Falcons special teams coach Keith Armstrong still takes rejection personally.
“It’s just the competitive nature in me,” Armstrong said. “Sometimes you get that competitive chip on your shoulder.”
As the years rolled on, Armstrong learned to be more relaxed. In his eighth season as coordinator, he has become an effective communicator. Now he tries to find a common ground — one that gets players excited about being on special teams.
“The older I get, the better I can handle it,” Armstrong said. “Now I have learned to take a deep breath and find a way to reach this kid.”
This offseason, Armstrong put his new skills to work. It all started with a video highlighting players such as wide receiver Justin Hardy and running backs Tevin Coleman and Terron Ward.
Armstrong started by showing how they performed in college. He showed a video package of Hardy making plays at East Carolina and how Coleman was running away from defenders at Indiana.
He then showed each guy making plays on kickoffs and punts last season. The reason was to give the newer players a perspective on the importance of special teams.
“They saw Coleman make a smart play against San Francisco where he goes out of bounds and can’t touch the ball and Hardy comes and does a flip back,” Armstrong said. “I think that showed them, ‘Oh’, I am that guy and I am going to do that.”
Special teams will be imperative for the Falcons in 2016. With new NFL rule changes, the ball is now placed at the 25-yard line for kickoffs through the end zone. So that makes it crucial to have great coverage during the game. For Armstrong, this means that the kicking strategy won’t change. However, how the strategy is implemented will change weekly.
“I think it depends on who you are going against and how well your unit is playing,” Armstrong said. “If you can take those two parameters and measure them; that will give you a decision for that week.”
As for his unit, Armstrong is not worried about how receptive the players will be to the changes.
“I understand the reasoning behind it, and I am confident in my on coaching ability,” Armstrong said. “So I’m not worried at all.”
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