Atlanta Falcons

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FILE - In this Sunday, Jan. 22, 2017, file photo, actor Samuel L. Jackson has some fun before the NFL football NFC championship game between the Green Bay Packers and the Atlanta Falcons in Atlanta. With the Falcons on the verge of their first-ever NFL championship, many celebrities based in the city are showing their hometown team major support. Usher, Samuel L. Jackson and Ludacris have been spotted cheering from the sidelines at home games along with showing appreciation through social media with the team's slogan #riseup. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey, File_

Atlanta celebrities ‘rise up’ for Super Bowl-bound Falcons

By JONATHAN LANDRUM Jr. - Associated Press

Anderson man a long-distance Falcons fan

By KEN DE LA BASTIDE - Associated Press

In this Jan. 22, 2017, photo provided by Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, 15-month-old Ella sits in a hospital bed at the Aflac Cancer Center of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta in Atlanta. Children's Healthcare of Atlanta says the gown was made by the girl's grandmother to wear during the NFL's NFC Championship game between the Atlanta Falcons and the Green Bay Packers. The Falcons won 44-21. (CHOA via AP)

Tiny fan dons Falcons hospital gown during cancer battle

Associated Press

FILE - In this Jan. 1, 2017, file photo, former Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick stands on the sidelines before NFL football game between the Falcons and the New Orleans Saints in Atlanta. Vick never made it to the Super Bowl with the Falcons. And his career with the team ended in disgrace. Yet no one is rooting harder for the Falcons to win their first championship.(AP Photo/John Bazemore, File)

Vick writes letter to Atlanta, says he’s huge Falcons fan

By PAUL NEWBERRY - Associated Press

FILE - In this Jan. 22, 2017, file photo, Atlanta Falcons defensive end Dwight Freeney (93) hits Green Bay Packers' Aaron Rodgers after throwing a pass during the second half of the NFL football NFC championship game in Atlanta. Once the season is over, Freeney will think about his future. With his 37th birthday just weeks away, he knows time is running short. But if this is to be his final game, what a way to go out. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip, File)

Freeney has a chance to go out on top with Atlanta Falcons

By PAUL NEWBERRY - Associated Press

New England Patriots' Tom Brady answers questions during opening night for the NFL Super Bowl 51 football game at Minute Maid Park Monday, Jan. 30, 2017, in Houston. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

Tom Brady, Super Bowl suddenly focus of anti-Trump wave

By Tommy Chalk - The Washington Times

Atlanta Falcons offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan walks on the field during an NFL football practice , Thursday, Jan. 19, 2017, in Flowery Branch, Ga.. TheFalcons will face the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship on Sunday in Atlanta. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

Kyle Shanahan briefly loses playbook against Patriots after bag mishap

By Tommy Chalk - The Washington Times

This Jan. 27, 2017 photo shows Atlanta Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff answering questions from the media at the NFL football team's practice facility in Flowery Branch, Ga. A string of emails that began in 2010 with the Atlanta Falcons head trainer and reached all the way to owner Arthur Blank showed a franchise worried about its ”excessive” reliance on painkillers to treat players and the potential embarrassment that could cause the team and the NFL. Nearly every recipient on the email chain _ from Blank, president Rich McKay and general manager Thomas Dimitroff to then-head athletic trainer Marty Lauzon _ is still with the team, which plays New England in the Super Bowl on Sunday. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

Only on AP: Falcons worried about handling of painkillers

By JIM LITKE - Associated Press

Current Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan was a star at Boston College and prepares to face the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl on Sunday. (Associated Press)

Matt Ryan sees only goodwill in enemy territory

By Jimmy Golen - Associated Press

Atlanta Falcons' Matt Ryan walks to the bus as the team arrive at George Bush Intercontinental Airport for the NFL Super Bowl 51 football game against the New England Patriots Sunday, Jan. 29, 2017, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

In enemy territory, nary a bad word about Falcons QB Ryan

By JIMMY GOLEN - Associated Press

FILE - In this Tuesday, May 24, 2016, file photo, Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank talks about his city's successful bid following a vote at the NFL owner's meeting in Charlotte N.C., that awarded the Super Bowl to Atlanta, which will host the game in 2019, South Florida, (2020) and Los Angeles (2021). The New England Patriots’ “Deflategate” was a major story, but the Atlanta Falcons were handed a much-less publicized punishment for pumping fake noise into home games in the 2013 and 2014 seasons. The Falcons’ “Inflategate” was a blip on the news radar, in large part because owner Arthur Blank acknowledged the team’s rules violation even before the NFL released its official findings in 2015. (AP Photo/Bob Leverone, File)

Blank’s approach made ‘Inflategate’ a blip on Falcons’ radar

By CHARLES ODUM - Associated Press

Fans are seen near Minute Maid Park before opening night for the NFL Super Bowl 51 football game Monday, Jan. 30, 2017, in Houston. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

The Latest: Shanahan, Lynch pairing becomes a possibility

Associated Press

In this Thursday, Jan. 26, 2017 photo, Atlanta Falcons' Andy Levitre, left, plays against teammate Josh Harris in a game of pingpong in the locker room at the NFL football team's practice facility in Flowery Branch, Ga. For the Super Bowl-bound Falcons, brotherhood begins at three pingpong tables in the middle of their locker room. That's where friendships are forged, friendly wagers settled and the competitive juices really get flowing. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

Atlanta Falcons’ brotherhood starts with a little white ball

By PAUL NEWBERRY - Associated Press

FILE - In this Jan. 31, 1999, file photo, Denver Broncos wide receiver Rod Smith (80) catches a pass for a touchdown as Atlanta Falcons saftey Eugene Robinson (41) moves in during the second quarter of Super Bowl XXXIII in Miami. The night before the game, Robinson was arrested for trying to solicit a prostitute. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola, File)

As Falcons return to big game, remembering the Dirty Birds

By PAUL NEWBERRY - Associated Press

FILE - In this Oct. 9, 2016, file photo, New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (12) runs with the ball during an NFL football game against the Cleveland Browns, in Cleveland. The Falcons (13-5) take on the New England Patriots (16-2) in Super Bowl LI in Houston on Feb. 5, 2017. (AP Photo/David Richard)

Matchups for the Falcons-Patriots Super Bowl

By BARRY WILNER - Associated Press

Atlanta Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff answers questions from the media at the NFL football team's practice facility in Flowery Branch, Ga., Friday, Jan. 27, 2017. Dimitroff is revisiting his past in New England's front office as Atlanta prepares to play the Patriots in the Super Bowl. For Dimitroff, this Super Bowl season has re-established his reputation as a GM who can build a winner. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

Super Bowl against Pats ‘dream game’ for Falcons’ Dimitroff

By CHARLES ODUM - Associated Press

FILE - In this Oct. 22, 2014, file photo, Atlanta Falcons head coach Mike Smith speaks during a press conference about an upcoming game against the Detroit Lions, in Watford, England. Mike Smith never made it to the Super Bowl with the Falcons. Came up 10 yards short. But let's not underestimate the impact he had on the Falcons, who are now just one win away from their first NFL championship. (AP Photo/Tim Ireland, File)

Column: As Falcons head to Super Bowl, remember Mike Smith

By PAUL NEWBERRY - Associated Press

In this Aug. 9, 2016, file photo, Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones (11) and Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan (2) talk during an NFL football training camp practice in Flowery Branch, Ga. Atlanta led the NFL in points (540) by a wide margin, thanks to a career year from QB Matt Ryan (2), who along with WR Julio Jones (11) are All-Pros. The Falcons (13-5) take on the New England Patriots (16-2) in Super Bowl LI in Houston on Feb. 5, 2017. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

Patriots and Falcons sport Super Bowl LI patches

By Tommy Chalk - The Washington Times

In this Sunday, Jan. 22, 2017, file photo, Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank dances with players after the NFL football NFC championship game against the Green Bay Packers in Atlanta. The Falcons won, 44-21, to advance to the Super Bowl LI. One conversation stands out in Blank's year to remember. Blank said Thursday, Jan. 26, he sent a congratulatory text message to coach Dan Quinn in May, when Atlanta was awarded the Super Bowl to be played in 2019. &quot;He texted me back and said 'I plan on playing in it sooner,'&quot; Blank said. (AP Photo/David Goldman, File)

Super Bowl latest highlight for Falcons owner Arthur Blank

By CHARLES ODUM - Associated Press

All rise: Georgia Supreme Court to ‘Rise up’ for Falcons

Associated Press