Falcons cornerback Isaiah Oliver had an eventful offseason.
“I got engaged,” Oliver said Thursday. “That’s it. I’ll be getting married in July. I’m excited about that.”
Oliver is trying to land a role in the defensive scheme under new coordinator Dean Pees. He played outside at right cornerback before moving to nickel back last season.
“I feel like it’s going to be a lot of different spots,” Oliver said. “Trying out a lot of different spots right now. We haven’t really made that decision yet …especially in this system with coach Pees. There are a lot of different things that he likes to do.”
New Falcons secondary coach Jon Hoke noticed that Oliver started to play better last season after he moved to nickel back.
“Isaiah, I really thought when he moved inside you really saw the player that he definitely can be even more,” Hoke said. “With his instincts, he does have length and short-area quickness. He’s also instinctive, and he’s physical in there. I thought when I saw him start playing inside, you could see his confidence grow. I thought he did a nice job.”
The nickel-back role is important in the new scheme.
“He’s asked to do multiple things,” Hoke said. “He’s part-linebacker at times in the run game; he’s got have a skill set to cover.”
Oliver was drafted in the second round (58th overall) of the 2018 draft out of Colorado to replace right cornerback Robert Alford. He started 12 of 16 games last season and struggled outside until the move inside.
He recorded a career-high 70 tackles, four tackles for loss, a sack, two quarterback hits and six pass breakups and forced a fumble.
Oliver was switched to nickel in the middle of the season. He’s playing some nickel this offseason and believes that will help him learn more about the position.
“I think that will have a big benefit going into this season,” Oliver said.
Oliver is more focused on learning the defense.
“I don’t think anything has been solidified,” Oliver said. “I think just during this time in OTAs it’s really more about learning the system, understanding the system, the way coach Pees wants it to be ran, and then in training camp will be kind of the time to determine positions, depth chart and everything like that.”
Falcons coach Arthur Smith has been pleased with how things are coming together.
“I think the guys that have been here have been really engaged,” Smith said. “We’re obviously adapting to our situation, which is smart.”
Oliver, who some believe can move to safety, doesn’t have a preference for outside or at nickel.
“I like both,” Oliver said. “So, kind of whatever fits best within the team I’m all for it. Whether that be inside or outside. At the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter to me.”
The secondary will have a different mix because the new regime is replacing the entire safety position. The top four safeties – Keanu Neal, Ricardo Allen, Damontae Kazee and Sharrod Neasman – were not retained. Neal and Kazee signed with Dallas and Allen with the Bengals. Neasman is a free agent.
Veterans Duron Harmon and Eric Harris were signed in free agency, and the Falcons drafted Richie Grant in the second round out of Central Florida.
“All of the guys are really smart, so that makes it just 10 times easier,” Oliver said. “Both guys (Harmon and Harris) have played a lot of football, been in a lot different of situations. Played in a lot of games. So, they bring a very unique knowledge to the team.”
Learning the defense over virtual calls has been tough.
“It’s definitely harder over the (virtual) meetings and things like that,” Oliver said. “But the biggest thing is just learning the verbiage. … Going through these practices, we’ve got a pretty good grasp of it.”
The Falcons also drafted cornerback Darren Hall in the fourth round this year.
Oliver has played in 46 consecutive games, the longest active streak among cornerbacks in the NFL.
“Definitely, (I’m) stepping more into that veteran, leader role,” Oliver said. “I’ve been embracing that challenge. The young guys have been great. All of them are attentive, smart guys who are ready to work. When you have guys like that, it’s easy to lead guys like that.”
The Falcons gave up 293.6 yards passing per game last season, which ranked last in the league. Oliver believes that they can make a major improvement in that area.
“I definitely think we have the right group of guys to do it,” Oliver said. “The coaches to do it. Just everyone in the building. We are focused.”
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