Quarterback Matt Ryan was not the only key rookie making his first start for the Falcons Friday.

Curtis Lofton, the second-round pick from Oklahoma, took over for Tony Taylor at middle linebacker and turned in a stellar effort in the 17-3 victory over Tennessee at the Georgia Dome.

In the all-important third exhibition game, Lofton showed that he’s a straight-ahead thumper who can fill his lane and stop the run.

“It went pretty good I thought,” Lofton said. “I had a few mental errors, but overall I thought I played pretty good. I’m starting to come into my own and I’m starting to feel more comfortable out there.”

It didn’t take Lofton long to get his name called.

On Tennessee’s first running play, Lofton sifted through traffic and tackled running back Chris Johnson after a 1-yard gain. He slide off a block like butter going on toast and dropped Tennessee’s fleet back.

“I had one gap, so I just shot my gap,” Lofton said.

The knock on Keith Brooking, who played middle linebacker for much of the last three seasons, was that he didn’t get off blocks and made plays four to six yards downfield.

Falcons safety Lawyer Milloy, who’s heading into his 13th season, doesn’t like sprinkling praise on rookies. He still doesn’t refer to Lofton by name.

“I told him, I said look man, I just need you to run and hit,” Milloy said. “Don’t do too much thinking. You’ve got people coming behind you that can correct some of your mistakes.

“Today he did a good job. “He’s not all the way there, but I like his aggressiveness from OTA’s all the way up until this point.”

Taylor started the first two preseason games.

However, it was time for the Falcons to see if Lofton had been absorbing the intricacies of the defense. He was drafted with an eye toward stabilizing the middle of their run defense.

“I’m starting to feel more comfortable in the system,” said Lofton, who finished with six tackles. “I’m starting to learn what everybody is doing so when I’m out there I know where every body is going and I can just go play my game.”

With Lofton and Taylor, the Falcons were comfortable enough to move Brooking back to his preferred position of weakside linebacker, where he was named to five pro bowls.

After getting that first tackle out of the way, Lofton appeared comfortable. He tackled Johnson again two plays later after a 2-yard gain.

In the middle, Lofton will sometimes have to cover receivers who may cross through his area if he has to drop into zone coverage. Lofton appeared fine dropping into coverage and made a tackle on former Falcon tight end Alge Crumpler after a 6-yard catch.

“He ran an out and I had to get out there and make the tackle,” Lofton said.

Lofton would come out on third down situations, so that the Falcons could put five defensive backs in the game.