The Falcons may have discovered a tight end stopper.
Veteran safety Charles Godfrey, who’s also played some nickel back over his career, is part of the reason why the Falcons have played better against tight ends as the season has progressed.
He’ll face another challenge when the Falcons (8-7) host the New Orleans Saints (6-9) at 1 p.m. Sunday at the Georgia Dome.
In the previous meeting this season, Saints tight end Ben Watson roamed freely around the Superdome and snagged 10 passes for a then career-high 127 yards receiving and a touchdown. The Saints prevailed 31-21 on Oct. 15.
Godfrey, who re-signed as safety insurance over the offseason, was inactive for that game. But after William Moore was placed on injured reserve, Godfrey, who played seven seasons with Carolina, has received more action.
He helped hold Carolina tight end Greg Olsen to four catches for 40 yards Sunday in the Falcons’ stunning 20-13 upset over the previously undefeated Panthers.
“I thought he did a great job,” defensive coordinator Richard Smith said. “That’s a challenge. That’s a great tight end. He’s really a great target for Cam (Newton) there.”
The Falcons play a combination of zone and man-to-man coverages. Also, coach Dan Quinn said pummeling the tight end in the contact area is key to throwing off the timing of routes.
Godfrey was in coverage against Olsen on fourth-and-5 play that was incomplete with 1:53 to play.
“He played perfect technique,” Smith said. “He played inside leverage and was able to make a big play right there at the end of the fourth quarter.”
Two weeks after facing the Falcons, Watson gained 147 yards receiving against the Giants.
“The last time, the tight end situation, we weren’t matched up properly on him at times,” Smith said. “He had over 100 yards and 10 receptions. He was a very important part of their offense, and we’ve got to do a much better job of not only taking him away, but they’ve got several wide receivers who are doing a great job.”
Godfrey, 30, is one of those lunch-pail guys, who comes to work, doesn’t say much and just does his job. That’s part of the reason why the Falcons re-signed him after last season.
“We knew going in that he was one of their main targets, and that was something that we’ve had to take care of,” Godfrey said of Olsen.” I think we did a good job of it.”
Against the Saints on Oct. 15, there were several blown coverages by the Falcons, who were in only their sixth game of a new defense. The secondary wasn’t correctly responding as Watson ran through zones.
“We’ve grown over time,” Godfrey said. “We’re still not where we want to be.”
Godfrey, despite being inactive for four games and playing in seven, said it hasn’t been hard adjusting to his role.
“I was a part of it even when I wasn’t out there,” Godfrey said. “I just prepared like I was going to play each week. I happened to end up playing that week (against Carolina).”
Godfrey played 35 of 52 defensive snaps (67 percent) against the Panthers. His fine work did not go unnoticed by his teammates.
“Charles Godfrey did a really good job when he had (Olsen) man-to-man,” linebacker O’Brien Schofield said. “The rushers, we put pressure on Cam. He wasn’t able to really sit in the pocket and throw. I think the way we played from a back end and front seven, we did a pretty good job as far as eliminating his No. 1 target.”
Watson is not the No. 1 target in New Orleans. Wide receiver Brandin Cooks has 79 receptions for 1,116 yards and nine touchdowns. But the Falcons know that Watson can do damage if left unattended.
“The Saints started this whole thing for us,” said Schofield, referencing said of the Falcons’ first loss of the season. “They beat us, and that definitely left a bad taste in our mouth.”
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