Forbes puts the city as No. 2 on its list of “America’s Most Miserable Sports Cities.”

Stop. This has nothing to do with the debate over whether Atlanta sports fans are loyal or the arenas are cushy or the news media is nice to a team’s owner. Or, a group of arguing owners.

Forbes, in this case, looked at something else.

It’s “the kind of misery that comes from teasing the fans by getting close to a championship, only to let them down in the end,” the magazine says.

Perhaps the Hawks come to mind after being swept 4-0 by the Magic in the NBA’s Eastern Conference semifinals.

And then there’s the Falcons, who, for the first time since 1966, had back-to-back winning seasons in 2008 and 2009 – but failed to make the playoffs in ’09.

But, according to Forbes, it’s the Braves that are the main reason why Atlanta is so high on the “miserable cities” list.

“ … with 14 division titles and four league pennants since 1991, but only one World Series championship to show for their efforts.”

What’s more, the Braves’ 1995 World Series title is the city’s only championship in 147 cumulative seasons of major league sports, Forbes points out.

Forbes created its misery rankings this way:

It took the number of postseason appearances by a city’s teams and then compared that to actual titles won.

The cities that had a lot of playoff losses but few championships scored the highest, Forbes said.

Forbes gave more weight to losing in a title game, such as the Super Bowl. So, just making it to the first round of a playoff series and then going home isn’t as bad as losing in the Stanley Cup final, for example, Forbes said.

One last factor? How long it’s been since a city has last won a title.

Seattle tops the list. Then, it’s Atlanta, followed by Phoenix, Buffalo and San Diego.

Cleveland, Washington, Kansas City, Minneapolis-St. Paul and Houston round out the list of ten.

The Gwinnett County Sheriff’s web site shows that police charged him with possession of marijuana with intent to distribute, driving without a license, driving with an expired tag, having material on his windshield or light, and a faulty tag light.

Babineaux was driving a 2005 Cadillac Escalade EXT on Interstate 85 north near Hamilton Mill Road about 10:45 p.m. when a Gwinnett County police officer stopped him for an equipment violation and expired registration, according to a release from Corporal David Schiralli of the Gwinnett County Police Department.

“During the stop an odor of marijuana could be smelled by the officer coming from the interior of the vehicle,” Schiralli said in the release. “Gwinnett County Police K9 responded to the location and a positive alert to the odor of narcotics was given by the dog.”

During a search of the Escalade police found 41 grams of marijuana in three separate bags, according to Schiralli.

The booking information sheet shows that Babineaux was released after posting a $8,300 bond.

Police also arrested Aaron Robinson, 25, a passenger in the SUV. He was charged with possession of marijuana with intent to distribute, a felony.

An Atlanta Falcons official sent an e-mail to Channel 2 Action News sports anchor Zach Klein confirming the team is aware of the arrest.

“We are aware of the situation concerning Jonathan Babineaux and are in the process of gathering information,” said Matt Conti of the Falcons. “Because this is a legal matter, we will have no further comment at this time.”

Babineaux is a defensive tackle for the Atlanta Falcons. He was drafted in 2005.

The Atlanta Falcons signed him to a five-year, $25 million contract extension in November 2008.

Police arrested Babineaux on animal cruelty charges in 2007, after he allegedly killed his girlfriend’s dog, but those charges were later dropped.

VIA: AJC.com

The National Football League will review the sideline melee that occurred in the Falcons game against the Washington Redskins on Sunday at the Georgia Dome.

“Any altercation of that nature is always reviewed for possible discipline,” Randall Liu, the NFL’s NFC information manager, wrote in an e-mail to the AJC.

The NFL normally issues fines for discipline on Friday.

“I can tell you this, our quarterback was hit late, out of bounds on the sideline,” Falcons coach Mike Smith said Monday. “We were trying to restore order on our sidelines.”

Washington cornerback DeAngelo Hall, a former Falcon, contended that he was playing peacemaker and was accosted by several Falcons and the strength coach Jeff Fish and alleged that Smith made “harmful contact” with him.

“Guys, I haven’t even thought about that,” Smith said. “Today is Monday, and we are on to the Carolina Panthers.”

However, Washington coach Jim Zorn in his news conference with the Washington media said he reviewed the sideline tape and thought it supported Hall’s contentions.

Smith would not say if he’d watched tape of the incident.

“I watched the game tape, all phases of the game tape, sometimes two or three times every week,” Smith said. “We are finishing up our work on the Washington Redskins.”

He was asked again if he looked at the tape of the sideline melee.

“No, I just worked like I normally do and watched the tape,” Smith said.

On the play, Washington safety LaRon Landry hit Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan out of bounds. Replays show Landry and Ryan heading back to the field, while Hall ventures into the Falcons bench area.

Bedlam ensued.

Landry and Washington defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth, who had joined the fracas, were both called for unnecessary roughness.

“I’ve coached for a long time, and I’ve always coached this way, with a lot of enthusiasm,” Smith said. “I want our players to have that same enthusiasm and that same drive.”

The Falcons were given Monday off, but about half of the team reported to the team facilities anyway.

The Hall incident wasn’t on their list of discussion topics.

“We just talked mainly about the game and getting ready for this week,” defensive tackle Jonathan Babineaux said.

The older Falcons were not surprised that Hall was in the middle of the melee.

“We all know that’s just D. Hall and he likes to have things going his way like that,” Babineaux said.

The Falcons were not surprised to see Smith taking up for Ryan.

“We know that he’s got that fieriness in him,” Babineaux said. “I’m pretty sure that he wishes he could be out there playing with us.”

Hall did not speak to the Washington media on Monday, but said he’d handle the incident through the players’ union, the NFLPA.

“Smitty felt bad about the cheap shot that Landry got on Matt Ryan,” Babineaux said. “It was a bad play by him. He was just looking out for his player, and somehow it got into an altercation.”

The Falcons were rallying behind their coach after the game and on Monday.

“He was just trying to break it up and make sure that things didn’t get out of hand,” Babineaux said. “We want a coach who is going to stand in there for us and have our back.”

Falcons safety Antoine Harris was in the middle of the dust-up.

“D. Hall, you know he always has something against the Falcons every time he plays us,” Harris said. “It was just a chance to get back out there and just mix it up a little bit.”

Falcons running back Michael Turner was not surprised that Hall was in the middle of the commotion, which started with the Falcons leading 21-3 in the game.

“I know DeAngelo wanted to win this game bad, though,” Turner said. “He wanted to get Atlanta back. But that wasn’t happening.”