The Long and the Short: Why the Falcons Value Length in Reshaping the Front Seven

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. – Raheem Morris and Jeff Ulbrich joined forces a few years ago when they were both coaches with the Atlanta Falcons. They did an off-season study on the most effective physical traits for NFL defenders.

The attribute that kept popping up? It wasn’t speed, or height, or anything to do with bench press reps.

It was the length. Or, more simply, how long a player’s arms are – their wingspan. This seems to be a more advantageous feature for basketball. But it can also be a game-changer in football, especially on the defensive side of the ball, Morris said.

“We talked about the secondary and everywhere on defense, people who had more length, they missed fewer tackles,” said Morris, who coached Ulrich, now defensive coordinator for the New York Jets, in Atlanta from 2015 to 2020 .

With this information in hand, the Falcons reshaped their front seven in the 2024 NFL Draft, prioritizing length. After drafting quarterback Michael Penix Jr. with the No. 8 pick, Atlanta drafted the first seven players with its next four picks, then added another defensive lineman with its final pick. Five of the team’s eight picks in the draft were defensive linemen or linebackers.

And most of them had one thing in common: length.

The Falcons traded for Clemson defensive tackle Ruke Orhorhoro and his 34-inch arm length in the second round with the No. 35 overall pick. The only defensive tackle drafted this year with a longer reach was Maason Smith (35 inches), who went to the Jacksonville Jaguars with the 48th overall pick. Orhorhoro also had the highest athleticism score (89) among all other defensive tackles at the combine.

Morris even mentioned Orhorhoro’s range during the phone call when he informed Orhorhoro that the Falcons were drafting him, saying, “You had a lot of length, man. We can’t wait to see you.”

By taking Brandon Dorlus (fourth round, 109th overall) from Oregon and Zion Logue (sixth round, 197th overall) from Georgia with Orhorhoro, the Falcons acquired three of the draft’s top eight defensive tackles in terms of length. arms, at least among those measured at the combine. Logue has an arm length of 33 1/2 inches and Dorlus checks in at 33 1/4. Ohorhoro and Dorlus are also versatile enough to play the defensive end role. Washington passer Bralen Trice, who has an FBS-best 12 games with five or more pressures since 2022, has an arm length of 32 1/2 inches. The other top-seven pick-up was Notre Dame linebacker JD Bertrand (fifth round, 143rd overall), who joked didn’t have long arms, but was still picked “because I loved him so much.” Bertrand had the sixth-highest track and field score (73) among linebackers at the combine.

“We definitely place a high value on length, on getting bigger, stronger and faster,” Morris said.

Morris was hired as head coach in January after three years as defensive coordinator for the Los Angeles Rams, who won Super Bowl LVI. He previously served as defensive coordinator and interim coach for the Falcons. One of the things he did that was successful with the Rams was use a lot of top seven players in different lineups. The four rookies will join a group that already includes former Pro Bowl defensive lineman Grady Jarrett.

“I like being able to put people in different places and find different units that can go on and cause disruption for different reasons,” Morris said. “Whether it’s rushing with power, whether it’s rushing, like we talked about, with Dorlus on the edge, whether it’s doing a bunch of different things. And that rotation up front of the National Football League, as we know, is continuous. This rotation at forward is probably the most rotated position in football.

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The highlights of the new Falcon Brandon Dorlus

Check out the highlights of new Falcons defensive tackle Brandon Dorlus.

The Falcons’ choice of Penix was the story of the draft, as Atlanta had already signed Kirk Cousins ​​​​as a free agent a few weeks earlier to a four-year, $180 million contract, including $100 million dollars guaranteed. But the pass rush has long been the team’s biggest weakness. The Falcons have 18 fewer sacks than any other franchise in the league over the last three seasons. Atlanta’s win rate was dead last in the league in 2023.

After the polarizing selection of Penix, Atlanta got its act together and committed to fixing its most glaring hole. It was something the Falcons knew they had to master, so to speak, in hopes of having their first winning season since 2017.

“It’s no secret right now,” Morris said. “A lot of people are looking for (length), so I don’t feel too bad telling you that. But it’s definitely something we value a lot.”