Could the Falcons Go 1-15?

Everyone knows that this year's Falcons team isn't a threat to go undefeated, or to go .500 for that matter.

But as Mark Bradley points out, the Sporting News has picked the Falcons to go 1-15 this year, which would rank them among the worst teams of all time--right up there with last year's Dolphins.

It's easy to say this year's Falcons team will be bad, but it's hard to see how they will be that bad. It's hard to imagine a season worse than last year (star quarterback ends up in jail, coach angers most of the team, cuts one of the team's best defensive lineman, then quits on them in the middle of the season, and the team ends season with almost no defensive tackles). Even with all that, what arguably was the worst season in Falcons history, Atlanta still won four games.

Even if Matt Ryan struggles as a rookie, Michael Turner should ensure that the offense is a tick better than last years. The defense may not be much better, but they also will have to work hard to be much worse. And last year's team had no luck at all. They may not be luckier in 2008, but it would take a run of monumental bad luck to go 1-15.

In the long run, it really doesn't matter how bad the 2008 Falcons are. As bad as it is to say, the reality is that this team is already focuses on 2009 and beyond--the offseason additions and releases have been geared that way. But even with that, 1-15 seems pretty ludicrous.