It wasn’t a great year for the Falcons, but general manager Thomas Dimitroff is willing to look on the bright side on things. In a chat with Jeff Schultz and Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Dimitroff said that going 4-12 allowed the club to experiment with some different looks, something they wouldn’t have been able to do if they went, say, 13-3. Here’s more on the Falcons from radio row..
- There’s speculation that some teams are down on former South Carolina defensive end Jadeveon Clowney, but the Falcons aren’t one of them. “I’ll just say what everybody in the country knows: Jadeveon Clowney is a top notch talent and he’s going to make a team happy and he’s going to be a legitimate difference-maker in this game. The people with the top two picks know that,” the GM said.
- Could the Falcons, picking at No. 6, trade up to get Clowney? Dimitroff didn’t close the door on that possibility but it doesn’t sound all that likely as he talked up the talent in the top ten and said he wouldn’t be “disappointed” picking anywhere in that range. It is worth noting, however, that there are two former Atlanta execs running teams at No. 2 (Les Snead with the Rams) and No. 4 (Dave Caldwell with the Jaguars).
- The GM was candid about his desire to bolster up the club’s offensive and defensive lines. “We need to focus on getting more gritty and rugged in certain areas. That’s going to be more important for us. This is a warrior game and we have to come to the line of scrimmage with the proper mentality. … We realize we need to ramp up our ruggedness, not only on the field but off the field, in the locker room,” said Dimitroff.
Jags have the #3 pick.
But its not likely Clowney would get past #1 IMO.
I have a hard time believing the Texans go into next season with Schaub as their starter. I think they go QB with the #1 pick.