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Petrino Leaves A Bitter Team Behind

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By PAUL NEWBERRY, The Associated Press

Published: December 13, 2007

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. - Coward. Quitter. Hypocrite. And those were some of the nicer things the Falcons had to say about their former coach Wednesday.

Bobby Petrino left behind a bitter team, skipping town to return to the college ranks with not so much as a face-to-face meeting with his players.

"I feel like I've been sleeping with the enemy," safety Lawyer Milloy moaned.

The Falcons watched him on television the previous night at a giddy late-night news conference in Arkansas, then showed up at their lockers to find a 78-word letter from their ex-coach, whose NFL tenure lasted 13 games.

While Petrino had few friends in the locker room, the Falcons (3-10) felt abandoned in a season where so much has gone wrong.

"The best way to describe the way we feel," Falcons owner Arthur Blank said, "is betrayed."

The Falcons were particularly upset about Petrino's jovial demeanor at his first news conference in Arkansas, where he even participated in the school's "calling the hogs" cheer.

"That's what I think brought up the anger, to have him talk about family, about team and about commitment, and then to come in here and have a form letter at your locker," quarterback Joey Harrington said. "That's not how a man acts. That's how a coward acts."

During his final days with the Falcons, Petrino expressed to both Blank and General Manager Rich McKay his concerns about dealing with pro athletes.

"This league is not for everybody," Milloy said. "This league is for real men. I think he realized he didn't belong here."

Around the league, others noted Petrino's departure.

"He snuck out in the middle of the night like the Baltimore Colts did," said Kansas City running back Kolby Smith, who played for Petrino at Louisville.

"For my profession, I'm always very disappointed when things like this happen," Ravens coach Brian Billick said. "Kind of leave it at that. This profession needs to handle itself better at times."

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