Offensive Line

Who's on the Roster?
#59 David Ashkinaz (6-4 300, rookie, Central Florida)
#79 Eric Beverly (6-3 300, 7th, Miami OH)
#64 Martin Bibla (6-3 306, 3rd, Miami FL)
#65 Kynan Forney (6-2 305, 4th, Hawaii)
#63 Roberto Garza (6-2 296, 4th, Texas A&M-Kingsville)
#77 William Henry (6-4 295, rookie, Clemson)
#73 Steve Herndon (6-4 292, 4th, Georgia)
#66 Jason Jowers (6-6 324, 1st, Wisconsin)
#62 Todd McClure (6-1 286, 6th, LSU)
#67 Mookie Moore (6-2 318, 3rd, Troy State)
#71 Jared Peck (6-5 290, 1st, North Dakota State)
#68 Rodney Reed (6-4 280, rookie, LSU)
#76 Kevin Shaffer (6-5 290, 3rd, Tulsa)
#72 Steve Stewart (6-4 309, rookie, Michigan State)
#74 Todd Weiner (6-4 300, 7th, Kansas State)
#70 Bob Whitfield (6-5 310, 13th, Stanford)

Starters: Beverly (left guard), Forney (right guard), McClure (center), Shaffer (left tackle), Weiner (right tackle)
Top Backups: Bibla (right guard), Garza (center), Herndon (left guard), Jowers (right tackle), Whitfield (left tackle)

Newcomers: Ashkinaz (undrafted rookie), Beverly (free agent/Lions), Henry (undrafted rookie), Herndon (free agent/Broncos), Peck (free agent), Reed (undrafted rookie), Stewart (undrafted rookie).

The Falcons added some new blood on the sidelines to revamp an offensive line that has underachieved for a long time.

The Falcons made the addition of offensive line coach Alex Gibbs in the off-season. Gibbs is noted as a mastermind in producing the offensive lines in Denver that have had seven Top-5 finishes during his 9-year tenure with the Broncos. In fact, the lowest the Broncos have ever ranked since Gibbs joined the team in rushing is twelfth. Over that same time span, the Falcons have managed to rank higher than 12th twice. So Gibbs has his work cut out for him.

Gibbs brings in a system and blocking scheme that utilizes speed and mobility. Gibbs has been noted as a coach that prefers his players employ "dirty" tactics such as the ample use of cut and chop blocks. Gibbs' scheme uses zone blocking and takes advantage of the inherit quickness found in "undersized" linemen, stressing technique and intelligence over size and power. Gibbs inherits a few players that fit that mold.

Offensive Tackles

One of which is right tackle Todd Weiner. Weiner is assigned with protecting Vick's blindside, and has done a pretty good job to date. His 2003 campaign was not as good as the previous year, but he still played adequately. Weiner has good not great feet and plays his best in pass protection. He usually plays his best against the larger more finesse pass rushers than the speedy smaller speed ends. Part of Weiner's woes might have come from the adjustment of the offense for much of the season to right-handed quarterbacks. He should be able to bounce back this year and is a good fit for Gibbs style of play.

While Weiner had a subpar season, his newest linemate had a solid one. Kevin Shaffer took over for Bob Whitfield on the left side midway through the season due to Whitfield's injury. Shaffer proceeded to play excellently down the stretch and in those eight games was arguably better than any of his linemates over sixteen. Shaffer is a similar player to Weiner, in that he's better in pass protection than run blocking. He doesn't have great feet, but uses his hands well. He needs to add more strength, but he should benefit greatly from having Gibbs' tutelage early in his career. Shaffer's job on the left side is not by all means locked up, but he's already shown evidence that he's taking to the new position coach's methods well.

Pushing Shaffer is Whitfield. Whitfield, a fixture on the left side for the Falcons since 1994 will for the first time since his rookie season enter training camp without holding a starting position. Whitfield is a bigger finesse blocker, which has proven successful in Gibbs scheme, but he doesn't have great quickness or mobility anymore. It was clear from his play early last year that his best years are well behind him. In fact, Whitfield hasn't played at a high level since 2000, and more often that not since then has done just enough to get by on most Sundays. Whitfield is on his last legs and last season's leg injury personified this. Because of this, he does not have a roster position locked up, but is unlikely to get cut because of the lack of experience at the position behind him.

Jared Peck, Jason Jowers, William Henry, and Steve Stewart all are competing for a potential spot on the roster. They will be hard pressed to do so because Gibbs normally keeps only three tackles on the roster, but any of these players with a good camp can make the cut.

Peck probably has the best chances because he's worked with Gibbs in the past as an undrafted rookie with the Broncos in 2002. He played tight end in college, so his athleticism should be noted. He's gotten bigger and stronger since then but still is a work in progress.

Jowers impressed the former coaching staff enough that he had two different stints on the practice squad. His a bigger, stronger player than Gibbs is accustomed to seeing, but has an outside shot at making the roster. He's best known for his abilities as a run blocker. He spent the spring as a reserve in Europe, which hurts his chances of making the roster, but he still enters camp as the No. 2 right tackle.

Trying to wrestle that job away from him is undrafted rookie William Henry. Henry is an undersized tackle that needs to add strength, but has good athleticism and mobility. He has a chance of making the practice squad if he can impress the coaching staff with his mobility and ability to develop for the future in the weight room, but is a roster longshot.

Stewart will also get the opportunity to push Jowers. He has some good size, but like Henry needs to add strength. He is a finesse blocker in the similar vein as Weiner. He too is a roster longshot, but has a good shot at the practice squad.

Offensive Guards

While the competition at offensive tackle will occur mostly for reserve spots, the competition at guard will come in the starting lineup.

The only incumbent starter is Kynan Forney. Forney is a good blocker, but has had problems with mental breakdowns in the past. He should indear himself to Gibbs quickly as he did with the former staff due to his work ethic. Forney is not overly powerful, but has some quickness and the new blocking scheme should take advantage of that. He needs a good coach to smooth out his rough edges and he needs to play at a higher level more consistently.

The other starter is newcomer Eric Beverly. Beverly has split time over the past few years at both center and left guard in Detroit. He is a mobile and undersized guy that does a good job keeping things in front of him, but lacks the power or strength to redirect opponents when they don't stay in front of him. His best position is center since he is not strong enough to take on beefy defensive tackles by himself, but he's adequate at guard. And he should be more effective in this offense than he was in that of the Lions.

Both starters will be pushed by Martin Bibla and Steve Herndon.

Bibla started two games late last season at left guard, and played better in those two outings than any of the other guards had all season. He virtually neutralized Warren Sapp, a player that had given Travis Claridge, Forney, and many other Falcons guards fits for the past two years. Bibla is being shifted over to the right side. He was a player that was entering last season on the bubble since he had yet to really challenge Forney or Claridge for a starting spot. But this year, he will get his opportunity. It will be tougher for him to unseat Forney on the right side, but if he plays well enough, he could be switched to the left.

Steve Herndon has the first shot at unseating Beverly on the left side. Herndon was with Gibbs in Denver for the past three seasons and is the veteran of the unit because of his familiarity with the scheme. But that doesn't make Herndon a shoe-in for a starting spot, let alone a roster spot. During his days in Denver, he had numerous opportunities to impress due to being a spot starter, but rarely did. Mostly, he makes good experienced depth, but has been lacking as a starter. Unless he has turned a corner within the past few months, it's likely he'll do the same in Atlanta.

The other guards on the roster include Mookie Moore and Rodney Reed. Moore is a big guy, but moves very well for his size. That could be a huge plus for him as he tries to steal a roster position from one of the other guards. He doesn't have great power, but again the blocking scheme should be able to take advantage of his other strengths like his quickness and minimize his weaknesses. He also gets a boost from playing with the Broncos in 2002, so he has knowledge of the scheme.

Reed played mostly tackle at LSU, but did log some time as a starting left guard as a freshman, so the position is not completely new. He has decent quickness and some strength, but needs overall polish in both areas of his game. He's super smart, earning Academic All-American honors twice in college. He's a longshot for the roster, but could find himself on the practice squad with a good camp.

Centers

Todd McClure enters camp for the fourth time as the starting center. Although he'll be pushed for his position, he is not expected to be unseated. McClure is the smaller, quicker interior player that Gibbs was able to harness in Tom Nalen in Denver. His lack of size hurts him due to a lack of strength, but McClure plays hard. What he needs to most improve on is his line calls, and that's something that has shown progress over the past four years when he's been a starter. He will be expected to be the anchor of the new line, and if any one player has to assimilate Gibbs blocking scheme the quickest, it is he.

Pushing him will be Roberto Garza. But Garza is not considered a real threat to McClure's starting job, because he has worked little at center over the years. He was drafted at that position, but early on has played mostly at left and right guard, mostly due to injuries of starters. But he too has been unable to stay healthy. Garza will face an uphill battle as he tries to secure a roster position. He is helped by his ability to play all three interior positions, but so can Eric Beverly. Garza has good strength, and is not a perfect fit for this new blocking scheme, but he's been a survivor, and has done everything the former coaching staff has asked, including playing out of position for three seasons. But what the new coaches will be looking for is how well he plays at center this summer. If Garza looks a bit lost at that position, it will be hard to keep him around since the coaching staff knows it has a quality reserve center in Beverly. And due to the wealth of quality guards on the roster, Garza is unlikely to make significant waves at that position. He could find himself out of a job come August.

Also on the roster is undrafted rookie David Ashkinaz. He played mostly guard at Central Florida, so the center position is relatively new to him, but the coaching staff likes his smarts and feistiness in the middle and thinks he can adjust. But he's still a major longshot as he is the least notable of the team's undrafted rookie class.

In the past, Gibbs has made due with eight linemen on the roster, and it's unlikely that will change this year. That's why the competition at this position will be tough and there are pretty much no shoe-ins. The only players that are shoe-ins are McClure, Weiner, and Shaffer, and among them only Weiner's starting gig is completely safe.

Salary Cap Sense

The salary cap could be the final determining factor in many of the position battles for this unit. Whitfield's $2.7 million cap hit stands out and is too high for a reserve. The team could save $760,000 if he is cut, but it may not happen unless one of the younger tackles steps up or they bring in another veteran. Garza is another strong possibility since the team would recoup his entire $628,000 salary if he was released. The team would also save $75,000 more by releasing Herndon instead of Bibla. Moore's salary of $380,000 is $75,000 cheaper than that of Herndon and $100,000 below Bibla's cap figure, so that would be another way to pinch pennies. And of course, each of the undrafted rookies and street free agents cost about $230,000, so that is another way to save.

Roster Projection

1. Weiner (starter)
2. Forney (starter)
3. McClure (starter)
4. Beverly (starter)
5. Shaffer (starter)
6. Herndon (backup)
7. Bibla (backup)
8. Free Agent OT (backup)
9. Reed (practice squad)
10. Moore (practice squad)
11. Whitfield (cut)
12. Garza (cut)
13. Peck (cut)
14. Jowers (cut)
15. Stewart (cut)
16. Henry (cut)
17. Ashkinaz (cut)