Michael Vick, Tom Glavine and more

Sorry about the inconsistencies seen here lately as far as when and how often I blog. Things have been somewhat quiet lately, so there's my excuse.

Let's start today with Michael Vick. He turned himself in to U.S. Marshalls three weeks before his scheduled sentencing date of Dec. 10. Thank goodness.

I'm unclear at this point whether that means his sentencing will be moved up or whether it will remain the same, keeping in mind that he's already in jail. It's a good, smart move by Vick, although it still does nothing for his image. If his sentencing will be moved up, it's a great move for the Falcons, as well. They have a Monday night game against the New Orleans Saints the same day as Vick's originally scheduled sentencing. If that somehow changes, the Falcons have one less distraction to deal with that day. And any time the Falcons can avoid a distraction, it's a good thing.

I've rather enjoyed the quiet nature of this topic lately and I'm hoping Vick's sentencing doesn't heat things up again. I think most of us who deal with the Falcons on a daily basis are happy to see this whole thing start to subside as Vick gets ready to serve his well-deserved time.

------

Tom Glavine is a member of the Atlanta Braves again. Whoopie! I think it's a great move for the Braves. Glavine still has some fire left in him and he immediately helps a pitching staff that so desperately needs it. On top of that, I think it's a great PR move, too. Braves fans are going to go nuts when they see Glavine back in a Braves uniform again, and I think he'll definitely put some butts in the seats.

At the same time, I think the Braves have to be careful from here on out. I love the move by bringing Glavine back, but let's remember, this is a team that missed the playoffs by a long shot (and it would have been longer if the Mets had taken care of business) and Glavine isn't getting any younger, hence the one-year deal. If the Braves make moves here in the next few months that bolster the pitching staff and fill in some gaps in the lineup with the future in mind, they look really smart. If they bring Glavine in and then a bunch of other aging veterans, there will be huge problems. I'd like to see one more strong, young starting pitcher added and a big bat or two that could be around for the next five to seven years would be nice, as well. Glavine is a good start to sell tickets and win a few games, but there's a lot of work left to be done and we won't know just how wise this decision was until spring training rolls around.

------

Oh, the Atlanta Falcons. Do we need to talk about them again? Just kidding. Sunday's game was a disaster. There's no way around it. The Falcons come in with the chance to be one game out of the top of the division if they win and they completely blow it in ugly fashion. There was nothing about that game worth building on or remembering.

Let's start with the quarterback situation. I have straddled the fence this year on who should be the No. 1 guy, Joey Harrington or Byron Leftwich. I think there are equally good and bad things about each. I think the Falcons generally have a better chance to win with Leftwich, but they have proven they can only win with Harrington. So, really, that should make up everyone's mind.

Bobby Petrino took that whole stick-with-what-works mentality and tossed it far out the window by starting Leftwich against Tampa Bay. Harrington, while completely unimpressive, led the team to a 2-0 record since the by week and was sitting on the sidelines for most of Sunday's game. Harrington isn't anywhere near being a great quarterback, but he has three wins under his belt as an Atlanta starter. Leftwich has zero in three tries.

I remember a few years ago when the Buffalo Bills were dealing with a controversy like this. Starter Rob Johnson had been injured earlier in the year and Doug Flutie came in to take over. Flutie suddenly turned into this amazing phenomenon and guided the Bills to the playoffs. The week before the playoffs began, Johnson was suddenly healthy. Head coach Wade Phillips decided to start Johnson in the Wild Card game instead of Flutie, and that decision resulted in the Bills being ousted from the playoffs. Music City Miracle, anyone? It also resulted in Phillips losing his job.

Sunday reminded me of that with Harrington being benched despite having success on the field. But now the Falcons have to figure things out very quickly before the Indianapolis Colts come rolling into town. I'm going to take a stand and say that Harrington should be the starter Thursday and he should hold the position for the rest of the year unless he gets injured. There. I'm no longer on the fence. But it's not going to matter. The Falcons are going to get toasted this Thanksgiving anyway.