Based on the way the season began, former Mizzou star linebacker Sean Weatherspoon thought his return to the Atlanta Falcons after an uneventful one-year hiatus with the Arizona Cardinals would be triumphant.
“My first game against Tampa, I graded out awesome,” Weatherspoon said. “Next game, we went to Oakland, I got a 10-piece. Graded out awesome.
“I’m like ‘Man, I feel good.’”
The Falcons played the Saints the next week, and Weatherspoon had another great game. And through four weeks — three starts — he had 27 tackles and started to resemble the versatile, heat-seeking defender he was in Atlanta prior to a two-year stretch where he was limited to only six games due to injuries.