Falcons earn poor draft grades

But all of that is just the nature of their gigs. If the Falcons don’t generate a pass rush in the fall, Quinn and Dimitroff are going to hear about it from their fans. They’ll also hear about it from their owner, who declared before the draft that he expected the Falcons to select three players who will start as rookies.

The Falcons are going to be hard-pressed to meet that goal, if the draft experts are to be believed. They are generally underwhelmed by the team's haul. Here are their grades, along with excerpts of their analysis:

D. Orlando Ledbetter, Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Grade: C-

"I’m not really sure that the Falcons picked up the three starters that owner Arthur Blank coveted, but I do think they landed a future star and starter at tight end and two intriguing developmental prospects in linebacker De’Vondre Campbell and guard Wes Schweitzer. . . . Because I think the Falcons didn’t pick the best player available and could have picked an even batter safety-speedy linebacker combo in the first and second round, I would not be able to sleep well by giving them anything higher than a C-minus for this draft."

Grade: D+

"With so much talent on the board in the middle of the first round, drafting a safety that earned just the No. 93 grade in the nation is a curious move. Neal is a big hitter who will likely try to fill the "Kam Chancellor role" in Atlanta's defense as a safety who spends a lot of his time in the box, but players with his skill set are littered throughout the draft. . . .The Falcons wanted to add speed to their defense, and they certainly need it, but Jones gets blocked far too often in the running game, and he missed one of every 6.5 tackle attempts — the 105th-worst rate in the nation."

Grade: B-

"Dan Quinn needs more speed at linebacker if he wants to build a defense that can resemble the unit he and Pete Carroll had in Seattle, and he got faster and more versatile there. Keanu Neal is more of a second-round talent on my board, but I know he was coveted by a couple of teams in this range, and Quinn has a Kam Chancellor or Deone Bucannon-type safety who doubles as a linebacker. . . .The question mark is on the defensive line, where Atlanta didn't gain anything, but the Falcons could be seeing an extreme makeover at linebacker, and might have done it through a single draft."

Grade: D

"The Falcons’s personnel braintrust of Scott Pioli and Thomas Dimitroff has had iffy results in the last few drafts, with Dimitroff as the more tenured veteran in the organization. On its face, this draft looks like another head-scratcher. . . .In the larger view, it appears Atlanta spent draft capital on players it could have traded down to get and didn’t address its defensive line need early in a draft that has as much D-line talent as any in recent NFL history. That’s hard to swallow."

Grade: C

"You can see the influence of Dan Quinn in his second draft as the head coach, especially with the first two picks: big-hitting S Keanu Neal from Florida and LSU’s Deion Jones, a speedy, undersized LB who can be used in a variety of ways. Though the Falcons drafted a Stanford TE Austin Hooper in the third round, they did little else to upgrade the offense."

Grade: C+

"The pick of Neal makes sense because he fills the Kam Chancellor role for the Falcons. He's an aggressive player, and sometimes that will get him trouble. He fills the spot left by William Moore. He can play near the line of scrimmage, but will need some work in coverage. Second round pick Deion Jones adds a level of speed the team has been searching for. Hooper can be the tight end the Falcons have really need since the retirement of Tony Gonzalez."

Grade: C-

"After landing hard-hitter Neal to fill the Kam Chancellor role in Dan Quinn's defense, the Falcons went hunting for linebacker athleticism with the Jones and Campbell picks. Although rookie tight ends typically struggle to make early NFL impacts, I think Hooper could be an exception and settle in as Atlanta's long-term starter. . . .The Falcons still have weaknesses at right guard, wideout, slot corner, and in the pass-rush department."

Grade: B

"They needed to get faster on defense, and they did. I didn't love the Neal pick, but I get it. Getting Jones and Campbell will really help the defense. The only knock is no speed for the offense."

Grade: A-

"Keanu Neal is scheduled to be a strong safety for the Falcons, flying all over the field and aiding in coverage. That's exactly what they needed. The team found great values in the speedy Jones and athletic tight end Hooper, meeting two big needs. "

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