Corey Peters came to Falcons highly recommended

By D. Orlando Ledbetter

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

FLOWERY BRANCH -- When longtime college defensive line coach Rick Petri speaks, NFL teams listen.

Petri has coached three first-round picks, including Warren Sapp. He's a 29-year coaching veteran with stops at Arkansas State, Mississippi, Louisiana Tech, Miami, South Carolina and Kentucky.

At Kentucky, he coached Corey Peters, the Falcons' third-round draft pick.

"I told them he was a very intelligent football player," Petri said. "He's a guy who's always been productive. There were some other guys who would get more publicity. He never tried to be the guy getting all of the limelight."

During the NFL draft, there was a run on defensive tackles. With 11 defensive tackles already selected, the Falcons had to make a move in the third round.

Peters, who was projected to go in the fourth round, was selected with the 83rd overall pick.

ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper termed the move a "slight reach" on his draft board. Kiper also said that Peters has a "ways to go" and that he was a "developmental" player.

With the Falcons' top pick from last year, defensive tackle Peria Jerry, still recovering from a knee injury, the teamed needed to add depth to the interior defensive line. If Jerry's recovery hits a snag, Peters may have to play immediately.

At Kentucky, he played as a freshman.

"He's always been pretty mature and confident about being able to come in and play," Petri said. "If he had any doubts or fears, I never noticed them."

Peters was a wrestler in high school. He has great body control and knows how to use his leverage and fight with his hands. Falcons defensive line coach Ray Hamilton liked what he saw of Peters during the pre-draft process.

"We saw a productive guy," Hamilton said. "We saw that he was a playmaker-type guy with some pass-rush ability up the middle."

Hamilton also was high on the competition that Peters played against. He witnessed Peters make destructive plays against linemen from Alabama, Tennessee and LSU.

"If he's not making any plays in college, then he probably won't make any in the NFL either," Hamilton said. "But he was making a lot of plays in college."

The Falcons worked out UCLA's Brian Price and Central Florida's Torell Troup, of Salem High, but both were drafted in the second round. The Falcons had traded their second-round pick to acquire Tony Gonzalez.

In the third round, Jacksonville took defensive tackle D'Anthony Smith with the 74th overall pick, and Houston selected Earl Mitchell in the 81st slot.

The Falcons, if they wanted a tackle, had to make their move. The slight reach.

Peters has heard about the uproar over his third-round selection.

"I wasn't surprised," Peters said. "It seems like everybody else was surprised about it."

Before the Falcons called, Peters had four or five other teams call to put him on standby.

"I wasn't expecting to go in the third, but I wasn't surprised, especially with the way the tackles came off the board," Peters said.

When asked to describe his playing style, Peters said he wasn't flashy, but he plays hard and is dependable.

"Corey has no problem with being the unselfish guy and doing the dirty work," Petri said. "He's a team-oriented guy."

In the Falcons' mandatory minicamp and the rookie minicamp, which concluded Friday, Peters performed well.

"I thought Corey did a nice job," Falcons coach Mike Smith said. "He's a very intelligent football player. We love his FBI [football intelligence]. He's got the skill-set to come in here and compete."

Hamilton expects to see some big things from Peters.

"He has a real-quick pass-rush move for a big guy," Hamilton said. "He can crush the pocket and sack the quarterback from the inside."

Petri, who also coached first-round picks Kenny Holmes (Tennessee, 1997, 18th overall) and Kenard Lang (Washington, 1997, 17th overall), sees some similarities between Peters and Sapp.

"They are very comparable as far as the mental end of it," Petri said. "Warren was a very intelligent football player. They are different styles of football players, though. Warren relies on his strengths, and Corey relies on his strengths."

Peters knows the real trek starts in training camp, which begins July 29.

"I feel like I have a good foundation, a good start," Peters said. "I definitely feel like I have a legit and honest opportunity here. If I don't make it, it's nobody's fault but my own."