With defensive tackle Grady Jarrett down with an sprained ankle injury, veteran defensive lineman Jack Crawford will step into his role in the defense.
”It doesn’t change at all,” Crawford said on Wednesday. “I don’t think it affects me in any way. I’m still going to have the same approach. A lot of how you get ready for a game is personal. On the field, you have to come together as a unit.”
The Falcons (1-3) are set to face the Pittsburgh Steelers (1-2-1) at 1 p.m. Sunday at Heinz Field. The defense will be without four starters now with Jarrett out.
“We have pieces missing all of over the place, but we are going to come together and play to the standard that we know that we can play to,” Crawford said.
The Falcons have used Crawford at tackle and defensive end in their nickel defense. He was rushing from either position.
The Falcons signed defensive tackle Michael Bennett and released Justin Zimmer on Tuesday.
Jarrett went down with 3:19 left in the third quarter Sunday against the Bengals and did not return. He played only 37 of 73 defensive snaps (51 percent) in the game.
» More: 5 questions with Jack Crawford
Crawford, 30, was signed by the Falcons in March of 2017 as a free agent when the team was looking for help along the defensive line after not re-signing Jonathan Babineaux and Tyson Jackson.
Crawford, who’s 6-foot-5 and 288 pounds, started 11 games and played in all 16 for the Cowboys in 2016. He played 529 snaps (50 percent) and 102 special-teams snaps (23.1 percent).
Crawford played in four games last season before being lost for the season with a torn pectoral injury.
Crawford, who played at Penn State, was a fifth-round pick by the Raiders in 2012.
He’s played in 65 NFL games, with 13 starts.
Crawford has played 120 defensive snaps this season, sixth most in the defensive line group. Defensive end Vic Beasley has played the most snaps (218) followed by Jarrett (212).
Crawford, rookie Deadrin Senat (102 snaps) and Terrell McClain (146) will split most of the defensive tackle snaps.
“It’s not too much for him,” Quinn said of Senat. “We are going to keep him right where he’s at the nose tackle spot. He’ll definitely have more plays than he’s had before. But those three will get a big part of the rotation.”
Senat believes the defensive line can build off the third quarter it played against the Bengals when they generated three sacks. The rookie from South Florida had a nice tackle on a screen play, too.
“We did some really good things in the second half,” Senat said. “We just talked amongst each other about things that we can work on and improve on.”
Bennett, 25, who’s 6-2 and 287 pounds, was a sixth-round pick by Jacksonville in 2015. A former player at Ohio State, Bennett has played in 14 NFL games, but has no starts.
“All those guys are going to be helpful in nickel and we’re going to need every bit of it in terms of pass rush,” Quinn said. “(The Steelers) are equipped to throw it and they are doing it at a high level.”
Bennett couldn’t crack the roster in Jacksonville and was released.
“They had a lot of really good players at my position and that’s just how it goes,” Bennett said. “They had Malik (Jackson), Marcel (Dareus), Calais (Campbell) and Taven (Bryan), who could all play my position,” Bennett said. “That’s three Pro Bowlers and a first rounder. That’s big money.”
Bennett banked on playing well against the Falcons in the exhibition season. The Falcons and Jaguars have played each of the past few years in exhibition games.
“I’d worked out for some teams already, but I knew this would be a good fit,” Bennett said. “I know that I’ve done well against them in the past in the (exhibition) season.”
Bennett believes he can contribute immediately.
“I plan to play and they planned on playing me I think,” Bennett said.
Also, the Falcons are sent to get Derrick Shelby back from his groin injury. He’s played 31 snaps this season.
“Grady is a game changer for sure, but collectively we just have to do a little bit here and a little bit there to make up for the things that Grady would do if he was out there,” Shelby said.
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