The Falcoholic
The Atlanta Falcons have one preseason game in the books, and as always with preseason, the result doesn’t matter at all.
What typically matters are the individual performances and the moments from key reserves and would-be starters, and we got some interesting ones Friday night that we’ll discuss below. But what ended up really mattering Friday night was the health of cornerback Morice Norris, who was injured and taken to a hospital by ambulance. The injury was scary enough for those of us at home and in the stands, but for Falcons and Lions players and coaches, it was far more sober and difficult to watch a teammate and friend suffer and possibly have his life changed forever, which is why Dan Campbell and Raheem Morris ultimately agreed to run out the clock on the game without playing further.
That obviously is the headline of this game for good reason, especially until we know what’s going on with Norris more fully. Down below that are the performances themselves, which featured a strong defensive beginning, standouts stretches for the offense, and plenty of players trying to generate a little momentum as they battle for jobs. This week’s joint practices and scrimmages with the Titans and the subsequent preseason game will help reinforce or unfortunately undercut those performances, but they are a real start as this team takes on the daunting task of evaluating its roster and cutting it down at the end of the month.
On to the full recap, and we continue to hope Norris is okay.
There’s nothing good about an injury like Norris’, but the way both teams supported eachother warrants a mention here. I know we don’t know how this season will turn out, and we don’t know how Raheem Morris will fare in critical late situations requiring thoughtful time management after last year. What we do know is that Morris, like Lions head coach Dan Campbell, are always talked about as quality people for good reasons, something Friday night underscored. Campbell praised Morris as a class act for agreeing to stop playing after Morice Norris was injured, but there was never really any question of Morris and these Falcons choosing otherwise. That led to a rare, moving stretch where the clock ran down and the two teams simply comforted one another in a moment where it was sorely needed, when they weren’t certain Norris was going to be okay and weren’t sure taking the field again to play was the right thing to do.
In those tough moments, people show you who they are, and Morris and Campbell made it obvious why so many around the NFL regard them so highly, whether the records are great or not. Like us, I’m sure they’re anxious to get good news about Norris this morning, and I hope we all do. Last night’s positive update from Dan Campbell was, at least, a small relief.
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