The Falcons parted ways with their lone tradeable asset, a non-compensatory seventh round pick, to move up ten spots in the fifth round to select TCU defensive end Stansly Maponga with the 153rd overall pick. Maponga was a productive player at Texas Christian, having a strong sophomore season in 2011. A leg injury nagged him as a junior, forcing him to miss a pair of games and his production dropped. But he made the decision to declare early for the draft regardless.

The Zimbabwe-native was asked to step in to replace Jerry Hughes as a redshirt freshman in 2010, starting 12 games and recording 32 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, and 2.5 sacks. He broke out as a sophomore, starting 13 games and tallying 55 tackles, 13.5 for loss, 9 sacks, and 5 forced fumbles. His production dipped to 26 tackles, 6.5 for loss, 4 sacks, and a pair of forced fumbles as a junior. But he still managed to earn 1st team All-Big 12 conference honors. Maponga stands 6-2, 251 pounds with 34-inch arms. He did 30 bench reps at the Combine, and ran a 4.81 40 at his pro day.

Maponga is an edge player that could potentially be developed to play either end or linebacker in Mike Nolan’s hybrid scheme.

The Falcons held two picks at the end of the fourth round, using the 127th overall selection on Clemson defensive Malliciah Goodman, and the 133rd overall pick on Stanford tight end Levine Toilolo.

Goodman has intriguing size and athleticism, measuring at 6-4, 276 pounds at the Combine. He has lanky 36-inch arms with large powerful 11-inch hands. Goodman clocked a 40 time of 4.87 seconds and did 26 bench reps of 225 pounds while at Indianapolis. He is coming off his best season at Clemson, tallying 7 sacks, 9.5 tackles for loss, and 4 forced fumbles this past fall. He saved his best performance for last, recording 3 sacks in a bowl game vs. LSU. He earned a starting spot as a junior, tallying 49 tackles, 4 for loss, and 2 sacks. Like the Falcons previous two picks Trufant and Alford, Goodman shined at the Senior Bowl practices this past January. Goodman will bolster the Falcons defensive line rotation with the ability to play inside and outside with the versatility to play in either a 3-4 or 4-3. That gives him added versatility for Mike Nolan’s scheme, which mixes principles of both schemes.

Toilolo another physical specimen, measuring in at 6-8, 260 pounds. Expected to break out this past year alongside Zach Ertz, Toilolo’s production didn’t make a huge jump despite increased production without Coby Fleener on the roster. As a junior, Toilolo caught 25 passes for 343 yards (13.7 avg) and 6 touchdowns. As a senior, his production hovered with 24 catches, 393 yards (16.4 avg) and 4 touchdowns. He possesses a long frame and speed (4.86 second 40 time) with upside to improve as a blocker and receiver. His potential in the redzone is off the charts. He’ll be tutored by Tony Gonzalez, who is expected to retire after this upcoming season.

After the Falcons selected him, I went back and took a look at Alford for the first time by watching some archived games on WatchESPN.com.

Height: 5-10 1/8
Weight: 188
School: Southeastern Louisiana
Class: Senior
Speed: 4.39 (Combine)

Alford is a small school corner prospect hailing from the FCS subdivision (formerly Division I-AA). He earned a bunch of accolades during his final season, being named a Buck Buchanan Award (given to top defender in FCS) finalist, 2nd team FCS All-American, and 1st team All-Southland Conference performer. That production earned him a Senior Bowl invite, where he was among several corners that impressed observers. He had a standout performance in the actual game, returning a kickoff 88 yards and also picking off a 2-point conversion attempt. He was able to show that he could match up with some of the top athletes around the nation from larger programs. He then transitioned easily to the Combine, where he was among the elite performers this year at the cornerback position. His speed, vertical jump, broad jump, and bench press were all among the Top 4 guys in Indianapolis. Alford was so explosive that he even got some reps on offense as a scenario, working on reverses (2 carries) and being a vertical threat on occasion (4 catches for 52 yards). His older brother Fred Booker was journeyman corner out of LSU in 2001 that bounced around the Arena League and NFL Europe before finally landing with the New Orleans Saints in 2005 where he played in 12 games as a reserve and special teams player.
Read more…

The Falcons took Southeastern Louisiana cornerback Robert Alford with their second round pick, the 60th overall selection. Alford is a fairly raw corner that is still developing the mental aspects of the game according to his former coaches. But his athletic upside attracted the Falcons, possibly as well as his return skills. Alford was one of the stars of the Combine, ranking among the best with his 40 time (4.39 seconds), bench press (17 reps), vertical jump (40 inches), and broad jump (11 feet). He stands 5-11, 188, and shined in the 400-meters during his high school career.

Alford will be a 25-year old rookie this year for the Falcons. He first played as a sophomore in 2009, started 9 of 10 games that year with 46 tackles, 1 interception, 6 pass breakups, and 2 fumble recoveries. He missed the following season with a shoulder injury, and got a medical redshirt. He came back in 2011 as a junior to earn 2nd team All-Southland Conference honors with 52 tackles, 5 interceptions, 2 breakups, a forced fumble and a recovery. As a senior, he had 39 tackles, 5 for loss, 4 interceptions, and 8 breakups to earn first team All-conference honors. During his career, he returned 9 punts for 104 yards (11.6 avg) with a 75-yard touchdown as a senior. He also had 4 career kickoffs for an average of 15.3 yards, all of which came as a senior.

Alford’s older brother, cornerback Fred Booker played briefly with the New Orleans Saints in 2005. He joins first round pick Desmond Trufant as the second Falcons pick with NFL bloodlines. He was recently diagnosed with Crohn’s disease, which has afflicted past NFL players like Matt Light and David Garrard. Likely the second day of the draft is done for the Falcons, as they parted with their third round pick to move up to get Trufant.

Most years I will break down anywhere between three and six games during the course of the year for scouting draft prospects. This year, I did not do that much. In recent weeks I did go back and watch a pair of games that Trufant played this past season, and also did scout him in three games as a junior. But here’s my take on Trufant as a player:

Height: 5-11 5/8
Weight: 190
School: Washington
Class: Senior
Speed: 4.38 (Combine)

Trufant was a productive, high-character, four-year starter at Washington. He comes from an NFL family, as his oldest brother Marcus played a decade with the Seattle Seahawks (2003-12), earning a Pro Bowl bid in 2007. He has another brother Isaiah, who has spent the past three season as a reserve and special teams player with the New York Jets. Trufant had a solid senior year, but probably entered the off-season considered to be a second day pick. But after a strong week of Senior Bowl practices, where he showed he was comfortable against top competition, his stock began to rise. He coupled that with a strong performance at the Combine, and ultimately was able to push his stock up into the latter part of the first round, earning consensus first round grades from most experts. He earned the starting job within the first month of his true freshman season. He started 45 straight games until missing 1 game late in his senior year with a hamstring injury. Finished his career as the school’s all-time leader in pass deflections with 38.

Read more…

As many have reported, the Falcons made a trade up the board with the St. Louis Rams to select Washington cornerback Desmond Trufant with the 22nd overall pick. The Falcons dealt their first round pick (30th) overall, third round pick (92nd), and sixth round picks (198th overall) to swap with the Rams for their first round pick (22nd) and acquired a seventh round pick in 2015.

Trufant was a productive four-year starter at Washington, tallying 195 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, 6 interceptions, and 38 pass breakups during his stint there. As a freshman, he also returned a fumble recovery for a touchdown. Trufant has good NFL bloodlines, with two older brothers in the NFL, both corners: Marcus and Isaiah. Marcus is currently a free agent that has spent the past 10 years with the Seattle Seahawks. Isaiah has played the past three seasons with the New York Jets. Trufant earned 1st team All-Pac 12 honors as a senior, after honorable mention honors as a freshman and junior.

Trufant will be expected to fill the starting right cornerback position for the Falcons, vacated by Dunta Robinson and Brent Grimes this off-season.

Earlier, I posted a mock that featured several trades. Here is my final projection for how the first round will unfold tonight without trades. No need for explanations or justifications at this point, just the picks…

 

1. Chiefs – OT Luke Joeckel, Texas A&M
2. Jaguars – OT Eric Fisher, Central Michigan
3. Raiders – DT Sharrif Floyd, Florida
4. Eagles – OT Lane Johnson, Oklahoma
5. Lions – DE Dion Jordan, Oregon
6. Browns – CB Dee Milliner, Alabama
7. Cardinals – OG Jonathan Cooper, North Carolina
8. Bills – WR Tavon Austin, West Virginia
9. Jets – OLB Jarvis Jones, Georgia
10. Titans – OG Chance Warmack, Alabama
11. Chargers – OT D.J. Fluker, Alabama
12. Dolphins – DE Ziggy Ansah, BYU
13. Jets (from Bucs) – TE Tyler Eifert, Notre Dame
14. Panthers – DT Sheldon Richardson, Missouri
15. Saints – OLB Barkevious Mingo, LSU
16. Rams – S Kenny Vaccaro, Texas
17. Steelers – WR Cordarelle Patterson, Tennessee
18. Cowboys – S Jonathan Cyprien, Florida International
19. Giants – DE Tank Carradine, Florida State
20. Bears – OG Justin Pugh, Syracuse
21. Bengals – S Eric Reid, LSU
22. Rams (from Redskins) – OG Kyle Long, Oregon
23. Vikings – CB D.J. Hayden, Houston
24. Colts – DE Datone Jones, UCLA
25. Vikings (from Seahawks) – DT Star Lotulelei, Utah
26. Packers – OT Menelik Watson, Florida State
27. Texans – WR DeAndre Hopkins, Clemson
28. Broncos – CB Xavier Rhodes, Florida State
29. Patriots – CB Jamar Taylor, Boise State
30. Falcons – CB Desmond Trufant, Washington
31. 49ers – S Matt Elam, Florida
32. Ravens – ILB Arthur Brown, Kansas State

One of the most difficult things about mock drafts is that there are inevitably trades that completely throw things out of whack. Here’s my meager attempt to project what the first round might look like with some of the projected movement that could occur tonight.

1. Chiefs – OT Luke Joeckel, Texas A&M
I see Joeckel as the Chiefs pick simply because Andy Reid and John Dorsey were in Green Bay at the same time that Mike Sherman, who recruited Joeckel to A&M, was there.
2. Jaguars – OT Eric Fisher, Central Michigan
The Jags have a lot of holes, but they need to also bolster their offensive line, which is among the league’s weakest if they intend to try and salvage the skittish Blaine Gabbert as their starting quarterback.
3. Lions (from Raiders) (trade*) – OT Lane Johnson, Oklahoma
The Lions don’t see Johnson lasting to five, and they want to make sure they get their bookend tackle. So they send the Raiders their 3rd round pick (65th overall) to jump up two spots. And since the Raiders currently lack a third round pick, they are happy to oblige.
4. Browns (from Eagles) (trade*) – DE Dion Jordan, Oregon
The Browns want to get Jordan to bookend with Kruger and will probably try and find a trade partner for Sheard later on to try and get back into the second round. They swap with the Eagles, giving up their 4th round pick (105th) to move up two spots.
5. Raiders (from Lions) (trade*) – DT Sharrif Floyd, Florida
The Raiders know they can move down pretty much anywhere within the Top 10 and still probably wind up with Floyd, who adds a good player on a defensive line that sorely needs it.
6. Eagles (from Browns) (trade*) – CB Dee Milliner, Alabama
The Eagles don’t have a pressing need that they must address, and thus will settle for Milliner to bolster a revamped secondary.
7. Cardinals – OG Jonathan Cooper, North Carolina
The Cards choose Cooper over Warmack just because he offers a bit more potential as a pass protector, and Arians is a guy that has always leaned heavily on throwing the ball.
8. Steelers (from Bills) (trade*) – WR Tavon Austin, West Virginia
The Steelers make the night’s first really bold move by jumping up 9 spots to get Austin, a kid from their own backyard. Austin adds the explosive element to their offense that they lost with Mike Wallace, and also should be a much more reliable return option than Chris Rainey. The Steelers deal their second round pick (48th overall) to jump up here.
9. Jets – OLB Jarvis Jones, Georgia
Medical issues aside, the Jets go with Jones over Mingo and Ansah based purely off production.
10. Titans – OG Chance Warmack, Alabama
With the Cards taking Cooper, the Titans are happy to settle for Warmack. He’s a better fit anyway since the Titans want to be able to clear lanes for Chris Johnson.
Read more…

The day has arrived, as tonight commences the 2013 NFL Draft! This is the final update for all the mock drafts I’ve collected and collated this off-season to see what the so-called experts project the Atlanta Falcons to do in this year’s draft. In total, 217 mocks were munched, over half of which came in the month of April (120). For most of the off-season, most were projecting the Falcons to focus on the tight end position. Desmond Trufant made a late run to surpass Tyler Eifert as the top pick projected to the Falcons. Mainly because Trufant was the projection for over a dozen sites’ final mock drafts.  As we got further along in the off-season, cornerback and defensive end became the predominant projection for the Falcons. With this final update, there includes a number of mocks that project the Falcons to trade up in the draft as those rumors have picked up steam over the past week or so. After Eifert and Trufant, Jamar Taylor and Zach Ertz were the most popular projections. Here are the final tallies for the off-season. Scroll down to the bottom to see the tallies for the month of April.

Total Mocks (217 total, 177 unique):
1. Desmond Trufant, CB, Washington (37 total, 28 unique)
2. Tyler Eifert, TE, Notre Dame (35 total, 26 unique)
3. Jamar Taylor, CB, Boise State (22 total, 18 unique)
4. Zach Ertz, TE, Stanford (20 total, 16 unique)
5. Bjoern Werner, DE, Florida State (12 total, 9 unique)
6. Damontre Moore, DE, Texas A&M (10 total, 6 unique)
7. D.J. Hayden, CB, Houston (8 total, 7 unique)
7. Tank Carradine, DE, Florida State (8 total, 7 unique)
9. Johnthan Banks, CB, Mississippi State (7 total, 7 unique)
10. Alex Okafor, DE, Texas (7 total, 5 unique)

4.25 - ESPN Insider (Mel Kiper): Robert Alford, CB, SE Louisiana
4.25 - ESPN Insider (Todd McShay): Desmond Trufant, CB, Washington
4.25 - Walter Football: Desmond Trufant, CB, Washington
4.25 - Walter Football (Charlie Campbell): D.J. Hayden, CB, Houston
4.25 - Football’s Future: Jamar Taylor, CB, Boise State
4.25 - Draft Countdown: Desmond Trufant, CB, Washington
4.25 - Draft Tek: Desmond Trufant, CB, Washington
4.25 - Ourlads: Desmond Trufant, CB, Washington
4.25 – Rotoworld (Josh Norris): Sheldon Richardson, DT, Missouri
4.25 – Rotoworld (Evan Silva): Dee Milliner, CB, Alabama
4.25 – CBS Sports (Rob Rang): Desmond Trufant, CB, Washington
4.25 - CBS Sports (Dane Brugler): Jamar Taylor, CB, Boise State
4.25 - CBS Sports (Pete Prisco): Jamar Taylor, CB, Boise State
4.25 – National Football Post: Xavier Rhodes, CB, Florida State
4.24 – SI.com (Peter King): Desmond Trufant, CB, Washington
4.24 – NFL.com (Mike Mayock): Desmond Trufant, CB, Washington
4.24 - NFL.com (Bucky Brooks): Bjoern Werner, DE, Florida State
4.24 – Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Desmond Trufant, CB, Washington
4.24 – CBS Sports (Clark Judge): Jamar Taylor, CB, Boise State
4.24 – CBS Sports (Pat Kirwan): Desmond Trufant, CB, Washington
4.24 – CBS Sports (Jason La Canfora): Desmond Trufant, CB, Washington
4.24 – Pro Football Talk: Bjoern Werner, DE, Florida State
4.24 – FOX Sports: Tyler Eifert, TE, Notre Dame
4.24 – USA Today (Nate Davis): Desmond Trufant, CB, Washington
4.24 – Great Blue North Report: Xavier Rhodes, CB, Florida State
4.24 - Draft Daddy: D.J. Hayden, CB, Houston
4.24 - NFL Draft Blitz: Damontre Moore, DE, Texas A&M
4.24 - Draft King: Tyler Eifert, TE, Notre Dame
4.24 – Draft Breakdown (Spencer & Engle): Desmond Trufant, CB, Washington
4.24 – Draft Breakdown (Andrew Parsons): Barkevious Mingo, DE, LSU
4.24 – The Football Expert: Bjoern Werner, DE, Florida State
4.24 – NFL Draft Geek: D.J. Hayden, CB, Houston
4.24 – NFL’s Future: Desmond Trufant, CB, Washington
4.24 - Draft Season (Onebar): Jamar Taylor, CB, Boise State
4.24 - FF Toolbox (Ben Standig): Desmond Trufant, CB, Washington
4.24 - FF Toolbox (Matt De Lima): Jamar Taylor, CB, Boise State
4.24 - FF Toolbox (Ricky Dimon): Jamar Taylor, CB, Boise State
4.24 – FF Toolbox (Forrest N. Long): D.J. Hayden, CB, Houston
4.24 - FF Toolbox (Rob Warner): Tyler Eifert, TE, Notre Dame
4.23 – NFL.com (Gil Brandt): Desmond Trufant, CB, Washington
4.23 - Draft Season (Lomas): Datone Jones, DE, UCLA
4.22 – CBS Sports (Will Brinson): Dee Milliner, CB, Alabama
4.22 – Ourlads (Chris Steuber): Desmond Trufant, CB, Washington
4.22 – Draft Season (Lupagus): Tyler Eifert, TE, Notre Dame

Read more…

Last week, I promised that I would go over the Falcons Day 3 draft plans. But of course news and rumors picked up steam that the Falcons were planning on moving up via trade in the draft. I do think the two issues are somewhat related, which I will delve into later. But for now, let’s talk about the Falcons potential third day draft possibilities.

The meat of the Falcons draft lies on the third day of the draft, where rounds four through seven will be selected. The Falcons hold eight of their eleven total picks during this stretch of the draft. The third day of the draft is typically where teams try to build their depth. A few players will emerge as starters, but they are few and far between.

Using previously discussed draft grades, only 14 of the 153 players selected in the final four rounds in 2008 earned C grades or higher (i.e. became solid starters after five seasons). That number is 22 out of 156 players from the 2007 class. In 2008, five of those 14 starters were fourth rounders, while that number was 12 in 2007.

Because the Falcons draft for need, they are going to lean towards targeting players that have a high probability of making the roster. Basically operating under a simple principle that there’s no way you can help the team if you don’t make it. So to determine what areas and positions the Falcons might target on the third day of the draft, you have to take a closer look at the team’s current roster. Here’s a quick breakdown position by position, with the number in parentheses indicating the current number of players at the position that have a strong probability of making the final roster:
Read more…