On the bubble?

The Falcons announced 13 cuts that get the team down to 53 players on the roster. The players released were: Troy Bergeron, Thomas Brown, Mike Butterworth, Robert Ferguson, Robert James, Aaron Kelly, Maurice Lucas, Will Middleton, Jason Rader, D.J. Shockley, Jose Valdez, Vance Walker, and Jamie Winborn.

Shockley was a 2007 draft pick, while James and Brown were taken in the 2008 draft. Middleton and Walker were draft picks this past year.

Kelly, Lucas, and Valdez were undrafted rookie free agents this past year. Bergeron and Butterworth were free agent pickups last year. Ferguson, Rader, and Winborn were veteran pickups.

It’s been a little more than a week of camp, and here’s a brief recap of the players that have raised (or lowered) their stock in that time, based upon published reports.

STOCK UP

Thomas DeCoud – Although DeCoud may win the starting gig by default due to an injury to William Moore that will likely keep him out for the rest of the summer, it’s quite possible he would have won the job outright. Most observers have come away praising DeCoud for his ballhawking skills so far this summer.

Brent Grimes – By my own assessment, Grimes entered camp seemingly on the outside looking in. But at this point, he seems to be the early favorite to win the job opposite Chris Houston. Although we should point out that Grimes was impressive in camp last summer, but his play during the regular season was less than stellar. But his stock is also boosted by the fact that he might be the early favorite to replace Harry Douglas as the team’s punt returner with strong showings in preseason games.

Vance Walker – Walker got some early praise from Mike Smith in the opening days of camp. While Walker has no shot of becoming a starter, if he keeps it up, he should certainly land a roster spot and help the team’s rotation.

STOCK DOWN

Jamaal Anderson – Fairly or unfairly, Anderson has a bulls-eye upon him this summer as one of the players that not only Falcon fans, but pundits nationwide are looking to see if he steps up. And in his case, no news isn’t good news. While we’re not saying Anderson is behind in his battle with Chauncey Davis, the fact that he hasn’t pulled ahead significantly by this point doesn’t bode particularly well for him.

Chevis Jackson – Like Anderson, Jackson is fighting for a starting spot, and thus far there have been few reports citing his strong play early in camp. It’s conceivable that if he doesn’t pick it up he could fall all the way to fourth on the depth chart after entering camp as the expected starter.

Roddy White – You won’t count us as one of the Falcon fans that were upset by Roddy’s holdout. But his rep was shaken in the eyes of many, and he’ll have to use the remaining weeks to earn it back. We have little doubt he will.

The team announced today that they signed two of their eight draft picks, cornerback William Middleton and defensive tackle Vance Walker.

Middleton was the teams’ fifth round pick out of Furman. Walker was the seventh round out of Georgia Tech. Both players are expected to fill depth roles with the team this year. Middleton and Walker are among the first rookies around the league to sign, as only a dozen or so have signed contracts thus far.

With the team’s last scheduled pick, the team took Georgia Tech defensive tackle Vance Walker with their seventh round pick (210th overall).

Walker was a productive player at Georgia Tech, known mostly for his pass rushing ability. As a junior, he had 8.5 sacks, 14 tackles for loss, and 3 forced fumbles. But his production slipped somewhat his senior year, falling to 3 sacks, 8.5 tackles for loss, and 1 forced fumble.

The Falcons already took a defensive tackle with their top pick, and add more depth with their last pick.

All in all the Falcons wrap up the draft with 8 draft picks, all but one of which were defensive players.