For most fanbases, the NFL Draft represents a renewed hope, a chance to erase disappointment and begin dreaming of what can be.
For fans of the Atlanta Falcons, however, the draft has become a weekend of mourning, of reflecting and meditating on sins of the past, and the stark realization that the more things change, the more they stay the same in Atlanta.
GMs in Atlanta come and go, head coaches with varying amounts of power have been like a revolving door, and the team's NFL Draft strategy has become more akin to a round of Who's Line Is It Anyway?.
"Welcome to the NFL Draft for Atlanta Falcons fans, where the rules are made up and the picks don't matter." (Apologies to Drew Carey)
Make no mistake -- Falcons fans want the team to make the right picks. They pray whatever new regime is pulling the levers this time will get it and find the magic. They offer sacrifices to the god of draft picks as it if was the Shiva.
All for nothing. It has become an exercise in not only futility, but in agony for every fan who has poured their soul into this franchise.
Because for every fleeting thought that a pick might not be as bad as it seems on the surface, memories of names like Peria Jerry, Bruce Pickens, Peter Konz, Jamaal Anderson, and -- of course --Aundray Bruce come parading through the memory banks.
For every draft trade that causes fans to believe -- even for an instant -- that the suits in Flowery Branch have an actual strategy, the pain of losing a first-round pick for Peerless Price, trading a future first-round pick for Reggie Kelly, and the unforgettable loss of a second-round pick to get a single season of production from Tony Martin return with a blunt punch in the face.
We won't even discuss the selection, trade, and decades of regret surrounding Brett Favre. A stain more permanent than red wine and coffee on a white silk shirt.
For every Matt Ryan, there are multiple Desmond Ridders. For every William Andrews, there's football field-length line of Steve Broussards and Tony Smiths. For every Roddy White the Falcons gave us entire rosters of Shawn Collins.
Like a pile of unfolded laundry, it just never ends.
The Falcons fail even when it seems they achieve victory in the draft
And even when the Falcons seemingly get it right, they wind up covered in bird droppings. The most calculated and well-executed draft plans backfire with the intensity of a mustard gas grenade, and stink even more.
Michael Vick a sure thing? Absolutely...sure to embarass the franchise and become synonymous with Arthur Blank's coddling being a distraction.
Julio Jones a franchise-changer? For sure, but you had to mortgage the future to get him and ended up with zero titles, and an oft-injured player in the second half of his career. At least he piied up the stats and gave fans something to cheer about, though.
$180 million man Kirk Cousins was the perfect bridge to potentially lead Atlanta to a Super Bowl? The executives would do their due diligence to find the perfect quarterback to draft and succeed him?
No comment, as the Fontenot-Cousins-Penix trifecta of franchise doom will go down in history as one of the most ridiculous moves in team history.
The list of "the Falcons passed on this guy" is too long to even begin trolling, and the broken pipeline between Athens and Atlanta (with a detour to Philadephia) has become a thing of legend. There's a disconnect when it comes to picking the best players and it's not exclusive to Cleveland.
No, there's a reason Falcons fans have given up all hope when hope springs eternal for fans everywhere else. History has become a harsh teacher. They say those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it. Clearly, this lesson has escaped the Falcons front office.
Now it's time for Kevin Stefanski and Ian Cunningham to pour out the wax and put their seal on a Falcons draft class, and fans are nervously anticipating what is to come, filled with the knowledge of what has been before. Falcons fans no longer enter into the NFL Draft with hope. They can only watch as things predictably unravel
Happy Doomsday, Atlanta.
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