Offseason mailbag: Draft sleepers, ‘Sunday Night Football’ in Atlanta and Falcons rookie numbers

The Falcons have been a mainstay in the national media thanks to their decision to draft Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. with the No. 8 overall pick. It’s a choice that has fueled a furious debate over the proper way to build a team.

But we’re not here to talk about that. This conversation overshadowed the rest of Atlanta’s draft class, and I was happy to see a few questions that will allow me to share my thoughts on the other seven players in the Falcons’ 2024 rookie class.

If you want to know more about the decision to recruit Penix, here are some stories from Alcoholics that will certainly ease your mind:

Alright, let’s move on to today’s mailbag!

Which Falcons draft pick do you think is the sleeper of the bunch and will contribute significantly this season? – Ed Helinski (@MrEd315)

I’m not sure if Brandon Dorlus counts as a sleeper at this point, considering he’s received a lot of praise as perhaps the Falcons’ best pick in the draft. It is certainly considered the best value for money. But I really like Dorlus, and I could easily see him being the most important contributor in this class as a freshman. In fact, I think the top three defensive line picks will be strong contributors this fall.

The sleepers in this group are Casey Washington and JD Bertrand. I think Washington’s game will fit well into Atlanta’s new offense. He’s deviously fragile and has the tools to turn underground routes into big wins after capture. As for Bertrand, he is simply fun to watch. He has excellent nose for the football and a knack for showing up where offenses least expect him. It’s really only his size that could limit him at the next level, but his intangibles and instincts are superb.

Will one of these guys turn out to be this year’s DeMarcco Hellams? Time will tell us.

Is it time for the city of Atlanta to host a Sunday night game again? – Falcao Brazil (@RiseUp_BR)

I was stunned to learn while researching this issue that the last time the Falcons hosted a Sunday night game was in Week 2 of the 2019 season. remember very well, as I was working for the team at the time and it ended in the most spectacular way. You may remember Julio Jones’ improbable and incredible screen touchdown late in the fourth quarter.

I was about to break the no cheering rule in the press box on this play. So yeah, I’d say it’s about time Atlanta hosted another night game to close out the NFL weekend. But here’s the problem: Sunday Night Football gets the first glimpse of the action during matchup selection, and given the Falcons’ lack of success, it’s no surprise they were denied that coveted spot. A dull NFC South doesn’t help matters there either. However, if the Falcons do anything this season, they have the type of young starpower to warrant flexibility in this prime-time matchup. Hopefully this will happen because it should have been done a long time ago. And the city of Atlanta can absolutely show up on Sunday night.

How much success would the Falcons need for Zac Robinson to receive a head coaching offer? – SpecsTar (@TarSpecs)

You can never say never in this league, especially when it comes to coaches of the Sean McVay tree, but I would be shocked if Robinson received this kind of look after just one season. This isn’t a knock on Robinson at all – I haven’t seen enough of his work to make a judgment one way or the other – but rather about his lighter coaching history and his lack of gaming experience.

The latter isn’t necessarily disqualifying anymore after watching Dave Canales get the top job in Carolina after just one year as a signal-caller, but his situation is slightly different. Canales was the quarterbacks coach in Seattle two years ago, when Geno Smith had by far the best year of his career and was perhaps the league’s surprise player. Last year, Canales helped Baker Mayfield get his career back on track with a season few saw coming. So he makes sense for a franchise that needs Bryce Young to improve quickly.

In Atlanta, Robinson will work with an established veteran in Kirk Cousins ​​with an offense widely recognized for having plenty of young talent. This looks like a recipe for the quarterback to get a lot of credit in the turnaround and for players like Drake London, Kyle Pitts and Bijan Robinson to share the national spotlight. Perhaps the best case for Robinson would be a deep playoff run with Michael Penix Jr. starting the majority of the season.

I suppose it’s not impossible, but it seems like a long-term project.

How about rookie numbers… – Al deGroat (@AldeGroat)

No official word from the team yet on this, but I imagine it will happen soon. Although I have no information at this time, here are the numbers that are currently not assigned to a player:

Nos. 2, 10, 11, 14, 15, 16, 30, 31, 36, 37, 40, 42, 46, 47, 48, 54, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 72, 78, 79, 82 , 83, 84, 85, 86, 88, 93 and 98.

Just because I think it’s kind of fun, I’m going to try to predict the draft pick numbers.

• Michael Penix Jr. – No. 10 (He wore No. 9 in college, but currently belongs to Rondale Moore.)
• Ruke Orhorhoro – No. 93 (He wore No. 33 in college, but NFL rules don’t allow it.)
• Bralen Trice – No. 48 (He wore #45 and 8 in college. Both are currently taken, so this seems like a good compromise.)
• Brandon Dorlus – No. 98 (He wore numbers 97 and 3 in college, but both are taken. If I stick to the logic above, he and Orhorhoro should flip a coin for 93. I I like it in this issue, though.)
• JD Bertrand – No. 47 (He wore #27 in college, so it’s a choice between 37, 47, and 57 for me. Sensing a trend here?)
• Jase McClellan – No. 11 (He wore No. 2 at Alabama, but I’m just not sure the Falcons are ready to put Matt Ryan’s number back on yet. In high school, McClellan wore No. 9. Combine those two, and you get 11. If only my math teachers could see me now.)
• Casey Washington – No. 14 (He wore #8 and 14 in college. I feel pretty good about this one.)
• Log of Zion – No. 79 (He wore No. 96 at Georgia, which is currently owned by Zach Harrison. Logue had No. 9 in high school. This one could go in several directions.)

What are your thoughts on the Falcons DL rotation? With Raheem rushing at 5 on a bunch of nickel downs, what would be your ideal 5-man pressure package – what role do you think Ruke/Trice/Dorlus will have in year one? -Damski (@Damski32)

I love this question, and it was a great question to end on. I expect you to see a mix of well-timed five-man pressures against certain teams and in advantageous situations, but I also expect fake pressures to be the primary way Atlanta looks to attack the quarterback. I’ll give you my opinion on each one.

For blitz packages, I think you’re looking at a heavy mix of Kaden Ellis and Troy Andersen as well as the front four. Ellis rushed the passer on 15.9 percent of his passes, which led all Atlanta linemen and edge defenders last season — and he was effective doing it. Despite only playing in two games, Andersen ranked just behind Ellis with a 12 percent pass rush rate. The player of interest here is rookie JD Bertrand, who was a pass rusher at Notre Dame from the inside linebacker position. His passing score of 82.6 ranked 13th^th among all linebackers with at least 50 completions last season, according to Pro Football Focus.

On the nickel down front, I think you’ll of course see Grady Jarrett and David Onyemata inside. Brandon Dorlus could be someone who plays a role here given his versatility and consistent pressure production in college. This final premium edge rusher spot will likely be a mix of Arnold Ebiketie, Bralen Trice and Lorenzo Carter. It’s also very possible that one of the inside linebackers leaves the field for the pure five-man blitz front you’re talking about, but I think Raheem Morris likes to disguise things a little more than that.

Mock pressures will likely involve a lot of the guys I mentioned previously, but I think early game packages would also include a bit of Zach Harrison and Ta’Quon Graham. Ruke Orhorhoro is a bit of a wild card for me as I think his best usage early on will be in run defense, but he also has upside as a passer.

In the secondary, keep an eye on how Richie Grant is used. I think he’s much better in the box than he was in man coverage 35 yards downfield, and one of the reasons for that is his ability to rush the passer. He and Mike Hughes are two players who could be used sparingly but effectively on simulated pressures.

Post-draft, I’m a big fan of Atlanta’s top seven. There are a lot of interesting players on this roster now, which will give the coaching staff some mixed looks throughout camp to sort through. I would expect the competition to be off the charts, which should only help the growth of the young players on the team.

Thanks to everyone who submitted questions for today’s mailer! If you’d like to submit a question for the future, leave it in the comments below or send it to @willmcfadden on Twitter.