Ghost Written by: Brandon Joseph

The Falcons need to win on Sunday vs. the Giants not to legitimize the season, not to lock Matt Ryan in as an upper tier QB but for reasons that have nothing to do with the Atlanta Falcons. Before this goes any further it has nothing to do with Michael Vick either. We should all be on the same page that this team, this town, this fanbase is past the “Vick Era” and the argument about that has been settled (Falcons make the playoffs; Eagles enjoying it from home). This playoff game has nothing to do with just football but everything to do with baseball, hockey and basketball added with it.

In the last 10 completed seasons the Atlanta Falcons have made the playoffs only 4 times. They have advance past their first game twice, both times losing their next game. Meanwhile in that same time frame:

Braves: 5 Playoff appearances, all 5 first round losses

Thrashers: 1 Playoff appearance (2006) and they were swept out of the first round.

Hawks: 4 Playoff appearances with 3 advances out of the first round.

The inclusion of UGA football and Tech basketball would help move these numbers into a slightly better light however with when it comes to the cities with at least an NFL, MLB and NBA team the city of Atlanta trails in championships and performance.

Sometimes it is not just about being a warm body at the dance. For this city the Falcons carry the weight not just to show up at the dance but to bust a move and raise the roof or do the Macarena; whatever it takes to change the overall nationwide perception and trend for this city.

***And also this game has everything to do with erasing that 48-21 beating at the hands of the Packers last year in the NFC Divisional Round***