Who starts at LB with Kaden Elliss?

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — The Atlanta Falcons defense has questions up front and down the back end, but anything in the middle is a problem.

And according to first-year head coach Raheem Morris, it’s a “great problem” – the Falcons’ linebacker room, from high-end talent to depth, with Kaden Elliss, Troy Andersen and Nate Landman.

“Those three guys that have had well-documented snaps for us and gone out there and played a lot of football, it’s so much fun to watch,” Morris said during OTAs. “Seeing them communicate, seeing them do different things, they have different styles of play, they have different speeds, they use their hands differently.

“They do so many good things.”

When Morris was hired in January, he overhauled the defensive coaching staff, which included a change at linebackers coach. Frank Bush left, Barrett Ruud came in. Like Bush, Ruud is a former NFL linebacker, though he played under Morris in Tampa Bay from 2009-10.

Ruud, who is making his first NFL coaching debut, inherited a talented group. Falcons on SI previews each position group. Click the link to read previews of the quarterbacks, running backs, receivers, tight ends and defensive linemen/edge rushers.

Here’s what you need to know about the Falcons’ linebackers heading into 2024…

Depth chart

Middle linebacker: Kaden Elliss, Nate Landman, Milo Eifler

SAM Team Linebackers: Troy Andersen, JD Bertrand, Donavan Mutin

The Biggest Questions

1. Who starts next to Elliss?

Atlanta signed Elliss to a three-year, $21.5 million contract last spring, and he provided a solid return on his investment. In his first season with the Falcons, Elliss, who spent the first four years of his career with the New Orleans Saints, recorded 122 tackles, four sacks and 11 tackles for loss while starting in all 17 games.

During OTAs and minicamp, Elliss was a fixture on Atlanta’s defense. The spot next to him changed often.

Andersen and Landman are both entering their third years in Atlanta, but they’ve gotten there in dramatically different ways. Andersen was a second-round pick in 2022 and started the final four games of his rookie year, but missed the final 13 games of last season with a torn pectoral muscle.

Andersen’s misfortune turned into opportunity for Landman, and the former undrafted free agent took advantage, recording 110 tackles, seven tackles for loss and a pair of sacks in 16 games and 14 starts.

The tale of two stories now creates an intriguing situation heading into training camp: Will the Falcons use Andersen or Landman more frequently alongside Elliss?

The answer may vary from week to week due to the different skill sets of Andersen and Landman, with the former being known for his athleticism and the latter being considered a more physical, throwback player.

So snaps can depend on scheme, package and distance, which could mean the Falcons don’t have the same starting face next to Elliss every game. But there’s another possibility: Atlanta starts all three.

“It’s almost like three different coaches sitting in a room at the same time,” Morris said. “It’ll be exciting to see them on the field, maybe all at the same time, because they have that type of ability that warrants more playing time.”

“The only way to get more playing time is to be creative, to innovate, to get back to your culture and how you motivate people to play, to get out on the field and be productive to win football games.”

2. How does Bertrand see the field as a rookie?

The Falcons selected Bertrand in the fifth round of April’s draft, and the Alpharetta, Ga., native quickly became a fan of Morris because of his willingness to talk special teams when he visited Flowery Branch for the team’s local pro day on April 12.

“He’s a veteran that’s already built and comes in here and helps us win,” Morris said. “And he’s going to earn those stripes that he’s going to earn on special teams to put himself in position to play for us. We’ve got three inside linebackers that played for us last year that played significant minutes that we have a lot of high value on, but that doesn’t mean he won’t get a chance to play.”

“It just means he’s gone through a little bit of that curve of understanding exactly what it takes to get to these places.”

Bertrand appears poised to be Atlanta’s fourth linebacker this year, having worked consistently with the second-team defense during OTAs. The former Notre Dame standout has a reputation for being an instinctive and reliable player on and off the field.

But training camp numbers will highlight where Bertrand stands in terms of understanding defensive coordinator Jimmy Lake’s scheme and whether his coverage ability warrants playing time.

Regardless, Bertrand’s path to defensive snaps this fall is murky — but he still has plenty to prove in camp for his long-term profile.

3. Do the Falcons have four or five linebackers?

Last season, Atlanta often had five linebackers on its roster, while the Los Angeles Rams, where Morris and Lake came from this spring, had just three on their 53-man roster in Week 1.

The Falcons have three safeties in Elliss, Landman and Andersen, while Bertrand seems pretty comfortable with his roster spot. The same can’t be said for Mutin or Eifler, but if Atlanta opts to play with five linebackers, those two will be in direct competition.

Mutin went undrafted out of the University of Houston in 2023 but spent the season on Atlanta’s practice squad, as did Eifler, who went undrafted in 2021 but played two games on special teams for the Falcons last season.

It’s possible both could return to Atlanta’s practice squad this fall, and with teams allowed to promote two players from the practice squad for each game, Mutin and Eifler could make an occasional appearance on Sundays for the Falcons.

But as camp approaches, both players are looking for active roster spots – the numbers just don’t seem to be in their favor.

Extracurricular activities

Elliss chose to sign with the Falcons in part because of the presence of then-defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen, who was on the Saints’ coaching staff for Elliss’ entire four years in New Orleans.

The game plan and the similarities between the schemes helped Elliss find immediate comfort and gave him a clear, defined role. But Nielsen played a 4-3 defense, while Lake is transitioning to a 3-4. For Elliss, the new scheme represents a chance to build his own identity — but also puts added pressure on him to acclimate quickly.

Bertrand is known to teammates and coaches as “Captain America,” a nickname he earned at Notre Dame and that followed him to Atlanta. Both he and Morris said the nickname comes from his rigorous routine and meticulous nature.

The Falcons will hold two open workouts this fall, one on July 27 and one on August 2. Additional information on the schedule, location and tickets is available HERE. For the Atlanta training camp schedule, click HERE.