Scar's Atlanta Falcons Offseason with harsh realities/hopes

[scar988]

Cut/Let Walk:
QB Michael Vick
TE Justin Peelle
TE Marcus Pollard
OT Wayne Gandy
OT Todd Weiner
DE Chauncey Davis (too expensive to re-sign and you will love who we sign as his replacement on the roster)
DT Grady Jackson (sucks)
DT Jason Jefferson
LB Michael Boley (UFA and will take money to be a 3 down LB somewhere else)
LB Coy Wire (UFA)
LB Keith Brooking (loved you but it's time for you to go, or take a huge paycut)
SS Lawyer Milloy (Old and doesn't deserve to be in the NFL anymore as anything but a coach)

Re-sign:
OL Tyson Clabo (RFA)
OL Harvey Dahl (RFA)
OL Ben Wilkerson (RFA)
CB Domonique Foxworth (UFA)

Sign:
before the FA period begins we will have likely aorund 45-50M in cap space. it's a ridiculous amount and we can offer whoever whatever, as well as bring in some big name guys to help shore up our defense after losing guys like Brooking and Milloy. going into FA we have a few big holes like DL starters at NT and LE as well as some LB starting needs, and a S need. I think we have not 1 big signings but 2. I think one will be on defense, and one on offense. With a moderate signing for the secondary help like Von Hutchins or Erik Coleman were and a couple other moderate signings.

http://proathletesonly.com/news/wp-content/uploads/vernon-carey.jpg
OT Vernon Carey
a guy who can start at either LT or RT but will be our RT with backup at LT. is the guy who will allow us to move Clabo to RG and allow our line to look like this:
Baker - 6'5" 315
Blalock - 6'4" 330
McClure - 6'0" 305
Clabo - 6'6" 330
Carey - 6'5" 350
talk about bluk for run blocking as well as the ability to pass protect with 3 former LT's (Carey, Clabo and Baker) as well as a former RT (Blalock) on the OL

http://static.flickr.com/25/90285946_57141c20c6_o.jpg
NT Rocky Bernard
a guy who can collapse the pocket on pass downs as well as plug on run downs. I think this is the best possible signing for us at the NT spot.

http://juliuspeppers.com/wp-content/gallery/julius-peppers-pictures/AAHI235_8x10~Julius-Peppers-Posters.jpg
DE Julius Peppers
with Haynesworth wanting to go to CAR, as well as Gross not being able to be franchised again, I can't see Peppers staying there. I also see him wanting to stay close to his home. ATL is the best possible destination for him and with Peppers and Abraham we will have an amazing DE corps. Have Anderson at RE on rushing downs and Abraham on pass rush situations and it is a much better all around D.

http://www.evanekman.com/images/pros/burnett.jpg
LB Kevin Burnett
will give us depth and a guy to fight with Nicholas for the starting SLB job. Burnett played the SILB and WILB roles in the 3-4 in Dallas but is better suited for a 4-3.

http://www.nypost.com/seven/11182007/photos/giants.jpg
SS James Butler
While not the best all around safety, is solid everywhere. is from GA and went to GT. would be a great addition in terms of actual NFL talent at the position.

Draft:
I felt that going into the draft, I addressed all of the big needs outside of WLB starter, unless you think Nicholas is ready for that. So we go into the draft with minimal needs.

1st round pick 25
James Laurinaitis - Linebacker - Ohio State - 6'3" 240
the perfect WLB prospect if I've ever seen one. is smart, quick, a good blitzer and great in coverage. will be a great fit for our cover 2 and will look like Ernie Sims or Derrick Brooks in the cover 2. for some reason this pick just makes sense to me.
http://www.buckeyecommentary.com/files/page0_blog_entry986_summary_1.jpg

2nd round pick 24
Ron Brace - Nose Tackle - Boston College - 6'3" 324
I know, I know. We signed a NT, and we have Lewis. Blah Blah Blah. Lewis is an injury concern. no question about that. We need not 1 but 2 space eaters to rotate out at NT. we signed one in Bernard. Brace is the other one. I think Bernard and Brace will give us a great DT rotation with Babs and Moorehead, as well as give us the possibility of some 3-4 looks.
http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/archive/x2090471214/g1130e5a38be1b60d5edd132a80c7b7b91175c654b59344.jp g

3rd round pick 27
Bear Pascoe - Tight End - Fresno State - 6'5" 260
One of the best blocking TE's in all of college football. But this guy can also catch. In a primarily rushing offense, he is one of the few bright spots passing and has had 4 TD's in each of the last 2 years as well as 400 yards receiving. I feel like he could duplicate that on the pro level and give us that TE that Ryan will need to help us open up the inside of the field passing.
http://images.athlonsports.com/d/9579-1/BearPascoe_001.jpg

4th round pick 26
Zack Follett - Linebacker - California - 6'1" 238
I know, Another LB. but this one is a good one for us to have depth at both WLB and SLB with. is a great blitzer and could come in on 3rd downs at DE with Abraham and have a pass rush of Anderson, Peppers, Abe and Follett.
http://www.nationalchamps.net/2007/earlybird/photos/california_zack_follett.jpg

5th round pick 7
Chip Vaughn - Strong Safety - Wake Forest - 6'2" 215
The epitome of a true strong safety. Lays the wood, and also is a leader. Has great range and reminds me of a poor-man's Rodney Harrison at SS.
http://cache.daylife.com/imageserve/0gxq561fXX6hQ/340x.jpg

5th round pick 25
Fenuki Tupou - Offensive Tackle - Oregon - 6'6" 322
Is Oregon's Left Tackle. as the pass protection skills of an NFL RT. will be a good mauler in relief off the bench as well as a guy who could eventually be molded into an NFL starter.
http://cache.daylife.com/imageserve/05kVcsvfYsfr8/340x.jpg

7th round pick 27
Maurice Miller - Offensive Guard - Ole Miss - 6'4" 343
A mauler pure and simple. As big as a guy like Pat Williams, so just line him up across from him and give him someone to try and breakthrough, has RT experience so shoudl also be a solid pulling guard.
http://www.tsxdata.com/NFL/mugs/33355.jpg

*lose 6th rounder due to Foxworth

Depth Chart: (going into TC)
QB - Matt Ryan/Chris Redman/D.J. Shockley
RB - Michael Turner/Jerious Norwood/Thomas Brown/Jason Snelling
FB - Ovie Mughelli/Jason Snelling
WR - Roddy White/Harry Douglas/Eric Weems/Chandler Williams
WR - Michael Jenkins/Laurent Robinson/Brian Finneran
TE - Bear Pascoe/Ben Hartsock/Jason Rader/Keith Zinger
LT - Sam Baker/Vernon Carey/Quinn Ojinnaka/Renardo Foster
LG - Justin Blalock/Maurice Miller/Nate Bennett
C - Todd McClure/Ben Wilkerson/Alex Stepanovich
RG - Tyson Clabo/Harvey Dahl/Pat McCoy
RT - Vernon Carey/Tyson Clabo/Fenuki Tupou/Michael Butterworth

LE - Julius Peppers/Kroy Biermann/Willie Evans
UT - Jonathan Babineaux/Kindal Moorehead/Tywain Myles
NT - Rocky Bernard/Ron Brace/Trey Lewis
RE - John Abraham/Jamaal Anderson/Simon Fraser
WLB - James Laurinaitis/Stephen Nicholas/Robert James
MLB - Curtis Lofton/Tony Gilbert
SLB - Kevin Burnett/Zack Follett
LCB - Domonique Foxworth/Von Hutchins/Brent Grimes/Dairus Vinnett
RCB - Chris Houston/Chevis Jackson/David Irons/Glenn Sharpe
FS - Erik Coleman/Thomas Decoud/Eric Brock
SS - James Butler/Chip Vaughn/Jamaal Fudge/Antoine Harris

K - Jason Elam/Michael Koenen
P - Michael Koenen/Jason Elam
KOS - Michael Koenen/Jason Elam
KR - Jerious Norwood/Thomas Brown
PR - Harry Douglas/Thomas Brown
LS - Mike Schneck

Starter
Signing
Draft Pick

[thefalconer]

peppers in atl? that just doesn't seem right.

[SimonRath]

i love the idea of signing foxworth.
i HIGHLY doubt we're gonna sign Peppers, he's gonna want a lot of money that i think we could spend more wisely someone where else.

Laurinatis and Follett are NICE picks. love it!

[scar988]

um, what is more wise than giving our lacking pass rush 2 guys who are known for being able to get penetration in Peppers (10+ sacks almost every year) and Bernard.

[etk]

Coy Wire looked good as a starter to me, plus he's outstanding on ST. Why cut him/let him walk?

[scar988]

um, cause he will get more money from someone who wants to use him as a starter.

[Don Vito]

That would be one hell of an offseason for the Falcons. Veron Carey would be a huge addition to any team with his ability to play on the left and right side, and he is really becoming a star. The Peppers addition would speak for itself.

That draft would be ideal as well. Love the Maurice Miller selection! He could really be a solid guard for a team, he won SEC OL of the week a few times this year and showed a lot of improvement and athleticism for such a monster. Could be a great suprise for someone.

Atlanta would be very scary if the pieces fell into place like this, even if you didn't get Peppers.

[SimonRath]

um, what is more wise than giving our lacking pass rush 2 guys who are known for being able to get penetration in Peppers (10+ sacks almost every year) and Bernard.

I didnt mean it as signing peppers would be dumb. I ment that we could prob sign more good people instead of signing just one very good person. if that makes any sense?

[Chucky]

I doubt the Falcons would give up and Anderson so quickly. Also I highly doubt Carolina lets Peppers walk.

[SimonRath]

I doubt the Falcons would give up and Anderson so quickly. Also I highly doubt Carolina lets Peppers walk.

i agree. just cause anderson doesn't get 10+ sacks doesn't mean hes not good

[ATLDirtyBirds]

i agree. just cause anderson doesn't get 10+ sacks doesn't mean hes not good

Haha. You talk about this like he gets 6-8 sacks. He had 2 in the past 2 seasons. While he is pretty good against the run, there are more then a few occasions on which he blows containment. He is god awful. He's probably the worst starting defensive player in all of football.

[SimonRath]

Haha. You talk about this like he gets 6-8 sacks. He had 2 in the past 2 seasons. While he is pretty good against the run, there are more then a few occasions on which he blows containment. He is god awful. He's probably the worst starting defensive player in all of football.

thats harsh dude..
he's still a young player. not EVERY player becomes a beast early in their career. Hes good against the run and in college he was a beast rushing the passer. all he needs to do is find that skill again. he's not just some lost cause.

[Preo32]

Anderson is not great, but I do hope he can at least be a part of this defense. Like i said before, a terrible pick in the draft based on other defensive players picked after him, but I think he will improve. Yet Id still love to see another DE added to this team to give us 2 end threats. And if we do get another player, Then we can almost expect Abraham's numbers to go down (plus its harder to do better than how he did) but it wont necessarily be down b/c he played worse. Thats what could be so great about adding another end

[scar988]

it's not a slight against Anderson, in fact, signing Peppers will help Anderson by moving him to RE and having him learn from Abraham 1 on 1 about how to rush the passer, that way when Abe is done, Anderson can take over. Also, Peppers would be monstrous here. and Simon Rath, we had 1 big signing this year in Turner. I see another huge one like that every offseason.

[d34ng3l021]

I am pretty sure the Falcons are very close to the idea of giving up on Anderson. He has not shown much at all and he is commanding a big salary.

I HIGHLY doubt we get Peppers. He is going to ask for so much money, and I don't think it'll be worth it. I like the Rocky Bernard signing because you can never have too many DTs.

I do not like Lauranaitis either.

[SimonRath]

it's not a slight against Anderson, in fact, signing Peppers will help Anderson by moving him to RE and having him learn from Abraham 1 on 1 about how to rush the passer, that way when Abe is done, Anderson can take over. Also, Peppers would be monstrous here. and Simon Rath, we had 1 big signing this year in Turner. I see another huge one like that every offseason.

Who else is a free agent that we could consider?

[Number 10]

Dimitroff won't build this team through free agency. Peppers isn't going to Atlanta.

[Draft King]

Looks sexy, but it seems unrealistic.

[D-Rod]

I agree, it seems unlikely that Dimitroff would spend lavishly in free agency.

However, in his end of season PC, he did state that Atlanta could be active at all three levels of free agency, so you never know.

Personally, I think that Peppers and Haynesworth are both extremely risky signings. Yes, they are both crazy talented, but there is serious risk of post-payday drop-off.

[D-Rod]

By the way, you'd be lucky to get those free agents for less than $25-30 million per year. We've got decent cap room, but probably not quite that much...

I do like the draft though. But Fenuki is unlikely to last to the 5th.

For the free agents, I really like Burnett, he's the guy I have been lining up for WLB.

[ATLDirtyBirds]

Dimitroff won't build this team through free agency. Peppers isn't going to Atlanta.


I agree we aren't getting Peppers, but I'd be pretty surprised if we don't take in a big pull. We have a good amount of cap room now, and we are about to release Vick and Brooking. That's going to free up a ton of cash.

[scar988]

and Libid, thanks for posting a thing on my rep and not actually making a comment. but it actually is realistic in terms of cap room.

[scar988]

http://www.rotoworld.com/content/playerpages/player_main.aspx?sport=NFL&hl=138089&id=2361
Peppers saying he doesn't want to be in carolina...

[Preo32]

oh god, Julius has always been a player Ive liked, and he had a great year this year after a bad one, so I say if we make ONE big FA move, and Peppers WANTS to come to us as one of his top choices, I almost think we should gie him whatever the hell he wants.

[D-Rod]

wow, that's big news.

i'm still not sure he fits with us, though. painful as it is (at the moment), we do have anderson on the team, and he is paid #8 pick money - and he isn't going to be cut. Abraham is not cheap either. If we add Peppers, we'd probably have over $20mill p.a. invested at DE.

That said, Peppers as a permanent LE and Anderson and Abraham rotating at RDE according to run/pass would be SICK against both the run and pass. If we then also got Raji at DT, we'd have a monster D-line...

[Curufin]

Why does Dahl need to be replaced so urgently? If anything, I get the impression that he is better than Clabo.

[ATLDirtyBirds]

Why does Dahl need to be replaced so urgently? If anything, I get the impression that he is better than Clabo.


I don't agree with needing to great rid of him. The poor playoff game he had leaves a bad taste though. However, Clabo is better. He's one of the better RT in the league from what I've seen.

[scar988]

Why does Dahl need to be replaced so urgently? If anything, I get the impression that he is better than Clabo.

that's because Clabo is playing like an above average RT even though he is out of position.

[D-Rod]

I think that both Dahl and Clabo should be left as they are. They played well. The Arizona game, they struggled; but if you consider the fact that it was their first ever playoff game, they were in an astonishingly noisy environment, and the Cardinals have said that they had a clue on the snap count, it's hardly surprising that they had problems.

Also, as I've said elsewhere, it would be TERRIBLE for team chemistry to bring in a guaranteed starter over them. They were a big part of last year's story, the undrafted guys, the nasty guys; a microcosm of last year's spirit. To simply replace one of them would really play badly, I think...

Give them competition, fine, draft a third rounder or whatever. But to sign a high-priced free agent, that's a guaranteed replacement. And that would not go down well. Moreover, it is a waste of resources. We have bigger needs. If Dahl or Clabo has a down year next year, THEN we can replace them.