The NFL Draft is less than two weeks away, and while Dean Pees hopes to see the Falcons front office add a few players on the defensive side of the ball, he expects to see significant improvement from several second-year players this upcoming season.
Offensively, it was rookie tight end Kyle Pitts that made a seamless transition from Saturdays to Sundays while leading the Falcons in receiving en route to a pro bowl appearance. While the same lofty expectations didn’t necessarily follow the team’s defensive rookies ahead of the 2021 season, their performance still left plenty to be desired.
Second-round pick DB Richie Grant struggled at times and was on the field for just a fraction of Atlanta’s defensive snaps last season. Pees told The Morning Show on 92.9 The Game that Grant didn't get a fair shake in 2021 and looks forward to seeing what he can do at his natural position.
“It was unfair to Richie Grant last year. He’s a safety and we had to play him a bunch at nickel because Isaiah Oliver got hurt.”
According to Falcons.com, opponents completed 79.2 of passes when targeting Grant, so that number will have to drop in 2022 if he wants to secure a spot in the secondary moving forward.
CB Casey Hayward was brought in to serve in tandem with standout corner A.J. Terrell, and with the addition of several depth pieces. Pees told the guys that he feels good about the secondary at this point of the offseason. The Falcons also resigned Oliver and Erik Harris. Darren Hall—a 3rd round pick in 2021—didn’t see much of the field a season ago but will return in 2022.
Another area where the Falcons need to see instant improvement is up front. With a league-worst 18 sacks in 2021, could second-year players factor into the turnaround? Pees was asked about the development of guys like Ta'Quon Graham & Adetokunbo Ogundeji—two members of the 2021 draft class.
“That second year has got to be the year that these guys transition into this system. We put a lot on them last year. We didn’t put it all in. We're going to put the rest of it in this year, so I’m hoping that’s going to help. Also, the guys are not coming in blind and learning a whole new language. Playing D-line is playing D-line, but there’s a whole new language sometimes involved and a style of play that you want out of guys, and I think in that second year, you should make a lot of improvements in my opinion.”
While it’s likely that Atlanta will draft a pass rusher at some point, former first-round pick Rahsaan Evans and Lorenzo Carter were signed to one-year deals. Evans was with Pees in Tennessee and Carter, a former UGA Bulldog, is coming off the best stretch of his career with the Giants during which he racked up five sacks in his final four games.
If Pees can get the production he expects from some of his second-year defenders along with some new faces, the Falcons' defense stands to make substantial strides in 2022.
