Who's on the roster?
#39 Waine Bacon (5'10" 191, rookie, Alabama)
#21 Juran Bolden (6'2" 207, 5th yr., Mississippi Delta CC)
#34 Ray Buchanan (5'9" 186, 11th yr., Louisville)
#29 Keion Carpenter (5'11" 205, 5th yr., Virginia Tech)
#27 Cory Hall (6' 213, 5th yr., Fresno State)
#23 Kevin Mathis (5'9" 185, 7th yr., Texas A&M-Commerce)
#24 Tod McBride (6'1" 208, 5th yr., UCLA)
#22 Gerald McBurrows (5'11" 208 yr., 9th, Kansas)
#47 Kevin McCadam (6'1" 219, 2nd yr., Virginia Tech)
#43 Travaris Robinson (5'10" 193, rookie, Auburn)
#20 Allen Rossum (5'8" 178, 6th yr., Notre Dame)
#32 Bryan Scott (6'1" 219, rookie, Penn State)
#25 Tawambi Settles (6'3" 199, 2nd yr., Duke)
#26 Jason Waters (5'9" 180, 1st yr., Tennessee)
#37 Tyrone Williams (5'11" 193, 8th yr., Nebraska)
Projected starters: Buchanan (left corner), Carpenter (free safety), Hall (strong safety), Williams (right corner)
Top backups: Mathis (corner), McBride (right corner), McBurrows (strong safety), McCadam (free safety)
Newcomers: Bacon (6th round pick), Hall (free agent/Bengals), McBride (free agent/Packers), Robinson (undrafted rookie), Scott (2nd round pick), Williams (free agent/Packers)
This unit went through some struggles in 2002, but the Falcons made a lot of changes and additions over the off-season, hoping it would improve.
Ray Buchanan still remains the team's top cornerback, despite possibly having his worst season as a pro in 2002. Buchanan was never a consistent cornerback due to his propensity to gamble, but he had always usually played at a high level despite his mistakes, but that changed last year. But part of the problem for him was he was suspended early in the season, missing four games due to the league's ban on products containing ephedra. Then when he finally got a chance to come back, he suffered an abdomen injury that hurt his play. It seemed like he did not get healthy again until the postseason, since for most of the season he was playing hurt.
Ray has always been a player that gets off to a slow start. Usually over the first 6-10 weeks of the season, his play is visibly worse than what happens over the last 6-10 weeks. Often times, such as in 2000, he was playing sub par in the first half of the season, but played at a Pro Bowl level in the second half. He is no longer a young man, and the team hopes that he can squeeze one more solid year out of his 32-year old body.
The team lost its top starter from last year in Ashley Ambrose. Although Ambrose's season was not that spectacular, he played at a higher level than Buchanan and was less of a liability. Ambrose had been a consistent starter since he joined the team in 2000, but was released due to the salary cap. The team signed ex-Packer Tyrone Williams as a replacement. Williams has started the past 6 seasons in Green Bay, tallying 19 interceptions in that span. But he has also seen his share of struggles as well. Once considered to be a top cornerback in the league, most have felt that Williams' play over the past two or three seasons has been average. He has given up a lot of big plays. But the Falcons hope that he can bounce back and put together a season as solid if not better than Ambrose in 2002, as that is all the team needs out of him.
Although the starting positions are pretty much secure, the bench is where all the camp turmoil will occur. Battling for three or four spots will be five players, all with legitimate chances of making the roster.
The player with the most experience is Juran Bolden. Although he has only played four seasons in the NFL, that number does not include two years he spent in Canada honing his skills. Bolden probably played the best amongst the team's cornerbacks last year, but unfortunately it was difficult to gauge his overall ability, since for most of the year, he lined up in the nickel. Although Bolden was far from perfect, he played like a solid NFL starting corner, shutting down the lesser talent and being a thorn in the side of the better players. But Bolden suffered a knee injury in the postseason match up vs. the Eagles, and his recovery is iffy. If Bolden is not 100%, the team could either cut him or place him on the physically-unable-to-perform list (PUP). If the cap becomes an issue, then it's likely they will cut him. Otherwise, on the PUP, he can sit out the first half of the season, and hopefully contribute down the Falcons expected playoff run.
A player similar in style and ability to Bolden is newcomer Tod McBride. McBride is another former Packer that had his ups and downs in that organization. McBride is a physical guy with good size for jamming receivers at the line of scrimmage. Unfortunately for the Packers, he did not develop a whole lot in man coverage, and could never ascend beyond nickel cornerback. The Falcons hope that McBride can improve somewhat in Atlanta, but if not the team won't have too much of a problem employing him as a situational corner. But word out of mini-camps has stated that McBride has struggled somewhat, so his chances of making the roster have decreased.
Kevin Mathis is another holdover from 2002. Mathis was signed to be the team's nickel cornerback early in the season. Mathis is a former starter in New Orleans that played well at times. Mathis is not much of a starter anymore, but played well in the nickel role last year. The team hopes he can push the starters somewhat, but for the most part be a steady presence off the bench in case the other players are not ready yet. He is a good all-around player to have on the roster with good speed and ball skills.
Allen Rossum may be the player that is facing the most questions going into training camp. Rossum was signed a year ago under the pretenses that he would fill the team's nickel cornerback position. But only a month after his signing, the team added Fred Weary, a much better player to fill that role. That was the first sign that the team was not too happy with Rossum's defensive abilities. And that did not change going into the season, as Rossum basically filled the role of punt returner. And with all the additions made in the off-season, it's doubtful Rossum will see the field again this year. Rossum's best chance of making the roster comes from his contributions on special teams rather than defense, although the coaching staff will probably want to see some improvement in the latter area. Rossum has great speed, but his cover skills have never developed during his career and he becomes a liability in the nickel. Depending on how players perform in punt return duties during camp will be the indicator if Rossum makes the roster.
Bryan Scott was a huge addition to the roster via the draft. Scott is a big physical cornerback that needs to work on his abilities in man coverage. It is very unlikely the Falcons will cut him due to the high investment made into him. Under Reeves, the team has never cut a player drafted in the first four rounds during their first training camp. So Scott should be safe from the Turk, but he still is going to have to bust his butt. Instead of vying for a roster position, Scott is vying for playing time. He has a legitimate chance of earning the nickel spot since only McBride and Mathis are his biggest competition. Even if Scott does not earn the role, if he has a good camp, he'll get plenty of chances to play. The team usually finds a way to get its rookie cornerbacks extensive playing time at some point in the season. Eli Williams got a lot of play early in 1998 in nickel role, while Darrick Vaughn got a lot of work late in 2000. Scott should see the same.
On the outside looking in are Jason Waters and Travaris Robinson. Waters is a former wide receiver that would not get much of a shot in the glut at that position. He has played cornerback in the Arena League and this past spring in NFL Europe. Waters has decent corner skills and has good speed. With a good camp, he could get a chance to earn a practice squad spot. Robinson too is vying for practice squad duties. He has played both safety and cornerback in college, and projects well at cornerback. He lacks speed, but has good strength and has shown basic abilities in man coverage. Robinson could be a sleeper in terms of earning a practice squad position, if he puts all his skills together.
The team will definitely keep at least five cornerbacks. They may keep a sixth, most likely being Allen Rossum, if he retains his punt returning job.
This position saw some overhaul in 2003, and the team hopes Cory Hall will add some impact play to the unit.
Cory Hall was signed to a nice sizable contract. Hall has good size, speed, and athleticism, and has been a starter at both free and strong safety in Cincinnati since his rookie season. Hall has struggled however in Cincinnati, and was never able to improve over his career there. The team hopes that in Wade Phillips defense and under the instruction of Emmitt Thomas, Hall can make strides. The team sought a strong safety that would be better in coverage than McBurrows, and it should have found one.
The other starting safety, Keion Carpenter, returns. Carpenter played pretty well down the stretch for the Falcons although the early part of his season was nothing special. Carpenter is a good guy in coverage and his abilities in run support are decent, but he's not much of a hitter. Also, his hands must improve, since there were at least three instances in 2002 where an interception slipped from his grasp or bounced off his fingertips. That could have given him 7 interceptions and a trip to the Pro Bowl. Carpenter suffered a neck injury in the postseason finale vs. the Eagles and his health and recovery were questionable until the Falcons opted to bring him back late in the spring for at least one more season.
Gerald McBurrows, who has started 22 games in the past two years will be ousted from the starting lineup and returned to his dime capacity, which is where he began when the Falcons signed him in 1999. McBurrows is a good run stopper that can play either free or strong safety, but his problems in coverage cost him a starting job. As a dime back, he is solid and gets a chance to return to special teams, an area where he also excels. McBurrows is not a lock to make the roster however. He'll face heat from rookie Waine Bacon and second-year man Kevin McCadam.
Bacon is probably going to be the biggest thorn in McBurrow's side. Bacon was a strong safety out of Alabama, but has been working mostly at free safety in mini-camps, and that should continue into training camp. His versatility will be a plus, but if he does make the roster, it will be a rarity if he sees the field on defense. He'll get most of his playing time on special teams, which is the area he'll have to impress most this summer. But if Bacon shows good abilities on defense as well, it will be hard not to keep him.
McCadam is pretty much a near lock to make the roster however, and that's why he won't be too much of a problem for McBurrows. McCadam can play both free and strong safety, but will get most of his work at free safety this summer. McCadam has good size, speed, toughness, and ability in coverage, making him a good option in the dime role. He'll push McBurrows there. If Bacon can make the roster then, it will allow McCadam to move to his more natural strong safety position, thus ousting McBurrows from the roster.
Also in competition is Tawambi Settles. Settles spent some time last year on the team's practice squad, and has a great frame at the safety position. As a former college cornerback, he should be decent in coverage, but it remains to be seen if he'll be stalwart in run support. He's on the outside looking in. He's a roster long shot.
The team could keep an extra fifth safety, but that will depend more on the constraints of the salary cap and how the rest of the roster shapes up than on the team's ability to have five solid safeties.
Salary Cap Sense
Rossum and McBurrows high cap figures make them nice targets for some extra space. But because both players are solid on special teams, the team will need to find legitimate younger players that can replace them before they are let go. Cutting either should purge at least $600,000 in cap space each. Cutting McBride would add a cap hit, so it's doubtful he will get cut. Bolden and Mathis however could see the axe come down on them since both cost $475,000. At safety, besides McBurrows, nobody else should really worry about the salary cap.
Predictions