Training Camp Preview: Defensive Backs
The Falcons secondary is one of the major question marks of the defense, but the team is somewhat hopeful that any growing pains they may suffer this year will be beneficial down the road.
The Falcons dumped DeAngelo Hall in the off-season, and while the loss of his locker room presence will be beneficial, there's no doubt that the team will miss something on the field. It's doubtful any of their current corners can come close to filling even Hall's sometimes overrated defensive prowess.
The closest one is probably Chris Houston. Houston started 11 games last year, but you could argue that had more to do with the crappy play of Lewis Sanders moreso than Houston's stellar performance. Houston definitely had his growing pains last year, giving up a number of big plays. But the team hopes that he can learn from his mistakes as it will likely be counting on him to cover the opponents' top receiver most outings this year. Houston is solid in run support and should be a bit better in Mike Smith's defense due to a likely increase in the number of zone coverages the team uses this year.
Because of the increase in zone, the team signed Von Hutchins from the Texans. Hutchins would really struggle in a man-based scheme, but in the zone he's solid. He's not great, but was a capable nickel corner for the Texans for much of last season. He'll give up an occasional big play, which is why the team is more confident of his abilities as a nickel corner than a starter.
That leaves the surprise of the OTAs, Brent Grimes as the front-runner for the starting position opposite Houston. The coaching staff loves Grimes athleticism, and are high on his potential. Grimes appeared in a grand total of 2 games last year and has been off and on the Falcons practice squad the past two years.
If Grimes struggles in camp, then the starting job will likely fall to Hutchins. But another player that will be in the mix is rookie Chevis Jackson. Jackson was a very solid player for LSU last year and is a very good zone cornerback. He is a natural ballhawk, breaking up 16 passes and picking off 5 passes last season as a senior on that championship team. Jackson probably will be brought along slowly, but if he gets off to a fast start this summer, there's a chance he could emerge as a starter Week 1.
The rest of the group of corners will likely be relegated to special teams duty. Leading the way in that area is David Irons. Irons was expected to compete for the nickel job last season but didn't play any snaps on defense last year. He'll get that opportunity this summer, but unless there is drastic improvement, it's doubtful he'll be able to leapfrog the four players ahead of him on the depth chart. In fact, there stands a decent chance that Irons could be released. He'll be pushed by rookie Wilrey Fontenot and undrafted free agent Glenn Sharpe. Fontenot is a solid zone corner that was overshadowed at Arizona by Antoine Cason, but was a productive guy in his own right. Sharpe comes from Miami where injuries limited his time as a starter, but offers something few of the other corners on the roster have: size. All three will be competing for the No. 5 cornerback job, which is almost exclusively a special teams job.
At safety, the team replaced free safety Chris Crocker with Jets free agent Erik Coleman. Coleman should be an improvement in coverage over Crocker, who was miscast at free safety due to his run-stopping prowess. But Coleman has spent much of the past two years in the doghouse of Jets coach Eric Mangini due to inconsistency, missed tackles, and being out of position too often. It remains to be seen if the change in scenery will benefit him.
Returning for probably his last year with the team is Lawyer Milloy. Milloy will ahve the tall order of leading this young bunch in the secondary. Milloy struggled through the first half of last year, missing many tackles and being out of position far too often, but really turned it on in the second half to the point that he was arguably the team's best defender over that span, surpassing even Abraham and Boley last year. Milloy isn't going to be asked to make too many plays against the pass, something that has never been his strong suit. But as long as he's making stops in the running game, the team will be happy, particularly if those stops come in the box on key third downs, something he was able to do often last season.
Neither starter is expected to be seriously challenged for their starting spot. More likely, the battle will be among three players for the dime safety spot. Antoine Harris, Thomas DeCoud, and Daren Stone are the most likely to win the gig. Harris probably is the favorite since the dime safety usually is in on passing downs, making coverage ability a must. A former corner, Harris surprised many last year when he surpassed Jimmy Williams rather swiftly on the depth chart last summer. Harris isn't an impact player, but was capable last year as he didn't make too many mistakes in coverage. DeCoud has the most upside, but is more geared towards stopping the run than the pass. His skill set is a bit more like Crocker. He's constantly around the ball in run support, but will need to show those same skills in coverage. Stone has the edge in the athleticism department, but will really be pushed this summer. A DUI this past May has his handle on a roster spot tenuous, and frankly the only way he may make the team is if he beats out DeCoud and Harris.
The Falcons signed Deke Cooper in June as insurance. Cooper will take the dime spot if none of the young guys are up to the task. He's a solid veteran with starting experience, but is better coming off the bench than anything. He'll miss some open field tackles from time to time, but he's a steady vet that isn't too mistake-prone.
Also in the mix is Eric Brock, an undrafted free agent. But Brock will really have to impress on special teams to make this roster.
The Battles
Grimes vs. Hutchins vs. Houston vs. Jackson - Grimes and Houston are the pair that most likely will win the starting spots at cornerback, but Hutchins and Jackson both have legitimate chances. The two with the best summer will win it.
Irons vs. Fontenot - The top two candidates for the No. 5 cornerback spot. Perhaps only room for one of them on the roster.
Cooper vs. Harris vs. DeCoud vs. Stone - The team wants to see one of the young guys win this spot, but Cooper may have the edge due to experience.
The secondary will be flexible with the number of roster spots allowing for injuries at other positions. The team will need to keep at least eight, but probably won't do more than ten. Grimes, Jackson, Fontenot, DeCoud, Sharpe, and Brock are practice squad-eligible.
The Falcons secondary is one of the major question marks of the defense, but the team is somewhat hopeful that any growing pains they may suffer this year will be beneficial down the road.
The Falcons dumped DeAngelo Hall in the off-season, and while the loss of his locker room presence will be beneficial, there's no doubt that the team will miss something on the field. It's doubtful any of their current corners can come close to filling even Hall's sometimes overrated defensive prowess.
The closest one is probably Chris Houston. Houston started 11 games last year, but you could argue that had more to do with the crappy play of Lewis Sanders moreso than Houston's stellar performance. Houston definitely had his growing pains last year, giving up a number of big plays. But the team hopes that he can learn from his mistakes as it will likely be counting on him to cover the opponents' top receiver most outings this year. Houston is solid in run support and should be a bit better in Mike Smith's defense due to a likely increase in the number of zone coverages the team uses this year.
Because of the increase in zone, the team signed Von Hutchins from the Texans. Hutchins would really struggle in a man-based scheme, but in the zone he's solid. He's not great, but was a capable nickel corner for the Texans for much of last season. He'll give up an occasional big play, which is why the team is more confident of his abilities as a nickel corner than a starter.
That leaves the surprise of the OTAs, Brent Grimes as the front-runner for the starting position opposite Houston. The coaching staff loves Grimes athleticism, and are high on his potential. Grimes appeared in a grand total of 2 games last year and has been off and on the Falcons practice squad the past two years.
If Grimes struggles in camp, then the starting job will likely fall to Hutchins. But another player that will be in the mix is rookie Chevis Jackson. Jackson was a very solid player for LSU last year and is a very good zone cornerback. He is a natural ballhawk, breaking up 16 passes and picking off 5 passes last season as a senior on that championship team. Jackson probably will be brought along slowly, but if he gets off to a fast start this summer, there's a chance he could emerge as a starter Week 1.
The rest of the group of corners will likely be relegated to special teams duty. Leading the way in that area is David Irons. Irons was expected to compete for the nickel job last season but didn't play any snaps on defense last year. He'll get that opportunity this summer, but unless there is drastic improvement, it's doubtful he'll be able to leapfrog the four players ahead of him on the depth chart. In fact, there stands a decent chance that Irons could be released. He'll be pushed by rookie Wilrey Fontenot and undrafted free agent Glenn Sharpe. Fontenot is a solid zone corner that was overshadowed at Arizona by Antoine Cason, but was a productive guy in his own right. Sharpe comes from Miami where injuries limited his time as a starter, but offers something few of the other corners on the roster have: size. All three will be competing for the No. 5 cornerback job, which is almost exclusively a special teams job.
At safety, the team replaced free safety Chris Crocker with Jets free agent Erik Coleman. Coleman should be an improvement in coverage over Crocker, who was miscast at free safety due to his run-stopping prowess. But Coleman has spent much of the past two years in the doghouse of Jets coach Eric Mangini due to inconsistency, missed tackles, and being out of position too often. It remains to be seen if the change in scenery will benefit him.
Returning for probably his last year with the team is Lawyer Milloy. Milloy will ahve the tall order of leading this young bunch in the secondary. Milloy struggled through the first half of last year, missing many tackles and being out of position far too often, but really turned it on in the second half to the point that he was arguably the team's best defender over that span, surpassing even Abraham and Boley last year. Milloy isn't going to be asked to make too many plays against the pass, something that has never been his strong suit. But as long as he's making stops in the running game, the team will be happy, particularly if those stops come in the box on key third downs, something he was able to do often last season.
Neither starter is expected to be seriously challenged for their starting spot. More likely, the battle will be among three players for the dime safety spot. Antoine Harris, Thomas DeCoud, and Daren Stone are the most likely to win the gig. Harris probably is the favorite since the dime safety usually is in on passing downs, making coverage ability a must. A former corner, Harris surprised many last year when he surpassed Jimmy Williams rather swiftly on the depth chart last summer. Harris isn't an impact player, but was capable last year as he didn't make too many mistakes in coverage. DeCoud has the most upside, but is more geared towards stopping the run than the pass. His skill set is a bit more like Crocker. He's constantly around the ball in run support, but will need to show those same skills in coverage. Stone has the edge in the athleticism department, but will really be pushed this summer. A DUI this past May has his handle on a roster spot tenuous, and frankly the only way he may make the team is if he beats out DeCoud and Harris.
The Falcons signed Deke Cooper in June as insurance. Cooper will take the dime spot if none of the young guys are up to the task. He's a solid veteran with starting experience, but is better coming off the bench than anything. He'll miss some open field tackles from time to time, but he's a steady vet that isn't too mistake-prone.
Also in the mix is Eric Brock, an undrafted free agent. But Brock will really have to impress on special teams to make this roster.
The Battles
Grimes vs. Hutchins vs. Houston vs. Jackson - Grimes and Houston are the pair that most likely will win the starting spots at cornerback, but Hutchins and Jackson both have legitimate chances. The two with the best summer will win it.
Irons vs. Fontenot - The top two candidates for the No. 5 cornerback spot. Perhaps only room for one of them on the roster.
Cooper vs. Harris vs. DeCoud vs. Stone - The team wants to see one of the young guys win this spot, but Cooper may have the edge due to experience.
The secondary will be flexible with the number of roster spots allowing for injuries at other positions. The team will need to keep at least eight, but probably won't do more than ten. Grimes, Jackson, Fontenot, DeCoud, Sharpe, and Brock are practice squad-eligible.
The Falcons dumped DeAngelo Hall in the off-season, and while the loss of his locker room presence will be beneficial, there's no doubt that the team will miss something on the field. It's doubtful any of their current corners can come close to filling even Hall's sometimes overrated defensive prowess.
The closest one is probably Chris Houston. Houston started 11 games last year, but you could argue that had more to do with the crappy play of Lewis Sanders moreso than Houston's stellar performance. Houston definitely had his growing pains last year, giving up a number of big plays. But the team hopes that he can learn from his mistakes as it will likely be counting on him to cover the opponents' top receiver most outings this year. Houston is solid in run support and should be a bit better in Mike Smith's defense due to a likely increase in the number of zone coverages the team uses this year.
Because of the increase in zone, the team signed Von Hutchins from the Texans. Hutchins would really struggle in a man-based scheme, but in the zone he's solid. He's not great, but was a capable nickel corner for the Texans for much of last season. He'll give up an occasional big play, which is why the team is more confident of his abilities as a nickel corner than a starter.
That leaves the surprise of the OTAs, Brent Grimes as the front-runner for the starting position opposite Houston. The coaching staff loves Grimes athleticism, and are high on his potential. Grimes appeared in a grand total of 2 games last year and has been off and on the Falcons practice squad the past two years.
If Grimes struggles in camp, then the starting job will likely fall to Hutchins. But another player that will be in the mix is rookie Chevis Jackson. Jackson was a very solid player for LSU last year and is a very good zone cornerback. He is a natural ballhawk, breaking up 16 passes and picking off 5 passes last season as a senior on that championship team. Jackson probably will be brought along slowly, but if he gets off to a fast start this summer, there's a chance he could emerge as a starter Week 1.
The rest of the group of corners will likely be relegated to special teams duty. Leading the way in that area is David Irons. Irons was expected to compete for the nickel job last season but didn't play any snaps on defense last year. He'll get that opportunity this summer, but unless there is drastic improvement, it's doubtful he'll be able to leapfrog the four players ahead of him on the depth chart. In fact, there stands a decent chance that Irons could be released. He'll be pushed by rookie Wilrey Fontenot and undrafted free agent Glenn Sharpe. Fontenot is a solid zone corner that was overshadowed at Arizona by Antoine Cason, but was a productive guy in his own right. Sharpe comes from Miami where injuries limited his time as a starter, but offers something few of the other corners on the roster have: size. All three will be competing for the No. 5 cornerback job, which is almost exclusively a special teams job.
At safety, the team replaced free safety Chris Crocker with Jets free agent Erik Coleman. Coleman should be an improvement in coverage over Crocker, who was miscast at free safety due to his run-stopping prowess. But Coleman has spent much of the past two years in the doghouse of Jets coach Eric Mangini due to inconsistency, missed tackles, and being out of position too often. It remains to be seen if the change in scenery will benefit him.
Returning for probably his last year with the team is Lawyer Milloy. Milloy will ahve the tall order of leading this young bunch in the secondary. Milloy struggled through the first half of last year, missing many tackles and being out of position far too often, but really turned it on in the second half to the point that he was arguably the team's best defender over that span, surpassing even Abraham and Boley last year. Milloy isn't going to be asked to make too many plays against the pass, something that has never been his strong suit. But as long as he's making stops in the running game, the team will be happy, particularly if those stops come in the box on key third downs, something he was able to do often last season.
Neither starter is expected to be seriously challenged for their starting spot. More likely, the battle will be among three players for the dime safety spot. Antoine Harris, Thomas DeCoud, and Daren Stone are the most likely to win the gig. Harris probably is the favorite since the dime safety usually is in on passing downs, making coverage ability a must. A former corner, Harris surprised many last year when he surpassed Jimmy Williams rather swiftly on the depth chart last summer. Harris isn't an impact player, but was capable last year as he didn't make too many mistakes in coverage. DeCoud has the most upside, but is more geared towards stopping the run than the pass. His skill set is a bit more like Crocker. He's constantly around the ball in run support, but will need to show those same skills in coverage. Stone has the edge in the athleticism department, but will really be pushed this summer. A DUI this past May has his handle on a roster spot tenuous, and frankly the only way he may make the team is if he beats out DeCoud and Harris.
The Falcons signed Deke Cooper in June as insurance. Cooper will take the dime spot if none of the young guys are up to the task. He's a solid veteran with starting experience, but is better coming off the bench than anything. He'll miss some open field tackles from time to time, but he's a steady vet that isn't too mistake-prone.
Also in the mix is Eric Brock, an undrafted free agent. But Brock will really have to impress on special teams to make this roster.
The Battles
Grimes vs. Hutchins vs. Houston vs. Jackson - Grimes and Houston are the pair that most likely will win the starting spots at cornerback, but Hutchins and Jackson both have legitimate chances. The two with the best summer will win it.
Irons vs. Fontenot - The top two candidates for the No. 5 cornerback spot. Perhaps only room for one of them on the roster.
Cooper vs. Harris vs. DeCoud vs. Stone - The team wants to see one of the young guys win this spot, but Cooper may have the edge due to experience.
The secondary will be flexible with the number of roster spots allowing for injuries at other positions. The team will need to keep at least eight, but probably won't do more than ten. Grimes, Jackson, Fontenot, DeCoud, Sharpe, and Brock are practice squad-eligible.
Clearly, I'm new here. Great job on the information given. Love hearing insight vs. the vick conversation. Thanks!
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