New coach Kevin Stefanski talks Falcons’ roster
Kevin Stefanski isn’t stepping into a rebuilding situation.
The Falcons’ new coach is inheriting a talented roster. It isn’t among the NFL’s best, nor has it experienced the playoffs, but it has core building blocks. It has some tantalizing young talent and premier play makers. And it feels like a unit ripe for a breakout.
That’s ultimately what made this situation more appealing to Stefanski than other openings. “I can’t tell you how excited I am to coach this roster,” he said Tuesday.
Here’s more of what Stefanski said about some of his key young players:
On running back Bijan Robinson:
“He’s good (laughs). I love Bijan. I spent some time with him. When I first got hired, I think I sent him a very late text message, sorry Bijan. But I couldn’t wait to talk with him. Spent some time with him in Flowery Branch in the locker room, just catching up. He’s a special person. I’d start there. This is a special person that everybody told me about, but then I got to see for myself what kind of person he is. He’s team-oriented. He’s an intelligent player. There’s no shortage of what he can do with a football in his hands. And that’s our job as coaches, to find ways to get that ball in his hands.”
On quarterback Michael Penix Jr.:
“Michael is someone I’m very excited about. His rehab is what’s most important right now. I saw him in the training room this week. As you can imagine, he’s attacking his rehab. … I’m excited about the physical gifts. What’s most important for Michael right now is to get healthy, he knows that. We’ll get to football here shortly. … You see a player on tape who can get through progressions, layer the ball, can push the ball to all areas of the field. He was obviously very productive in college. Had some really, really, really good moments here in the pros. I just see a young player who will continue to develop and continue to get better.”
On young edge rushers Jalon Walker and James Pearce Jr.:
“Very, very talented young men. Excited to coach both of them. Obviously, I’ve talked with (defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich) about those guys in particular and how we can deploy them. What you’ve seen him do, what you’ve seen around the league with what teams are doing with these elite edge rushers, is creating matchups. I was around a pretty good edge rusher recently in Myles Garrett, who’s going to be a Hall of Famer. He’s a nightmare for teams to game plan against. Every team goes into it saying we can’t let this guy wreck the game. For us having some young players like James and Jalon that we can develop and get the best version of them, it allows you to have multiple guys that the (other) team is trying to scheme against.”
About the Author
Gabriel Burns is a general assignment reporter and features writer for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. After four years on the Braves beat, he's expanded his horizons and covers all sports. You'll find him writing about MLB, NFL, NBA, college football and other Atlanta-centric happenings.
