Linebackers

Who's on the Roster?
#56 Keith Brooking (6-2 245, 7th, Georgia Tech)
#54 Chris Draft (5-11 232, 6th, Stanford)
#53 Jamie Duncan (6-1 238, 7th, Vanderbilt)
#55 Eric Johnson (6-0 220, 5th, Nebraska)
#41 Terrence Melton (6-1 235, 1st, Rice)
#94 Terrence Robinson (6-0 240, 1st, Auburn)
#46 Rod Royal (6-2 242, rookie, McNeese State)
#52 Matt Stewart (6-3 232, 4th, Vanderbilt)
#44 Deryck Toles (5-11 224, rookie, Penn State)
#50 Artie Ulmer (6-3 247, 7th, Valdosta State)
#51 Demorrio Williams (6-0 232, rookie, Nebraska)

Starters: Brooking (weakside), Draft (middle), Stewart (strongside)
Top Backups: Duncan (middle), Johnson (weakside), Ulmer (strongside)

Newcomers: Duncan (free agent/Rams), Johnson (free agent/Raiders), Melton (free agent), Royal (undrafted rookie), Toles (undrafted rookie), Williams (5th round pick).

With the move to the 4-3 defense, the linebacking corps should be able to utilize its speed more, which should help the team improve a run defense that ranked 29th in the league in 2003.

The personnel never really fit the 3-4 defense, particularly on the inside. Middle man Keith Brooking was a player that worked best in space and on the outside, but was forced to maintain gaps more than he should have at right inside linebacker. But now Brooking will move back to his natural weakside position. It should increase the amount of plays he can make. Brooking works best in space which allows him to use his speed to chase the football. He struggled stopping the run on the inside since he is not good at the point of attack when offenses run directly at him. They were able to get a blocker on him, which neutralized him too much. Now it will be a bit harder to get a blocker on him.

Brooking is a solid player. He's not a powerful hitter, nor is he particularly great in coverage, but he's adequate enough there to play all three downs. The Falcons want to put him in a position where he can chase the ball, and he will now be able to do that on the weakside.

Maintaining the middle will be Chris Draft. Draft too is a player in a similar vein as Brooking. He has good speed, in fact probably better speed than Brooking, and works best chasing the ball. Draft is a bit more powerful and can make hits, and is probably slightly better in coverage. But he had a down year in 2003. He missed tackles and at times seemed lost. He too was neutralized by the scheme and prevented him from making too many plays. Draft is a natural fit at the weakside position, but the coaching staff thinks he can bounce back and be a good middle linebacker. It remains to be seen, but there is some evidence that it can happen. Nick Barnett, a rookie out of Oregon State with the Green Bay Packers last year, is a player in a similar vein as Draft, and was a runner-up for defensive rookie of the year last year. Ex-Packers defensive coordinator Ed Donatell will try to bring Barnett's success to a more veteran savvy Chris Draft.

The other starting position will be manned by Matt Stewart on the strongside. Stewart too did not have a spectacular 2003 season. Stewart is a good run stopper and is good in coverage, but he didn't look like it that much last season. He was able to make a few plays, but should be able to do so even more with the switch to the 4-3. There are some questions about whether Stewart can handle the 4-3, since his days at Vanderbilt he played in the 3-4 scheme, but his first season in Atlanta was in the 4-3. He played as a reserve and looked fairly solid. Stewart has some pass rush ability, and Jim Mora hopes to increase his success at getting after the quarterback. In San Francisco, Mora had Julian Peterson manning the position, and Peterson had a career high 7 sacks in 2003. Stewart is not as fast nor athletic as Peterson, but the team will try to use him in a similar role of bringing him off the edge.

Draft is the only one amongst the starters that will face competition for his starting job. It will come from Jamie Duncan. Duncan played in Tampa Bay and looked solid in his final tow seasons there as a starter. But when he moved onto St. Louis in 2002, he really struggled. Particularly when it came to making tackles and making plays in coverage. Duncan has indicated his days in St. Louis were an aberration, but it remains to be seen. Duncan is high on speed and works best in space. He benefited in Tampa Bay by having a solid defense around him and Derrick Brooks playing next to him. If he can steal the starting job away from Draft, he can have a solid playmaker beside him in Brooking. If Duncan shows that his days in St. Louis were an oddity, he has a genuine chance of earning the starting job. But he still faces an uphill battle since Draft has the experience with his teammates and is probably a bit more comfortable leading the defense.

Much of the rest of the defense is filled with players that will have to make their impacts on special teams to find a role with the team. That is none more obvious in Artie Ulmer and Eric Johnson.

Ulmer is listed as the backup to Stewart on the strongside. Ulmer can play all three linebacking positions, which adds versatility to the bench. He's played for Mora before, even starting two games as an injury replacement with the 49ers in 2000. Ulmer is not particularly strong against the run, nor does he make plays in coverage, but he's an adequate player that gets his kicks on special teams. Ulmer has recorded 57 special teams tackles in the past three seasons as a Falcon. He is one of their top guys on coverage, and although he has had his fair share of mistakes, he's still one of the most consistent guys on the unit. His roster spot is hardly in danger because of his experience on special teams.

The same goes for newcomer Eric Johnson. Johnson spent the past four seasons with the Raiders, and totaled 30 tackles in that span. Johnson has played a variety of positions in the NFL, including cornerback, safety, and outside linebacker. The Falcons plan to employ him in that capacity due to his good speed. He lacks size and is not much versus the run, but he's an adequate defensive player. He got some work with the Raiders last year as an injury replacement, logging two starts on the weakside. The Falcons like Johnson because he brings speed and boosts special teams.

Listed behind Johnson on the weakside is rookie Demorrio Williams. Williams is a super-fast playmaker out of Nebraska, the same school that Johnson attended. Williams too is undersized, but plays harder and faster than his size would merit. He played defensive end for the Cornhuskers last year, and impressed with his pass rushing ability, racking up 11 sacks. He's still a bit raw and needs to play more disciplined in run support, but the Falcons have high hopes for Williams future. For now, he'll likely get most of his work on special teams, but he'll likely find a way to move up with the second unit during training camp, either leapfrogging Johnson on the weakside or supplanting Ulmer on the strongside. Williams might log minutes this season on passing downs as the team tries to utilize his edge speed as a pass rusher. But since he likely won't be earning a starting job, Williams will need to make an immediate impact on special teams. But because of the presence of Ulmer and Johnson, he will have time to warm up to the unit.

The team hopes the rest of the unit can be filled out with one of the youngsters. It's been fortunate in recent years to have some solid play from undrafted rookies during the preseason, including Recardo Wimbush last season.

Amongst the rookies, the notable name is Rod Royal. Royal was viewed by many draft experts to be a solid middle round pick at the middle linebacker position. Royal is a bit of a throwback linebacker, possessing good power and can hit in the middle. He started his career at Florida, but moved onto McNeese State where he became an All-American with 276 tackles, 32 for loss, and 12.5 sacks in two seasons. He's strong and is a hard hitter that plays best against the run. He has a good chance of making the roster if he can show abilities on special teams and upside in the middle, since the team is not looking at neither Draft nor Duncan as long-term solutions.

Also on the roster is undrafted rookie Deryck Toles out of Penn State. Toles is small and has a lot of speed. He's been limited in college due to an enzyme disorder which prevented him from being a full-time starter. Doctors indicate it will limit him in the NFL, but not to the point that he cannot make the roster. The Falcons would only plan on using him on special teams, an area he excelled in at Penn State. Because of the likelihood that any possible roster spot would go to a special teams player, it gives Toles an advantage. Because of his physical ailments Toles tends to play with a high level of energy and intensitiy on the field, which could be enough to impress the coaching staff. He's a good shot for at least the practice squad.

Also on the roster is Terrence Robinson. He was picked up by the Falcons on their practice squad at midseason and logged time during their season finale on special teams. He can play both inside and outside in the 3-4, but is expected to get most of his work in the middle. He played well for Rhein in NFL Europe this spring, starting 6 games. But because of his time in Europe, he will be a longshot to make the roster since the coaching staff hasn't been able to monitor his progress through off-season workouts and mini-camps. But he has the chance to make the practice squad again. If Robinson can impress on special teams, he has a chance.

The team added Terrence Melton to the roster as well. Melton has been playing the Arena Leagues since coming out of Rice in 2000. He played defensive end at Rice, so one could stress his ability as a pass rusher. And that's why he's listed as the third string strongside linebacker, despite spending most of his time out of college in the middle. He played both linebacker and fullback in the Arena League in 2000 and 2001. The past two seasons he played as a reserve with the Saskatchewan RoughRiders in the CFL. He's recorded 33 special teams tackles in that span, which shows his ability in that area. That gives Melton a good shot at making the roster due to his prowess on special teams. Melton has some Ulmer like versatility, and might be able to impress the team with it in order to earn a practice squad position.

The Falcons have typically carried seven linebackers in their past days of running the 4-3, but because they should have solid depth, they could carry eight this year.

Salary Cap Sense

The cap could have an impact on how the middle position plays out. Draft will count $1.625 million against the cap, while Duncan only counts $480,000. If Duncan wins the job, the team is unlikely to keep Draft as a backup at that expensive cap number. But if Duncan loses the battle, the team may also get rid of him. With Draft's release, the team would reap savings of $1.3 million against this year's cap, and $480,000 with Duncan's release. Johnson and Ulmer are the only other players likely to be dumped because of salary with the team saving $470,000 and $380,000 respectively. Because of the low prices of some of the team's youngsters, one or two veterans might find their names on the waiver wire if they don't clearly outplay the youth.

Roster Projection

1. Brooking (starter)
2. Draft (starter)
3. Stewart (starter)
4. Duncan (backup)
5. Ulmer (backup)
6. Johnson (backup)
7. Williams (backup)
8. Royal (backup)
9. Toles (practice squad)
10. Melton (cut)
11. Robinson (cut)