Southern Sports Edition
Playoff Run?
By: Kenneth Harrison
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
The Atlanta Falcons are 2-2 and had a bye week in Week 5.
Their next game is a Monday Night Football Game at home against Buffalo on October 13th. The Falcons have not made the playoffs in the last seven years. The question is are they good enough to end that streak?
“It was great to get a win going into the bye week,” tight end Kyle Pitts said. “Week 5 byes aren’t the best. But it’s all good, going into it with a win. We just hope that the continuity will stay high. We’ll definitely link together as offense during this (bye week). Just go to next week and get ready for prime time.”
Atlanta is in their second season under head coach Raheem Morris. Last year they were 8-9. As you know, they paid a lot of money to free agent quarterback Kirk Cousins going into the 2024 season. He signed a four-year $180 million contract, with $100 million guaranteed.
After making this move, they surprised the football world by drafting Michael Penix with the 8th pick in the 2024 NFL draft. Cousins started the season hot and led the Falcons to 6-3 to start the season.
Then he started playing worse during their losing streak. He led the league with 16 interceptions and he was tied for the league lead in fumbles. That led to Cousins getting benched after Week 15.
I think a quarterback controversy might be brewing this season. Penix has been the starter but he played poorly in a 30-0 Week 3 loss at Carolina. Penix was benched for Cousins in the fourth quarter of that game.
Penix also played poorly in the Week 2 win at Minnesota, 22-6. He passed for 135 yards with 0 touchdowns and 0 interceptions. I believe if he plays poorly against the Bills Penix will be benched.
Atlanta has done some self-scouting during the bye week.
“Getting those guys going and trying to find ways and different things that we can get going,” Morris said. “All of those guys up front being in different positions and trying to get those guys aligned at different things so we could dictate terms a little bit better.”
The Falcons are also working on their run defense ahead of their Week 6 matchup with Buffalo. The Bills have Josh Allen and James Cook to deal with. Cook is ranked second in the league in rushing with 450 yards and 5 TD’s.
The Falcons gave up 147 yards and 6.7 yards per carry in their last outing against Washington. Running back Chris Rodriquez got loose for a 48-yard gain.
“Yeah, so really the one big run, the 48-yarder, is the one that can really crush it,” Morris said. “You can never say ‘except for’ in this game. But, if you can get rid of that run, you don’t feel terrible about it, especially with a quarterback run game. … Well, (that) can really tilt that thing.”
The Falcons have to play the AFC East and NFC West this season. Buffalo is the only good AFC East team so they should be favored against the Jets, Patriots and Dolphins.
The Cardinals are the worst team in the NFC East. The Rams are one of the best teams in the league. The games against San Francisco and Seattle could go either way.
Tampa Bay is the best team in the division and the next game against them will be on the road. I don’t think the Falcons will make the playoffs this season.
The New Skipper?
By: Colin Lacy
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
The Braves began a process that hasn’t happened in 15 years…a search for a new manager. The organization recently announced that Braves Manager Brian Snitker will be changing roles by coming out of the dugout and moving into an advisory role in the front office beginning in 2026.
The Braves-lifer took over the Braves managerial job in the interim in 2016 after Fredi Gonzalez was fired, then named full-time head man for the 2017 season and moves to the advisory role next year which will be the 50th season in the Braves organization.
The Braves haven’t had to do a full managerial search since 2010 when the club hired Fredi Gonzalez to lead the chop. Now the question swirling around the ATL is “who comes next?”
The manager’s job is vastly different than what even Snit was hired to do in 2016 that also comes along with a demand for alignment from Derek Schiller (Braves Owner), Alex Anthopolous (GM) and through the organization.
The other piece that I pray that is still part of the process (but honestly am skeptical if it is) is finding someone that aligns with the “Braves Way” that was coined by legendary manager Bobby Cox and GM John Schuerholz that held the Braves organization to a higher standard than most teams.
There are a couple of different camps on potential replacements. Some in Braves Country would love to see a more “old school” true baseball man to lead the organization, and if they have a tie to the organization even better.
Names like Bruce Bochy, who is a legendary manager for the Giants and recently parted ways with the Rangers is back on the market.
Bob Melvin (who took over in San Francisco for Bochy) was let go by the Giants just days before the Snitker announcement came down the pipe.
Walt Weiss is also one that has come up consistently when the rumors were swirling over the past few years. Weiss was Snitker’s bench coach that has managerial experience with the Rockies and a former Braves infielder.
Finally, John Gibbons has been looking for a new job and has connections to the front office after being hired by Alex Anthopolous for the Blue Jays when “AA” was the top baseball executive north of the border.
Some other folks are looking for a “young buck” that is all into the analytics and the “new age baseball” minds. One of the top names in this category was Skip Schumaker, who was hired on Friday to lead the Texas Rangers and take over for Bruce Bochy in the dugout in Arlington.
There are dozens of former player names that have come up in conversation, and realistically we could list them all, but in reality, they are all the same. Baseball is more than a laptop, but we’ll save that soapbox for another day.
To me, while I’m a baseball purist and an “old school” baseball thinker and would be far more on that side if I had to choose, I believe that there are a couple of happy mediums.
From the time the word came out that there was a vacancy in the Braves dugout, the first name that came to my mind was Mark DeRosa.
DeRosa has been an analyst on MLB Network after his long playing career, and while he doesn’t have full-time managerial experience at the MLB Level, he has been a wildly successful coach and manager with USA Baseball including the manager for the last two World Baseball Classic teams that represented the American team.
Someone like DeRosa that leans more to the old school mindset while also being able to use the data and analytics to support the baseball minds.
Names like DeRosa, Craig Albernaz, Michael Young fit this role, and would be where my searching mind goes first, but we will see where the combination of Schiller, Anthopolous and the rest of the front office go to.
Brantley County Herons Coach’s Show w David Shores October 2 2025
Jason Bishop Show October 2 2025
Frederica Academy Knights Coach’s Show w Brandon Derrick October 1 2025
McIntosh County Academy Buccaneers Coach’s Show w Bradley Warren October 1 2025
Contenders Only
By: Michael Spiers
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
The Jacksonville Jaguars are 3-1, and that is not something a lot of people saw coming after last year’s mess of a season.
Just a few months ago this was a 4-13 team that looked lost. Now they’ve knocked off the San Francisco 49ers 26-21, and the big question is whether this start is the real deal or just an early season tease.
What stood out against San Francisco is how complete the win was.
The defense, under new coordinator Anthony Campanile, is playing with swagger. They already have more takeaways in four games than all of last season, and they held one of the toughest offenses in football to just one touchdown in three trips to the red zone. That does not happen by accident.
On offense, the Jaguars are still figuring things out under Liam Coen, but they are starting to look dangerous. The run game has been steady, piling up over 150 yards against the 49ers. Travis Etienne keeps finding room to run, and that all goes back to the offensive line.
A year ago, that group was a punchline. Now they are the backbone of this team.
The line has allowed just three sacks through four games. Last year by this point, Trevor Lawrence had already been sacked 13 times. On Sunday, he wasn’t touched once. Zero sacks, zero hits.
That is unheard of against a 49ers front that usually lives in the backfield.
The Jags front office deserves a ton credit for rebuilding that unit and adding depth. Even when starters went down, the backups have stepped in and the offense hasn’t missed a beat.
Lawrence did not put up crazy numbers to be sure, but you could see how comfortable he was. He controlled the game, made smart decisions, and spread the ball around.
Second year wideout Brian Thomas Jr. had his best game yet. Brenton Strange chipped in as a do-everything tight end, and special teams made big plays with Bhayshul Tuten’s kick return and Parker Washington’s punt return. It was a full team effort.
The defense has its own standouts. Devin Lloyd looks like a man on a mission in a contract year, and Dennis Gardeck has been one of those hidden gems who makes plays all over the place.
Even with injuries to Travon Walker, Anton Harrison, and Eric Murray during the game, they held strong. Stopping San Francisco in the red zone was the difference in the game.
Now, it’s not all sunshine. The Jaguars are still way too sloppy with penalties.
They’ve been flagged more than any team in the league so far, and the offensive line has been guilty of too many false starts and holding calls.
Third down has also been a problem, with too many drives stalling out because they’re playing behind the sticks. Those are things that have to get cleaned up if they want to hang with the big boys.
So, are the Jaguars for real? At this point, it sure feels like it.
The defense is creating turnovers, the run game is consistent, the offensive line is dominating, and Lawrence looks like he has full control of the offense. This isn’t the same old Jags that collapsed when things got tough.
This team looks tougher, deeper, and more confident.
The real measuring stick comes next Monday night when the defending AFC champion Chiefs come into Duval.
If Jacksonville can handle the stage, clean up the mistakes, and keep winning at the line of scrimmage, then this 3-1 start might not be just smoke and mirrors.
It’s the sign that the Jaguars might finally be a team to take seriously.
Brunswick High Pirates Coach’s Show w Garrett Grady September 30 2025
Camden County Wildcats Coach’s Show w Travis Roland September 30
A Little Too Much Buzz?
By: Kenneth Harrison
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
Georgia Tech has started the college football season 5-0. That is impressive because most people did not predict this would happen. The Yellow Jackets beat Wake Forest (2-2) over the weekend, 30-29 in overtime. They dropped one spot in the AP Poll to #17.
“I’m extremely excited to win the football game,” head coach Brent Key said. “We’ve got two weeks now to deal with those things.”
It is tough to win games, especially against conference opponents. The two games Wake Forest has won were against Kennesaw State and Western Carolina. The Demon Deacons barely beat KSU in the season opener, 10-9.
We have to now ask, is Georgia Tech a legitimate contender to win the ACC and make the College Football Playoffs?
My answer is no and I have to use this Wake Forest game as an example. I know Tech was on the road but they trailed 20-3 early in the second half. The Yellow Jackets looked sluggish on both sides of the ball and let an inferior team dominate them for most of the game. I could argue that they showed toughness by coming back to win the game.
There was a blown offsides call against Georgia Tech with 1:50 left in the game and Wake Forest had the ball on third down. Quarterback Robby Ashford threw an incomplete pass, thinking he had a free play. That causes the Deacons to punt the ball with a three-point lead.
Wake Forest coach Jake Dickert told reporters Ashford “did what he’s trained to do, and that’s take a shot because he doesn’t know if it’s offside or not.”
An ACC spokesperson told the Associated Press that offside should have been called on the play. If officials had made the correct call, then Wake would have gained a first down with the penalty yards. Tech had no timeouts left, so the Demon Deacons could have secured the victory by running out the clock.
“I think there’s something special about this team, not even looking in the future, just the present with that just happened,” quarterback Haynes King said. “To overcome that, on the road, it’s just the maturity that we have. The trust that we have, players to players and coaches to players.”
Tech has a bye week coming up. Their next game is on October 11th at home against Virginia Tech (2-3). The Hokies lost to Old Dominion 45-26, so this should be an easy win for the Yellow Jackets.
The rest of the season they should be favored against everyone except for #12 Georgia. After Va Tech they play at Duke, Syracuse, at NC State, at Boston College, Pitt and UGA. I think they will lose at least one conference game. I also expect them to lose to Georgia.
If Tech advances to the ACC Championship Game, they will probably play #3 Miami or #18 Florida State. Both of those teams are more talented, so I would expect them to beat the Jackets.
If Georgia Tech can get to nine or ten wins, that will be considered a good season. They were 7-6 last year so that is a major improvement.
