Written by Garin Turner
Atlanta, GA – The NFL Preseason is officially upon us and the Atlanta Falcons are looking to improve on a 10-6 season that ended just six points shy of going to the NFC Championship game for back-to-back seasons. The Falcons first preseason game is August 10th against the New York Jets.
The players reported to camp on July 26 and the first Falcons practice was July 27th. One of the early stories heading into camp was if star wide receiver Julio Jones would report, as he was looking for a new contract. He reported to camp a couple of days later and is currently participating and preparing for the upcoming season. “All along, me and (head coach) Dan Quinn we always stayed connected and I was going to be here,” Jones said. Last year Jones had 88 receptions for 1,444 yards and three touchdowns.
In addition to Jones, left tackle Jake Matthews received a five-year extension. “I had a pretty good idea what was going to happen this morning. I’m excited to go and play ball,” Matthews said of his new contract.
Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan also got a new contract back on May 3rd when he signed a five-year, $150 million contract with $100 million guaranteed. He was the Most Valuable Player in 2016 and followed that up last season with 4,095 passing yards and 20 touchdowns. “It was good. We got a long way to go, a lot of work to do prior to the regular season getting here, but it’s been a good start,” Ryan said about red zone work in practice.
Jones should have some pressure taken off of him from former Alabama wide wide receiver Calvin Ridley, as he gets used to the offense. “It’s not going to be hard. He’s a talented player,” Ryan said of the rookie. Ridley finished his career at Alabama with 224 receptions for 2,781 yards and 19 touchdowns. He was picked in the first round (26th overall). Ridley is also in the mix for punt returns this year. He’s currently in competition with fellow wide receivers Reggie Davis and Marvin Hall for the third receiver position.
For the last two days, the team practiced in rainy weather out on the field. The Falcons are in their second practice in a four-day block. Head Coach Dan Quinn plans to split the team into two for a special scrimmage. “It was an awesome opportunity for us the last two days to be out in the weather. I don’t think you can under-appreciate how much I was glad that we had the weather to deal with today,” Quinn said.
The tight ends are having a good camp so far as several have made notable plays. Troy Mangen, Logan Paulsen, and Eric Saubert all made catches against tight coverage. Wide receiver Mohamed Sanu caught a no-look touchdown pass from Ryan during a practice. He also scored again in what might be a preview of things to come. The Falcons ran an interesting four-receiver set during one practice with Jones and tight end Austin Hooper on the outside, and Ridley and Sanu on the inside.
The Falcons defense have had their moments during the first week of practice as well. On Monday, the defense had three interceptions. Defensive backs Richardo Allen, Blidi Wreh-Wilson and Damontae Kazee all had interceptions and also helped hold the Falcons offense to only 14 points on the day.
