Falcons seeking TE, comfortable at WR

This is the second of a seven-part series as Falcons beat writer D. Orlando Ledbetter breaks down each position. He will offer an analysis of what happened last season and how that will impact what the team does in the upcoming free agency period and the draft.

The Falcons search for Alge Crumpler’s replacement continues.

The Falcons released the pass-catching tight end, a four-time Pro Bowler, last Feb. 15. He was replaced with players known more as blockers than receivers.

In an effort to continue the growth of quarterback Matt Ryan and to expand the offense, the Falcons will address the position - in free agency or the NFL draft.

The Falcons threw 434 passes last season, but only 30 (6.9 percent) were intended for a tight end. Justin Peelle, Ben Hartsock and Jason Rader combined for just 19 catches.

The Falcons want a tight end to help when Ryan is blitzed, but one with enough speed to split the seam on deep routes against Cover-Two zone defenses.

“Any time that you look at the tight end position, it’s a high percentage shot on the field,” Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff said.

The Falcons knew that Hartsock, a free-agent signee last season, was more of a blocker. They added Peelle before the start of the season and he had 15 catches and two touchdowns.

“It’s very good to analyze the possibilities of both the Y tight end, which is the blocker tight end, and the L or move type of tight end,” Dimitroff said. “I think it’s very important to have a sound mix of those players … year in and year out, that will always be a consideration.”

If the Falcons elect to address the position via free agency, Philadelphia’s L.J. Smith and Tennessee’s Bo Scaife are the top tight ends who become unrestricted free agents on Feb. 27.

If the Falcons can’t land either, they will shift their focus to the draft, which will be held April 25-26. The draft is considered strong at the tight end position with Oklahoma State’s Brandon Pettigrew as the top prospect. The Falcons could even use their first-round pick, No. 24 overall, on Pettigrew should he be available.

Other top tight end prospects include Southern Mississippi’s Shawn Nelson, South Carolina’s Jared Cook (North Gwinnett High), Florida’s Cornelius Ingram, Rice’s James Casey and Missouri’s Chase Coffman.

“If you have the right mix of tight ends … it really adds a dimension where you’re not always forced to run on first and second down,” Dimitroff said. “You can be a little bit more creative with it.”

The Falcons are settled at wide receiver with the emergence of Roddy White into a Pro Bowler, the re-signing of Michael Jenkins and the electrifying capability of rookie Harry Douglas.

One of the top priorities of the new Falcons management was to develop a top-flight receiving corps out of the players on hand.

“That was one of the main positions on this team that we felt strongly about, continuing to grow and continuing to develop a very deep receiving group,” Dimitroff said.

White was the main target of the passing attack as Ryan threw 148-of-434 (34 percent) passes his way. He caught 88 passes for 1,382 yards, but dropped nine balls, including one in the end zone against Denver that could have led to a victory.

The Falcons will likely try to re-sign White before he enters the final year of his contract. He could command a contract similar to that of Arizona’s Larry Fitzgerald (four years, $40 million).

Brian Finneran returned from a two-year layoff after multiple knee surgeries. He was a top target on third down. He caught 24 passes (including the playoff game), 16 of which came on third down and 13 went for first downs.

“We are encouraged by that evolution on the receiver side,” Dimitroff said. “They will help Matt continue to grow in this offense.”