Falcons linebacker Brian Banks, a long shot to make the team after not having played organized football for nearly 11 years, is set to receive a lot of action in the final two exhibition games.
The Falcons (0-2) face the Titans (0-2) at 8 p.m. Saturday at LP Field in Nashville, Tenn.
After the starters play into the third quarter against Tennessee on Saturday, Banks and the rest of backups trying to make the team will see some action.
Falcons coach Mike Smith normally doesn’t play his starters in the final exhibition game, so there will be more playing time for Banks against Jacksonville on Aug. 29.
“In these last two preseason games he will play a whole lot,” Smith said. “I think that will be a determining factor in terms of where he fits in our plans, in terms of a roster spot or practice squad.”
Banks, 28, who was exonerated of rape charges in California in May 2012, once was a blue-chip college prospect. He committed to play at USC before going to jail for more than five years. His “feel good” story has been covered nationally, but now the Falcons must determine if he can play football.
“We told Brian that he was going to get an opportunity to come in here and compete, knowing that he was at a disadvantage because he hasn’t play the game of football in such a long time,” Smith said.
Banks played sparingly in the first two games.
“I’ve been really impressed with him in terms of where he started and where he is right now in terms of his knowledge of playing the game, especially at the NFL level,” Smith said.
Banks acknowledges that he’s had to shake off a lot of rust.
“There is definitely that hesitation at times,” Banks said. “Where do I need to be? What am I supposed to do? Am I doing the right thing? (That’s) partly because it’s all new for me and partly because you want to make sure you are doing the right thing. You want to impress the team.”
Banks and several other players need to make a push to earn consideration from the team.
“We’ve got a lot of guys competing for a small number of roster spots,” Smith said. “It’s going to be important for them to show well in their opportunities. We put a lot more weight on how they perform in games than we do in practice.”
Film session: The Falcons are "game-planning" for Tennessee based on the video review of two exhibition games.
The Titans have lost to Washington (22-21) and Cincinnati (27-19). Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan shared some of his initial conclusions after his film review of the Titans.
“Both safeties are strong,” Ryan said. “(Michael) Griffin and (Bernard) Pollard are guys, they are different. Griffin is a high safety kind of guy, who has great range, covers the field really well. Pollard is a box safety who can come down. He’s extremely physical, and that jumps out off of the tape when you watch them.”
Jerry Gray is the Titans’ defensive coordinator. The team hired Gregg Williams as a senior assistant/defense after he served his suspension for his role in New Orleans’ notorious Bounty Gate scandal.
“When you watch them from a schematic standpoint, they do things completely different from what we see every day in camp,” Ryan said. “So that will be a good change for us to go against a different scheme as we start to get ready for the regular season.”
Ryan, a noted film-room rat, is using the week to slide into his regular-season routine.
“This is the first time that we watch film on the team before we go in and play them,” Ryan said. “I think that will help.”
Etc: Defensive end Osi Umenyiora officially switched from No. 90 to No. 50 and was sporting his new jersey number at practice. Linebacker Pat Schiller, who received a dinner from Umenyiora for giving up the number, wore No. 90. … The Falcons played jet-engine noise and muffled rap music from Jay Z's "Magna Carta Holy Grail" album while the offense was working. The Falcons are working to prepare for the crowd noise they'll face in the New Orleans for the season opener Sept. 8.
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