Falcons cornerback Jalen Collins is serving as a primary backup this offseason.
The reason stems from him testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs earlier this year. The NFL suspended Collins four games to start the 2016 season.
Collins is expected to compete for the outside corner spot opposite starter Desmond Trufant. Along with Collins, several other players are auditioning for the same role.
These players include DeMarcus Van Dyke, Akeem King and C.J. Goodwin among others.
The position opened up after cornerback Robert Alford transitioned to the nickel spot.
For Falcons coach Dan Quinn, he welcomes the competition.
“When you lose a player, you’re disappointed and then you make your contingency plans,” Dan Quinn said. “We have that all the time. There’s been some really good competition at the corner spot. Not with just one or two guys, but (Marcus) Van Dyke has certainly shown up in a big way. C.J. has. Brian Poole is somebody who has jumped out to us in a way. Akeem King, just to name a few that we are trying to find out more about. We’re putting them in different spots. Can they play inside? Can they play outside? We are looking for some consistency and for somebody to rise up say ‘I can handle it all the time’ and not for flashes at a time.”
