OL rotations, DL depth: Atlanta Falcons training camp update: Day 4 recap

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — The Atlanta Falcons wrapped up their fourth day of training camp, and perhaps no one summed up the session better than defensive coordinator Jimmy Lake.

After the starting defense ended a red zone play on a march, Lake walked toward the huddle.

He was wearing a white bucket hat, a black Nike shirt with the NFL emblem on his right sleeve and the red Falcons logo on his left, a white long-sleeved T-shirt, black shorts with a white Nike swoosh, black low-cut socks and black shoes.

Atlanta wrapped up its third practice of camp — a session open to fans at Seckinger High School in Buford — around 7:35 p.m. Saturday and made a quick turnaround, starting Practice No. 4 at 11:15 a.m. Sunday at IBM Performance Field.

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As a result, the session was light, but here’s a summary of everything that happened:

Norton, McGary lead offensive line rotation

The Falcons’ continuity on the offensive line extends beyond their starting five, as each of their top three reserves – tackle Storm Norton, guard Kyle Hinton and center/guard Ryan Neuzil – are all back in the fold.

When Atlanta splits into two fields for visits and practices, Norton, Hinton and Neuzil often watch the starting line work, then rotate together in a variety of combinations.

On Sunday, those rotations continued, but at times Norton replaced only right tackle Kaleb McGary while the rest of the line remained stable.

At other times, Norton worked as left tackle in place of Jake Matthews while Hinton took snaps for left guard Matthew Bergeron and Neuzil handled centering responsibilities for Drew Dalman.

The Falcons aren’t exactly controversial here — McGary is still expected to be the starting right tackle — but Norton seems firmly entrenched in the pivotal tackle role. And after a 2023 season in which McGary missed three games due to injury and was admirably replaced by Norton, Atlanta appears to be setting itself up for a variety of health outcomes.

Among other offensive line holdouts, the Falcons may have only eight players — Matthews, Bergeron, Dalman, right guard Chris Lindstrom, McGary, Norton, Hinton and Neuzil — who are the only eight who have worked with the first- and second-team units during OTAs, minicamp and training camp.

The defensive depth chart remains the same – with similar surprises

As in the first three days, the Falcons lined up Mike Hughes at cornerback opposite AJ Terrell and Richie Grant at safety next to Jessie Bates III. On the defensive line, James Smith-Williams worked with the first team at the 4i position (shading the inside of the offensive tackle) and at the five-technique defensive end position.

So Atlanta’s trio of second-year pros — cornerback Clark Phillips III, safety DeMarcco Hellams and defensive end Zach Harrison — were once again relegated to mostly secondary reps. Harrison worked occasionally with the starters and Hellams saw reps next to Grant, each of them a continuation of the first three sessions.

Atlanta’s second defensive line included Harrison, rookie Ruke Orhorhoro, veteran Eddie Goldman and outside linebacker Arnold Ebiketie. The first-team group remains led by Grady Jarrett, David Onyemata, Smith-Williams, Lorenzo Carter and Ta’Quon Graham.

But the Falcons’ third-team defensive line featured several interesting faces, including fourth-round rookie Brandon Dorlus, veteran Kentavius ​​Street and third-year outside linebacker DeAngelo Malone.

Fifth-round rookie linebacker J.D. Bertrand also worked out with the third team, but the Falcons only have six linebackers, and they’ve spread them out across two fields throughout camp. Bertrand is solidified as Atlanta’s No. 4 linebacker.

Extracurricular activities

Receiver Darnell Mooney said after practice that he thought the Falcons would put on pads for the first time this summer on Wednesday. Atlanta is off Monday and resumes practice Tuesday and Wednesday before taking Thursday off before Friday night’s public practice at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

Mooney also added that the Falcons have been working on more in-depth installation periods lately, and fellow receiver Ray-Ray McCloud noted that while there was a lot of information to absorb, the staff did a good job of making it easy to learn.

Atlanta finished the final 15 minutes of its indoor practice due to a rainstorm in Flowery Branch. It was the first time the Falcons had used indoor facilities during training camp.

Before the session began, Falcons assistant general manager Kyle Smith declined to comment in detail on cornerback AJ Terrell’s contract. Terrell is entering the final year of his rookie contract and is set to become an unrestricted free agent in the spring of 2025.

However, Smith said he expects Terrell to have the best year of his career this fall, continuing the trend of internal confidence in the former All-Pro.