A stream of consciousness on local and national sports headlines…

1. One of the bigger issues the Cards’ have had this season has been…

…a lack of production in the three-hole. Entering Wednesday’s game against the Rockies, the team’s nine-hole hitters had 13 doubles, 12 home runs and 52 RBI. Their three-hole hitters, meanwhile, had 15 doubles 13 home runs and 49 RBI. That’s embarrassing. Enter Paul DeJong, who hit in the No. 3 spot in all three games the Cards won against the Rockies. He finished 5-for-14 with two home runs, five runs batted in, and three strikeouts. Granted, he’s not walking and his .303 on-base percentage is only slightly better than Randal Grichuk’s mark of .289. That said, even if he’s due for a regression, DeJong is showing everyone what the Cards sorely lacked for most of the season.

Over the last month, the discussion among Cardinal fans and the media has been acquiring a middle-of-the-order presence at the trade deadline. As it turns out, the Cardinals didn’t have to go outside the organization to find that presence. How long will it last? That’s anyone’s guess but we might as well enjoy the ride for as long as possible.

2. It’s not just DeJong’s bat that has given the Cards’ offense a jolt, he has…

…also settled one of the bigger issues defensively. Following DeJong’s 14th home run of the season, someone on Twitter asked me whether or not DeJong was legit or just another version of Aledmys Diaz. We tend to be prisoners of the moment, but DeJong looks to be the better all-around player. He’s unquestionably better defensively. He has a quicker first step, a stronger arm, and significantly more range than Diaz. Time will tell if DeJong is a great young shortstop or simply a better option than Diaz, but for now he’s plugged one of the bigger defensive holes the Cards have had the past two seasons.

If he continues to play sharp defensively, DeJong could wind up saving the organization millions by passing on free agent Zack Cosart this winter. (Not to mention the risk that comes with signing an aging veteran.)

3. Since we’re talking about DeJong, how do the Cards always seem…

…to find these guys? Trust me, I’m not complaining. DeJong has provided the team (and the fan base, for that matter) with infectious energy. But seriously, how the hell do they always produce a player that seemingly comes out of nowhere? Granted, the Cardinal fan base is diehard. They were aware of DeJong before he emerged this season. But you go outside of St. Louis or Memphis, and do you really think anyone knows who Paul DeJong is? Or who Aledmys Diaz was? Or Stephen Piscotty in 2015?

We’ve bitched a lot about the current state of the Cardinals over the last year and a half. Some fans are tired of Mo not making the “big move” at the deadline and wish Bill DeWitt Jr. and the organization would spend more in free agency. But despite those complaints, you have to hand it to the Cards for constantly unearthing gems from their farm system. Memphis is big-league talent-producing factory.

4. On Monday, I wrote about the comments that John Mozeliak made…

…about Lance Lynn’s future. Given what he said about Lynn’s situation being “muddy,” I surmised that Mo leveled with the veteran about possibly dealing him at the deadline. That was before the Cardinals swept the Rockies. I still think the Cubs pull away with the National League Central, but with what the “Memphis Militia” is doing for the big-league club, if you’re Mo and Michael Girsch, do you really want to trade away one of your best pitchers when you’re trying to contend?

What does it say to the rest of the clubhouse if you traded Lynn? If some desperate contender pays a premium for Lynn even though he’s a rental, I say the Cards jump on the deal before he makes his next scheduled start on Sunday. But if they’re not absolutely blown away by the deal, then I think the Cards retain Lynn for down the stretch. What an ever-evolving situation.

5. Nick Saban never says anything to the media that doesn’t…

…benefit himself or the Alabama program in some way. For example, if a reporter asks him how deep and talented his running back position is for the upcoming season, Saban will shoot down the reporter with an icy comment about how the position is completely unsettled. The reason he does this is because he doesn’t want potential running back recruits to bypass coming to Tuscaloosa believing they won’t have an opportunity to play. Saban is a mastermind when it comes to getting what he wants from the media. That said, his recent comments about the current structure of the College Football Playoff were as much for the fans as it was for anyone: “We should play all teams in the Power 5 conferences,” Saban said Wednesday. “If we did that, then if we were going to have bowl games, we should do the bowl games just like we do in the NCAA basketball tournament — not by record but by some kind of power rating that gets you in a bowl game. If we did that, people would be a little less interested in maybe bowl games and more interested in expanding the playoff.” Amen. For Power 5 programs, at least one week every year is dedicated to a blood donor. How is that good for college football?

Conference expansion would have to happen in order for programs like Houston to be included, but I love Saban’s idea that Power 5 teams should play Power 5 teams.

6. The Falcons have become the butt of every joke for football fans…

…and pundits since their 28-3 collapse in the Super Bowl (and rightfully so). That said, I think their demise has been greatly exaggerated. Detractors bring up the 2016 Panthers as reason that Atlanta will suffer a massive Super Bowl hangover in 2017. The Panthers, as you’ll recall, lost to the Broncos in the NFL title game and then failed to make the playoffs the following season. Hey, maybe the Falcons will suffer the same fate. After all, they’ll play a first-place schedule and Steve Sarkisian takes over for Kyle Shanahan despite never calling plays at the NFL level. Still, I’ll take talent over the contrived notion that the Falcons won’t get off the mat simply because they collapsed in the Super Bowl. Sarkisian is a first-time NFL play-caller but he’s driving a Ferrari thanks to the return of Matt Ryan, Julio Jones, Mohamed Sanu, Taylor Gabriel, Devonta Freeman, Tevin Coleman and up-and-coming tight end Austin Hooper. Plus, if you just look at the numbers from a year ago, there’s plenty to dislike about Atlanta’s defense.

But that same unit flustered Tom Brady for three quarters before running out of gas in the final 15-plus minutes. Dan Quinn is building a defense akin to the one that he used to run in Seattle. Again, I’m not completely dismissing the notion that the Falcons will follow the route of Carolina and fail to show up after losing the Super Bowl. But the Panthers also lost one of their top players in Josh Norman, which had a dramatic impact on their defense in 2016. Thanks to Vic Beasley, Deion Jones, Desmond Trufant and Keanu Neal, the Falcons are only scratching their potential on that side of the ball. I still think this is a 10-win team.