Who's on the roster?
#56 Keith Brooking (6'2" 245, 6th yr., Georgia Tech)
#41 James Cotton (6'2" 245, 1st yr., Ohio State)
#54 Chris Draft (5'11" 232, 5th yr., Stanford)
#94 Ben Mahdavi (6'1" 237, rookie, Washington)
#53 Keith Newman (6'2" 248, 5th yr., North Carolina)
#90 Will Overstreet (6'3" 259, 2nd yr., Tennessee)
#51 Karon Riley (6'2" 268, 3rd yr., Minnesota)
#59 Sam Rogers (6'3" 245, 10th yr., )
#55 Twan Russell (6'1" 230, 7th yr., Miami FL)
#52 Matt Stewart (6'3" 234, 3rd yr., Vanderbilt)
#50 Artie Ulmer (6'3" 247, 6th yr., Valdosta State)
#96 Recardo Wimbush (6'2" 218, rookie, Georgia Tech)
Projected starters: Brooking (right inside), Draft (left inside), Overstreet (right outside), Stewart (left outside)
Top backups: Newman (left outside), Rogers (right outside), Russell (right inside), Ulmer (left inside)
Newcomers: Cotton (free agent), Mahdavi (undrafted rookie), Newman (free agent/Bills), Russell (free agent/Dolphins), Wimbush (undrafted rookie)
This unit was the team's strength in 2002, and with additions made in the off-season, it should be even stronger in 2003.
The star of the Falcons defense is clearly inside linebacker Keith Brooking. He is the team's most renowned defensive player in league circles. Brooking's production in 2002 was solid, as he tallied 210 tackles.
This season will be Brooking's fifth as a starter. Brooking should improve on last year due to him becoming more accustomed to the scheme. Brooking has outstanding speed and strength, and plays well in coverage. But Brooking also has his share of weaknesses. At the point of attack, Brooking has come up lacking over the years, and is a far more superior player in pursuit and space, making him a better weakside linebacker in the 4-3 defense. Because of this, Brooking can be a bit of a liability against the run due to his weakness at the point of attack. He struggles to shed blockers when teams run right at him.
Hopefully Brooking can improve on these weaknesses. One solution is the team getting better play up front from the linemen in keeping blockers off Brooking. But with the questions going into camp in that area, it remains to be seen if Brooking can correct some of his weaknesses.
Playing beside Brooking is Chris Draft. Draft is a similar player to Brooking, in that he is mostly a pursuit and coverage linebacker. But Draft has shown that he be an effective blitzer as he sacked the quarterback 3.5 times last season. Draft only started five games, but still managed 91 tackles. Draft replaced John Holecek late in the season in the starting lineup, and showed very little drop-off. But the same concerns for Brooking remain with Draft. Draft lacks Brooking's strength, and questions still loom if he can be as effective or more against the point of attack as Holecek was.
While the inside linebacker starting roles are secure, the outside spots will see the most competition this summer. Both starters from 2002 return: Matt Stewart and Sam Rogers. But the team has high hopes for both Keith Newman and Will Overstreet as well.
Stewart is quietly, one of the team's more consistent players. He is not a great playmaker yet, but plays solidly week in and week out. Stewart's best attributes are his abilities in coverage and at the point of attack. He lacks great strength, but has been working on putting more muscle on his 6'3" frame. At one point in the off-season it was reported he was up to 245. This muscle could really help Stewart in the long-run. Stewart also possesses decent abilities to rush the quarterback off the edge, tallying 3 sacks last season. With increased opportunities, he may get more sacks this year.
Stewart will receive his competition from Keith Newman. Newman played under Wade Phillips in Buffalo. The Falcons signed him due to his familiarity with the system, and the fact that in his single season as a starter under Phillips (2000), he recorded 8 sacks. Newman's pass rush ability will be greatly appreciated on passing situations. Newman has good ability vs. the run, but because Stewart has yet to falter, he will have an uphill battle in attempts to claim the starting spot on the strongside.
Most experts liken Newman's abilities to Sam Rogers. Rogers started five seasons in Buffalo, most of which came under Phillips' tutelage. Rogers is a good run stopper, but managed to showcase some of his pass-rushing skills last year, with 6.5 sacks, a career high. Rogers is big and strong, and is still going strong at age 33. But he is recovering from off-season hernia surgery, and will start slow in camp.
That means that the weakside outside linebacker starting position will likely go to Will Overstreet. Overstreet won the job in training camp once Patrick Kerney moved back to end. But injuries plagued him in the summer and continued into the regular season. He managed only to play in two games during the regular season before being placed on injured reserve. Injuries have hounded Overstreet for his entire career, dating back to his early days at Tennessee. Overstreet is a gifted pass rusher, and the weakside spot is usually reserved for the teams' best pass rusher. If Overstreet can get off to a good start like he did last summer, it will be tough for anybody to unseat him.
The team has great versatility at the outside position. Both Rogers and Newman can play either spot and have done so in the past, meaning that injuries should not have any huge impact on the functionality of the defense.
Another outside guy that the team has high hopes for is Karon Riley. Like Overstreet, Riley was a defensive end in college at Minnesota. Riley was picked up by the Falcons early last season and spent four weeks on the practice squad before being promoted to the active roster. Riley has good pass-rushing abilities off the edge, and has a shot to make the roster as a situational pass rusher to complement Newman and Overstreet. But where Riley will need to show the most talent this summer will be on special teams. Riley has worked to drop weight this off-season, as he played close to 270 last season, and now is much closer to 260. This should help him add quickness as he grows accustomed to the linebacker position.
Riley's main competition will come from James Cotton. He is another former college end, who has bounced around the league since being selected by the Bears in the seventh round of the 2000 Draft. Cotton has played in the NFL, XFL, and CFL. He was a player that impressed the coaching staff with his work in the off-season and has a chance to make the practice squad.
Depth on the inside is not as good as the outside, but has its own strengths.
Artie Ulmer returns. Ulmer has made a big impact on the team's special teams units over the past two years. Ulmer is not a gifted defensive player, but offers versatility since he can play any position in either the 4-3 or 3-4. That is good to have in depth. Although he will primarily play special teams this year, he could do himself a great service if his regular defensive skills, albeit limited, are showcased in camp.
He'll get competition from newcomer Twan Russell. Russell lacks size, but like Ulmer is a decent reserve. He has gotten by over the past three seasons in Miami as a reserve at both strongside and weakside linebacker. He sat out the latter half of the 2002 season with injury, so questions remain if he'll be 100% by the commencement of camp. But Russell still should make this roster because of his special teams abilities.
Russell and Ulmer's competition will lie in two undrafted rookie free agents: Ben Mahdavi and Recardo Wimbush. Mahdavi doesn't have great speed, but has good strength. Wimbush is a bit undersized, but has good speed. If either player can show solid ability on both defense and special teams, they have strong chances of making the roster.
Depth is questionable at certain areas of this unit, but for the most part versatility will allow the unit to fill the gaps.
Salary Cap Sense
The team could do well to not keep both interior veterans in Ulmer and Russell. Both will count $475,000 against the cap, and with both Mahdavi and Wimbush costing only $225,000 it would alleviate much needed cap space if one did not make the roster. As for the outside, if Rogers is not healthy for the length of training camp, his cap figure can hurt him at $475,000 as well. Riley ($375,000) and Cotton ($225,000) would be cheaper alternatives.
Predictions