Falcons’ draft focus needs to be on offensive line
Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff needs to do something to improve this crew in the draft. Left to right: Justin Blalock, Sam Baker, Todd McClure, Tyson Clabo. (Curtis Compton)
FLOWERY BRANCH – It’s believed that Chuck Bednarik went into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in the mutant dinosaur division, with Godzilla and Monster Zero, largely because of words like these: “You get into that sort of cannibalistic feeling. All you want to do is go out there and, like I say, kill somebody. I’m going to get him. I’m going to kill ‘em. Not like you are going to put them into the ground after, but you just want to kill a guy.”
Bednarik was a two-way player with Philadelphia in the 1960s. He is 86 now, which is I suppose eliminates the possibility of any comeback with the Falcons. But there were a few times last season when he might’ve been an improvement on the team’s offensive line.
Thomas Dimitroff’s fifth draft as Falcons general manager is next week. If the focus isn’t on improving the wall of linemen in front of Matt Ryan and Michael Turner, something is seriously wrong.
For all of the X’s and O’s, football still is a game where success hinges on your ability to knock the other guy down. The Falcons often have come up short in that area — in pass protection, in short-yardage situations, in tight, physical games, and certainly in the playoffs.
Dimitroff hasn’t made a lot of mistakes as the Falcons’ general manager. He’s the biggest reason the team has gone 43-21 with three playoff appearances in the past four regular seasons, an unprecedented run of success, at least before the postseason. But one area of the team that hasn’t significantly improved is the offensive line, which stems in part from the struggles of left tackle Sam Baker, a first-round draft pick in 2008.
Dimitroff continues to defend Baker. He accurately notes that Baker’s effectiveness has been limited because of injuries (back and elbow). He never expected Baker to be Anthony Munoz, even if healthy, and he felt compelled to move up in the draft to take him only because there was a run on offensive linemen. It all might be easier to overlook if Ryan didn’t keep winding up on his back and Turner wasn’t getting stuffed every time coach Mike Smith feels like scratching that fourth-and-1 itch.
Is it all Baker’s fault? No. He’s just the highest-profile question mark on the line because of where he was taken and the fact he protects Ryan’s blindside. But for an organization that once boasted a line with Jeff Van Note, Mike Kenn and R.C. Thielemann, the front has been almost an afterthought in the draft lately. In the past 18 drafts, the Falcons have taken one offensive lineman in the first round (Baker), three in the second (Justin Blalock, Travis Claridge, Bob Hallen) and two in the third (Mike Johnson, Alai Kalaniuvalu).
Forget drafting a Pro Bowler — Kalaniuvalu didn’t even make it out of camp.
Center Todd McClure easily was the most effective and consistent member of the Falcons’ line last season, but he’s 35.
“Offensive lines, you’re going to have years that are up and years that are down and challenging, and we obviously had a challenging year,” Dimitroff said. “[But] we feel we have a good core of offensive linemen.”
Sorry. The Falcons can be good at times, even very good. But too often they don’t leave you with the impression that they can physically dominate an opponent. I’m just not sensing, “… but you just want to kill a guy.”
Ryan was sacked only 26 times last season. But the Falcons’ line allowed 84 “quarterback hits,” which is a better gauge as to how often Ryan threw under duress. The 84 hits ranked as the seventh-most in the league, behind six non-playoff teams.
As for the short-yardage situations, Dimitroff said: “It was challenging and agitating at times.”
His signing of free-agent guard Vince Manuwai didn’t stir the masses. Manuwai comes with no guarantees — he didn’t even play last season. So that leaves the draft.
Dimitroff doesn’t have a first-rounder to play with next week because of the Julio Jones trade, and there’s no reason to expect draft-day pyrotechnics.
“Suffice to say we won’t be messing up any draft parties this year,” he said.
Fireworks aren’t necessary. The Falcons just need a guy who can keep their quarterback clean and move the pile. And if he sounds like a raving lunatic, all the better.
By Jeff Schultz
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100 comments Add your comment
Scott Brantley
April 20th, 2012
7:07 am
51st!!!!!!!
Can we say draft failure again?
April 20th, 2012
7:32 am
Yes, we can….loosahs always….
All the best,
The who dat nation
yeahsure
April 20th, 2012
7:47 am
I’m a big believer in TD. The man has built a consistent winning team. Something that I’ve wanted for a LOOONG time. I’d rather have playoff losses than the huge ups and downs of the past. It’s only a matter of time before the playoff wins come. Sure the MV7 years were fun, but don’t forget how bad we were in most of those years. I never had confidence that we would have a decent team an given year. With the TD era, I at least know that we will compete.
Go through each teams drafts over the course of 4-5 years and analyze every pick you will see misses on EVERY team by every GM. That’s just the way it is and the way it’s always been. Why do people not realize this year after year.
Cheer up...
April 20th, 2012
8:11 am
…who dat, your drafts haven’t been THAT bad. But you are right, loosahs to the Falcon Nation.
oldbird
April 20th, 2012
8:22 am
Can we keep Dimitroff out of the draft room until Saturday? He does a great job finding keepers in the later rounds but he is absolutely horrible in the first two rounds.
Game Changer
April 20th, 2012
8:41 am
The falcons team regressed in 2011 on the defensive side and offensive side of the ball. The biggest issue with any team at any level is QUALITY QB PLAY, the falcons suffered poor play at the QB position and it cost the team many times in 2011. I still believe in our QB but another grouping of bad games in the first half of the season could set the falcons back further than in 2011. QB play, it is all about QB play.
Game Changer
April 20th, 2012
8:58 am
Schultz, word I am hearing is Orson Charles has dropped out of top 5 TE candidates.
Question: any idea what team will be in need of drafting a TE and in what rounds are they going to be choosen. Dont see any being drafted in first and maybe second round unless San Fran picks the Stanford TE.
yeahsure
April 20th, 2012
9:55 am
Matty threw for 4000 yards and broke a franchise record in 2011. A few less drops from Roddy/Julio and last season would have been spectacular numbers-wise. He will go down as the best QB in Falcons history fellas.
However, I agree that Matty has to get that gunslinger mentality back (see rookie season). I think that the new playcalling will address this issue.
BigBo
April 20th, 2012
10:00 am
I agree with you Falcon60. Losing H. Dahl last year didn’t get much notice but really affected the team. He brought the “nasty” to the birds OL every game. We missed him last season and need someone of his caliber back on the line.
Scott Case
April 20th, 2012
10:03 am
Birrrrrrrrrrrrdman, I would say you are a bulldog fan.. They are other schools that have good football talent and more than UGA. We don’t need a team of dogs!!!!!!!! We want a Superbowl, and the Dogs can’t win a championship.
I am glad TD knows this as well. How many Dogs has TD drafted from UGA? Dent last year in third round and Thomas Brown in sixth round four years back,Brown is no longer in football. I would say TD likes to draft from other schools , that do not have problems with players. TD does not draft players that have dots by their name on draft board. Just saying!!!!!!!!!!! We want be getting many UGA players.
Draft BPA is best way to build a team. If we would had been doing that, Clay Mathews would be a falcon.
SGo
April 20th, 2012
10:15 am
I’m thinking TD has locked up a lot of our FAs to make securing a trade of one, or a couple, of them before the 55th slot easier – I think he’s looking to a) move up, or b) make a trade that includes the pick along w/ a signed FA for an OL w/ a few years experience, (I’m not pretending to know anything of who’s out there).
As for Baker, I’m no doctor but those back and arm problems I’m guessing are directly related to him consistently being bent backwards at the hips by the usually over powering DLs coming a him.
Game Changer
April 20th, 2012
10:18 am
@ Scott Case, If I recall TB had a bad injury that cut any chance of career in nfl.
My biggest complaint about GM’s and drafts picks in NFL: I have long believed that players drafted from the top football position teachers/coaches at a winning program normally perform better and longer than those who are not. I understand this is not always the case but levels of competition out of college play intregal part regarding speed of the game.
#1 BLANK FAN
April 20th, 2012
10:48 am
OMG this was great, I remember being so excited when I got the Jeff Van Note Coke bottle top. It was a game of some sort where you collected the glass coke bottle caps, and Jeff Van Note was one of my favorites. Thanks, great article! I totally agree.
GO FALCONS!
splendid splinter
April 20th, 2012
10:56 am
Good article JS. I think you are right on the money. They need help there. They couldn’t make 4th and 1-inch against the Saints early in the season and they couldn’t make 4th and 1-inch against the Giants in the playoffs. They really need to be able to do that next year. I hope TD listens to you.
Daniel Son
April 20th, 2012
11:07 am
Would it help if the Falcon’s OL did some close, hand-to-hand MMA training? Do they do this already? I remember seeing a long time ago that some tailbacks took ballet classes for balance and footwork. Shouldn’t our OL do something that will enhance their ability to win at the line of scrimmage?
PMC
April 20th, 2012
11:13 am
Good stats Jeff, I had no idea that we were that light in the first 3 rounds.
Of those Baker has been disapointing even if it is due to injuries (though I never expected him to be great either) and Mike Johnson hasn’t even shown up yet so we really have no idea what to expect.
Hawley did a decent job at RG after game 5 or so and Svitek was admirable at times but yeah, all the good teams have lines that can maul you. We have none of that.
Sherrill
April 20th, 2012
11:25 am
No playoffs this year.
Status Quo Blows
April 20th, 2012
12:01 pm
The problem with drafting Julio Jones was that Matt Ryan didn’t throw to him enough during games. He always panicked in the pocket and threw the ball wildly. He reminds me of Jeff George. And that’s not a compliment…
Status Quo Blows
April 20th, 2012
12:02 pm
One game Matt Ryan looks like Tom Brady then the next like Tom Sawyer.
Status Quo Blows
April 20th, 2012
12:05 pm
Mr. Dmitroff, with all due respect what did the same players you have boasted about bringing back done ? One and out in the playoffs. My 12 year-old son can watch the Falcons and see that they need a defensive end,cornerback,linebacker,and two offensive linemen. But you got two oft-injured players (linebacker and OL). Your team is still 5 players short to be competitive.
Status Quo Blows
April 20th, 2012
12:07 pm
If anybody ever says to Michael Turner “you give him an inch & he will take a mile” they are blatantly lying…He won’t even take that inch.
Status Quo Blows
April 20th, 2012
12:10 pm
Dunta can’t cover a crash dummy,Abe can’t beat one linemen anymore (used to beat 2),Turner hits the hole like a crane. Ryan,Roddy,Julio,TG,Weatherspoon are solid players.
Sid
April 20th, 2012
12:13 pm
BooBoo
April 20th, 2012
1:08 am
*****************************************
Heck yeah BooBoo, ESPN can just broadcast from Flowery Branch and run our draft.
Sid
April 20th, 2012
12:16 pm
Status Quo Blows
April 20th, 2012
12:01 pm
The problem with drafting Julio Jones was that Matt Ryan didn’t throw to him enough during games. He always panicked in the pocket and threw the ball wildly. He reminds me of Jeff George. And that’s not a compliment…
*****************************************
Matt Ryan doesn’t have Jeff Georges’s deep ball.
Sid
April 20th, 2012
12:23 pm
Can we say draft failure again?
April 20th, 2012
7:32 am
**********************************
I assume you are speaking of the Saints loss of draft choices since they were caught cheating their Super Bowl year. Get ready to spend 2012 in the NFC South cellar, I hear the whine is good down there.
ajc sports fan
April 20th, 2012
12:26 pm
I agree Jeff..Great job!
ajc sports fan
April 20th, 2012
12:28 pm
Michael Turner is not the M Turner he was 2 years ago. Enough said on him.
jambro
April 20th, 2012
1:06 pm
Is McNeil still available?
Big Ten Champs Nebraska....Dawg
April 20th, 2012
1:44 pm
Falcons’ draft focus needs to be on offensive line
Really? Wow…..What a visionary you are Mr Schultz.
StillDirtyBirdin
April 20th, 2012
2:21 pm
Come on, Schultz. The “in the past 18 drafts” is a little disingenuous- the two preceding drafts we spent first-round picks on offensive linemen. I am aware that this does little to attenuate your point about the “now”, but 18 is not a random number, it’s just a number that helps obfuscate things.
“Statistics are like bikini’s. Sure they reveal a lot, but what they hide is vital.”
Ivan
April 20th, 2012
2:39 pm
All I read was the headline….
THANK YOU, JEFF!
Hamad Meander
April 20th, 2012
2:50 pm
Geez – so in the last 18 years, the Falcons have barely drafted enough linemen in the first three rounds to have a starting offensive line. Ok, TD, it’s time to invest appropriately and get some big guys that are talented. Linemen usually don’t bust and they typically have a long career in the league. PULL THE TRIGGER – GET SOME BIGGIES..
Jeff B
April 20th, 2012
3:12 pm
Perfect. The analysis in this article is just perfect. I couldn’t have put it better, Schultz. We need to see some hope for improvement on the o-line via this draft. There’s no other way to fix a team with scads of talented offensive skill-position players not managing to score any points in a game.
falcon_rooey
April 20th, 2012
3:29 pm
Ok. Maybe I don’t understand but it doesn’t seem to make sense yo go after ol picks with our first pick. Especially at LT. There is no one in this draft(or any draft) who is gonna make a significant. Impacton this team. If we had an early 1st round pick then great but anyone we choose at #55 at LT is gonna be a project. It will in no way be benificial to us this season.
Scott Brantley
April 20th, 2012
3:34 pm
85th!!!!!!
Hamad Meander
April 20th, 2012
3:43 pm
Falcon_rooey – you are correct that there is no way to get a starting LT at #55 in the draft. You can pick up a great center or a nice guard though. I guess we’ll need to look to 2013 for a new starting left tackle. I don’t believe in drafting projects at left tackle. Either they can play the position or they can’t. You aren’t going to teach them to play the position in the NFL.
Ivan
April 20th, 2012
3:46 pm
“Really? Wow…..What a visionary you are Mr Schultz.”
Sry Big, it seems like everytime I turn around, people were always complaining about lack of TE depth, RB, QB, OC or DC. Not the OL. I’m glad Jeff mentioned it even though it seems to be a Cpt. Obvious observation.
John
April 20th, 2012
4:17 pm
ARGH! The sports page title for this is “The Falcons should emphasis offense.” My OCD is flaring, please fix it before I wash my eyes out with bleach.
tyler
April 20th, 2012
6:48 pm
I dont think you have to be a first round pick to play LT in the NFL. Maybe I’m wrong but I wonder how many starting LT’s in the NFL were not drafted in the first round.
Bring back Spud & Cak'
April 20th, 2012
8:43 pm
I disagree w/ O-line being top priority. Defense is STILL full of gaping holes. Corners, DL & Lofton’s leaves a Huge Gaping hole right in the middle. O-Line comes after these absolute musts! We haven’t been able to stop anybody once the playoffs start. The elite teams offense r much superior than our Defense right now.
Bring back Spud & Cak'
April 20th, 2012
8:52 pm
GOod Points! The Julio Jones BLUNDER will haunt us for years! Talk about an absurd reach all the way up to 6 for an above avg. player. I can count Julio’s ‘great’ plays from last year on 1 hand, his drops & missed games on the other hand . . . a bit more visible & significant.
Oh well can’t undue the past. Falcons need to go Defense w/ their ‘early’ picks. After handing our draft to the Browns, any OL we draft is going to be backing up one of the veterans any way.
Matt "CHOKE" Ryan
April 21st, 2012
5:10 pm
Like I have been saying since 2008, you can’t reach the finish line driving a Ferrari with Vega Driver
This is the 5th season running the “Replace Vick” Campaign and it still remains Vick is the last qb to win in the playoffs for the Falcants
It goes further than the wasted 72 million, because CHOKE is such a FAILURE, there is no qb on the roster that can replace him once he is finished embarrassing the City. Therefore the team will have to start from scratch again.
I remember when you LOSERS used to say how easy it would be to win in the playoffs without Vick, but here we are some 9 seasons later and his name is still in the archive as the last qb to win a playoff game
Matt "CHOKE" Ryan
April 21st, 2012
5:12 pm
Its time to stop trying to cover the bleeding with a band aid. CHOKE is a LOSER.
Everybody in the world knows it except LOSERVILLE Atlanta
Sis-Boom-Bah Humbug
April 21st, 2012
8:12 pm
Regarding the Falcon’s demonstrated ongoing neglect in staffing/developing the offensive line, it may perhaps be unreasonable to say they have put the cart before the horse. Nonetheless, it just might help if they did not have the horse effectively facing the cart, especially in their fabled fourth-and-inches situations.
Fancy wheels simply cannot overcome/improve the available drive train – they can only exploit it.
Just have to hope that the new offensive line coach is a miracle worker. It would seem like that is what the Falcons management has been counting on anyway over the past several years. And to make that challenge even more interesting, they discarded a proven talent in Dahl.
marko
April 22nd, 2012
9:24 am
Dimitroff says that the Falcons have targeted three or four players for their first pick. Wonder which it is. Is it three, or is it four? Thomas makes the big bucks, you’d think He’d be able to remember a little thing like that. Regardless of that, I’m inclined to believe he’d prefer to draft an offensive lineman with his first pick. Not sure it’s in the cards though. He’s too smart to draft for need if the talent doesn’t warrant the selection. I’ll bet that at least one of those three or four picks is a defensive back. Thomas would probably prefer not taking a DB, but he will if he has to.
Some have suggested that Cals. Mitchell Schwartz might be a Falcons potential pick. I like Mitchell, but I think 55 is bit early to take him. I wonder if we might be able to move back a few spots , and pick up an additional pick. If we could trade our second round pick for a three and a four I’d do it unless was I overjoyed by what I’d been left at 55. I doubt that’s going to happen though. If Our GM has shown us anything , it’s that prefers charging to retreating.
Matt "CHOKE" Ryan
April 22nd, 2012
1:00 pm
If Dimitroff/Smitty/CHOKE are so good, why has it been 9 seasons since the last playoff win?
Why has that former qb had more blogs than CHOKE?
Jack J
April 23rd, 2012
12:16 am
I would like to see Mike Johnson (6-6 304); Kyle jolly (6-6 300) see if O.L. coach can fill the void at OL with these !
Draft best player available at # 55; could be another pro-bowler;
Time some good things happen in Falcons draft!
Vince Manuwai OL 6-2 333 how about him?
BigGadawg
April 23rd, 2012
3:45 pm
I would like to see them get Ben Jones, or at least someone with his type of attitude, talent, and work ethic. As a true freshman he handled Mount Cody by himself for most of the game. And has shown positive leadership for his four years at UGA. He will be an asset to any team that gets him but I would truly love to see him with the Falcons.
ls1z28chris
April 23rd, 2012
5:35 pm
Celebrating the same language Gregg Williams used in New Orleans. Thanks for letting us know your outrage on “bountygate” has been contrived.
The Bravenator
April 23rd, 2012
5:37 pm
Look down the prospective draft board to #55. Forget targeting one specific need because there is no visible playmaker/difference-maker at any position. Draft best available and pray that an option opens up via trade or FA for either line. The Julio deal of a year ago (not saying good/bad/whatever at this point) means that no (theoretically) “can’t miss” type can be drafted this year. New coaching may prove to be the team’s single most significant improvement if they can “coach up” successfully. Note to Smitty: Get Ryan some body armor.