Atlanta Sports: Sustained Period Of Playoff Fever Coming For ATL

The early part of 2017 wasn’t exactly the best of times in Atlanta Sports. The latter half of 2017, though, looks like it could get a lot better.

This isn’t going to be an overly analytical read. So, if you’re looking for some sort of Hegelian treatise on the dialectic nature of the Atlanta Sports scene, this isn’t it. It is, however, more of a Faulkner-esque stream of consciousness.

This year was brutal early on. We had the Super Bowl. Not even close to being over that, yet. Georgia Tech and Georgia football both won their bowl games, but let’s face it, neither season was worth writing home about, unless, you were complaining. Neither the GT or UGA basketball teams were anything to brag about. Then, there was the Atlanta Hawks. Let’s not.

But something surprising has happened in the Atlanta sports scene of late. The Atlanta teams are winning. And they look like they might continue to win.

First, the Georgia Swarm won the NLL Championship. Anytime an Atlanta team wins a professional championship it worth stating proudly. And lacrosse is awesome.

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Then you have our beloved Atlanta United FC. They are (10-7-3) with a total of 33 points. Currently 4th in the Eastern Conference, ATL UTD is firmly ensconced in the playoff picture. The fact that they are doing this in their 1st ever year of existence is ridiculous. I would bet money that they make the playoffs at this point.

Then you have our beloved Atlanta Braves. Yes, they have a losing record. No, it doesn’t look like this team will make the playoffs. But, they could. And not a dang person truly thought that in April. That says something.

Then you have the big one. That’s not to say that these others aren’t big. They most certainly are. But, the last time we saw our beloved Atlanta Falcons they were doing the unthinkable. Just not in a good way. And on the biggest stage in sports.

That team certainly got better and deeper in the off-season. Were it not for the psychological effects of that last loss, and the ways it can change players under pressure, Atlanta, in terms of talent, is good enough to be considered an NFC favorite again. That is a new thing for this franchise, their fans, and this city.

If the Atlanta Falcons don’t make the playoffs, I will really be surprised. That is a new feeling, for sure. Really weird.

Then you have college football. Georgia Tech and the University of Georgia both have the feel of teams who might surprise some folks this year. Both have early games that will determine the tenor and flavor of the 2017 season. But, both should be pretty good. Not playoff good, but, you know.

It was a rough beginning of 2017 Atlanta sports people. But that was only part of the story. Playoff fever started with our Georgia Swarm. It won’t end there.

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