DEL.ICIO.USWhite says he’s eager to build on big year
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Wednesday, September 03, 2008
Falcons wide receiver Roddy White established himself as the team’s top receiver last season.
White’s 1,202 yards on 83 catches represented the team’s first 1,000-yard season since 1999. It was also third in the NFC behind Arizona’s Larry Fitzgerald and Dallas’ Terrell Owens.
Curtis Compton/ccompton@ajc.com
Roddy White caught 83 passes for 1,202 yards last season, the Falcons’ first 1,000-yard season since 1999. He ranked third in the NFC behind Arizona’s Larry Fitzgerald and Dallas’ Terrell Owens.
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White salvaged his career with the mega-season and appeared to put the issue of dropped passes in his rearview mirror. Now, with rookie quarterback Matt Ryan at the helm, White is expecting to continue his ascent in the league.
“Last year we made a lot of plays, and I expect the same this year,” White said.
What was even more remarkable was that as the Falcons played musical chairs at quarterback and couldn’t establish a consistent running game, White continued to catch passes and make big plays.
With the Falcons settled on Ryan, White is hoping that will help him keep his game at a high level.
“We don’t have to go through the changes and all of that other stuff with three or four quarterbacks this year,” White said. “So I’ll know that he’ll be there full time. That’s even better for me.”
White believes that his skills fit nicely into offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey’s new system.
“There are a lot of opportunities to make plays in this offense,” White said. “In the last [preseason] game, we went with a lot of four- and five-wides.”
White knows that Mularkey’s attack is based on a strong running game and that there might not be as many opportunities for the receivers. But if the running game is successful, teams will have to address the run and leave the receivers in single coverage.
“We are running the ball real well,” White said. “I think we are like second or third in the league in preseason. We’ve been averaging like five yards a carry and over 135 yards a game. We’ve been doing a pretty good job of running the ball.”
Because of his success last season, White will likely get extra attention when the Falcons are in obvious passing situations. He doesn’t mind double coverage or safeties rolling over to help on his side of the field.
“You look forward to it,” White said.
With the emergence of White, the Falcons’ wide receiver corps, which was considered one of the team’s weakest links, now appears to be one of the stronger units.
Michael Jenkins continues his steady play. Second-year receiver Laurent Robinson has flashed some deep threat speed, and rookie Harry Douglas may be effective in the slot.
The unit received a boost from the return of Brian Finneran, who made the team after missing the last two seasons with knee surgeries.
“I think we’ve done pretty good,” White said. “Fin caught a lot of balls [in the exhibition season], so he’s got his confidence going. Jenkins went out there and caught a lot of balls, too. We’ve got a lot of our receivers in rhythm, which is good heading into the first game of the season. I expect big things out of us.”
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