FLOWERY BRANCH -- Ahead of his sixth season in the NFL, Falcons linebacker Deion Jones put on five pounds of weight.
It wasn’t something the new coaching staff asked of him, it wasn’t a protocol, but something that Jones decided to do.
As the leader of the linebacker corps, Jones is able to do what he wants, to a point. He’s still figuring out how the new defensive scheme will work under coordinator Dean Pees, but said that he’s excited to do what he can to put his team in position to win.
“I’m still learning, I’m still growing,” Jones said after Wednesday’s training-camp practice. “I’ve played a lot of coverages, a lot of styles of blitz. Putting that all together and learning this system is kind of like rookie year all over again.”
Jones sits back in coverage some, coming off a season in which he had two interceptions and six passes deflected. He watches quarterback Matt Ryan’s eyes in 7-on-7 and waits for the throw. The army of defensive backs come to him for advice on how to cover the crossing routes and where they should be looking.
Jones teaches them.
One of his students is Richie Grant, a rookie safety from Central Florida, who made several key plays in practice Wednesday. Grant has been flying around all camp, broke up a pass thrown to Kyle Pitts and later got beat in 7-on-7.
“You could tell he was feeling himself a little bit today in the one-on-one, and then he got burned on it later in practice,” coach Arthur Smith said of Grant. “It’s the highs and lows. This rookie class is a mature rookie class, and they’re working through practice so far. They have a long way to go, but glad they’re coming along.”
Jones reiterated that Grant has been having fun in his new role with the Falcons.
“He’s been enjoying himself,” Jones said. “Whenever he comes, you give him the little ear that he needs, the help that he needs. Vets before me have done it, so he’s in good hands.”
Another seedling that Jones has been working with is Foye Oluokun, who made the play of the day in Wednesday’s practice. Oluokun is a player who is expected to make another jump from last year to now.
“(Foye) has done a really nice job,” Smith said. “He had a very productive year last year. It’s early, but he’s taken over that role at middle linebacker.”
On other plays, Jones was rushing the quarterback or closing in on the ball carrier. Jones had a career-high 4.5 sacks in 2020 to go along with his 100 tackles.
Going after the quarterback was new for Jones, but he was very welcoming of the new role.
“He can play multiple roles for us,” Smith said of Jones. “He’s done a nice job of handling every position we’ve asked him to in the multiple defense.”
The Falcons’ defense was one of the liabilities of 2020′s team, allowing nearly 400 yards per game.
Jones said that regardless of the coaching changes, there’s a new mind-set for himself and the rest of the team.
“I think there’s a reset you have to do every year,” Jones said. “Even if we had the same coach, you still have to come in with a fresh idea. There’s no telling what changes could happen. Just being open every year for change.”
In Pees’ defense, Jones is still getting used to playing all over the field. In practice, he and the other linebackers did a little bit of everything, from defensive-back drills, to tackling drills to beating the block.
Being ready for anything is something that Jones is excited for.
“I think last year was just another taste of what I could do,” Jones said. “Definitely feel like I don’t have anything to prove, just improve. Just working on my game, the little stuff.”
