’s legal problems won’t end when he walks out of a federal prison, where he’s doing time for illegal dog fighting.  A prosecutor in Surry County says he wants to file similar charges against the former Virginia Tech star.  Gerald Poindexter tells the “Richmond Times-Dispatch,” quote,  “Those two crimes have gone unpunished in Surry County.”  Trial for the suspended quarterback of the Atlanta Falcons was to have begun tomorrow. 

But, a judge agreed with Poindexter’s request to delay the trials of Vick and other defendants until they are released from federal compounds. Vick is in Leavenworth, Kansas.  If he behaves, he could be freed in a little more than a year. Animal-rights groups balked that Poindexter seemed hesitant to prosecute Vick, since he’s an NFL superstar.

Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Ashley Fox wrote a column today on the possibility of first-round pick Matt Ryan walking into the starting job this season with the Falcons. “If there’s one thing I learned growing up in that area it’s that you can’t worry about” expectations, Ryan said last week to Fox. “You can’t even think about it. If you do, if you get caught up in it, it can only distract you. For me, I certainly have high expectations for myself and what I want to accomplish as a player. You have to live up to those expectations, and that’s really the way I’ve gone about it.”

Ryan has a lot heaped on him in his first season with the Falcons, and that does not even include a whopping contract that pays his $72 million over six seasons. Some think that Ryan has the intangibles to be as good as a QB like Carson Palmer, others think he’ll flame out like failed QB’s Ryan Leaf or Rick Mier. As Fox rightly points out, one thing that Ryan has going for him today is the fact he’s signed and sealed, and will be in camp on time.

Atlanta wants Ryan to be the savior of the team, putting the awful 2007 season to bed, and owner Arthur Blank wants him to be the QB that puts the memory of Michael Vick to rest as well. Time will tell if Ryan is going to be able to do that.

The Falcons have cut former second-round pick Jimmy Williams, just two seasons after drafting him.  The Daily Press reports that Williams came to offseason workouts at 230 pounds, which is 18 pounds over the weight he is listed at on the teams roster.  He also missed two of three days of a voluntary mini-camp for “personal reasons,” a sure way to get yourself kicked off a roster.

“I knew it could get to this point, but I wasn’t sure it would,” Williams said. “They’ve been upset with my weight, but I didn’t think the weight thing was a big issue. I thought they were hiding behind that. Other than that, there weren’t any real disputes between me and the Falcons.  I never felt like I had a fair shot to show what I can do, but I’m not upset with anybody.”

Last season Williams played in 14 games, making 15 tackles with one interception.  He had 24 tackles in 13 games back in 2006, his rookie season with the team.  He was set to make $445,000 in 2008, and ProFootballTalk.com says look for the Seahawks to look at Williams, since Jim Mora (current assistant coach) was the coach that drafted him two years ago.