The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Preparing rookies among top priorities
Things to know about the Falcons this week:
1. The no-spin zone. With no assurances that rookies will be allowed to come in early before the start of training camp, the Falcons are spending the last week of the offseason focusing on the group of 26 players. They had their virtual graduation Tuesday and posted cute pictures online. They had red and black hats, red tassels and baseball shirts with their numbers. The rookies’ virtual offseason, which didn’t include any on-the-field work because of the coronavirus pandemic, will be completed Thursday.
“I’m going to have some people talk to them at the end of this week from the lockout year (2011),” Falcons coach Dan Quinn said. After that tumultuous offseason, the rookie class came in and had to play right away. The Falcons received contributions from wide receiver Julio Jones (first-round pick), linebacker Akeem Dent (third), running back Jacquizz Rodgers (fifth), punter Matt Bosher (sixth) and defensive end Cliff Matthews (seventh).
They didn’t have the benefit of a rookie minicamp, OTAs nor a mandatory minicamp. The Class of 2020, while not going on the field, did have the virtual meetings with their coaches, and some practiced with their teammates away from the facilities. Quinn is hoping that his speakers tell the players not to feel sorry for themselves and that they can get the job done in a less than ideal situation.
“I shared with them that … playing in the NFL is a dream job, but, trust me, it ain’t easy,” Quinn said. “You have got to put in the work. What I’ve seen from them so far, what I’ve seen from this group, they are making the choices to study. They are making the choices to put that time in on the field … that will have to continue for them over the next four weeks.”
The Falcons’ large rookie group includes undrafted players. “I felt the leader of that group so far is (firstround pick A.J.) Terrell,” Quinn said. “His intent and readiness to come into meetings and engage with others. I would say (thirdround pick Matt) Hennessy would be another one ready to contribute, ready for answers … by and large, I’ve been impressed with this group.”
Under the current NFL rules, teams can report to camp 47 days before their season opener. For the Falcons, that’s July 28. The Falcons are hoping the league will allow for rookies to come in a week or so earlier. “We’ll get a chance to have them before the veterans hopefully before training camp and we’ll utilize all of those days as well,” Quinn said.
The Falcons are counting on Terrell taking over at left cornerback, replacing the departed Desmond Trufant. They also have veteran Blidi Wreh-Wilson, if they have to ease Terrell into the spot. Second-round pick Marlon Davidson should be able to line up at defensive tackle in pass-rush situations right away.
Hennessy will have an uphill climb to win the starting left guard spot if veteran
James Carpenter is healthy. Linebacker Mykal Walker and safety Jaylinn Hawkins, both fourth-round picks, should be able to provide depth and contribute on special teams immediately. Punter Sterling Hofrichter will have to win a battle with veteran Ryan Allen.
2. Soft-tissue injuries. When the players return, Quinn and the medical staff will be worried about soft-tissue injuries such as sprains and muscle strains. Whatever the NFL exhibition season is going to look like, the players will need some ramp-up time upon their return. During a normal nine-week offseason program, the Falcons could monitor players and give the appropriate amount of “RICE” — rest, ice, compression and elevation.
The Falcons want to push the players, but will have to go slowly. “That’s our concern as coaches,” Quinn said. “Make sure the ramp-up is the right number and the hardest part of that is that not everybody is in the exact same space.”
Quinn has told players they’ll have to be stronger and more durable than they’ve ever been. “What I told the team on Thursday, the veterans: This is the longest layoff that you’ve ever had from competing,” Quinn said. “How are you finding the spaces to do it together in your training when we do come back together?”
3. Offseason book. Quinn had a book put together of the things the team did over the virtual offseason program. “We didn’t want some of the things we did to be just experiences,” Quinn said. “Some of these lessons will be moving forward into everything that we are doing. The technology is going to be a part of what we are doing with the players. We know this.”
Quinn is expecting issues with social distancing and how many players the Falcons can coach at a time. Also, there’s the possibility of a player testing positive for COVID-19 and then missing time. “If it goes back to the exact way it was before, then we’d be OK,” Quinn said. “But as opposed to (fussing) about it, to say you can’t do football this way, we went the other way and dove as hard as we could knowing that things are going to change moving forward.”
4. Who’s the dog? Quinn enjoyed some of the personality of the virtual team meetings. “You saw families in their backgrounds,” Quinn said. “You had new kids? Who’s the dog? If you couldn’t get online, you had to call back.”
It wasn’t all football for the Falcons. “A couple of weeks ago, I think we got even closer (with) some of the social issues that were coming to the forefront,” Quinn said. “Good discussions that we needed to have. We’ve all heard the term leaning in and I’d say this is a group of people that leaned in hard on one another to give each other feedback. That was something we needed to do.”
5. Gilbert added to Jacksonville staff. Former Falcons linebacker Tony Gilbert, who played at Georgia, was added to Jacksonville’s staff as an assistant linebacker coach. Gilbert was with the Jaguars from 2003-06. He played 12 games for the Falcons in the 2009 season. Gilbert has worked in the college ranks at Georgia, East Mississippi Community College, Auburn, North Carolina and Central Florida. He’s also coached at Georgia Military College and John Milledge Academy.
6. Ryan GoFundMe surpasses $1 million: Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan’s GoFundMe to advance the lives of the black community in Atlanta reached $1.2 million. The total includes some donations from Falcons management and coaches and has 2,200 donors. Ryan started the fund June 4 with a $500,000 donation, with a goal of $2 million. The fund comes in the aftermath of the recent deaths of black men Ahmaud Arbery in Brunswick and George Floyd in Minneapolis. Ryan has also posted on social media about the Atlanta death of Rayshard Brooks on Friday.