Falcons elect to fortify secondary with Alford

“Once I got the call from the Atlanta Falcons, I was very excited,” Alford said. “I know the Atlanta Falcons are a team that I’ve been following since I was a little boy. I always looked up to Deion, and that was the first team that Deion ever played for, so it felt real good for Deion to announce my name. It was like two things came together at once and I’m very excited about it.”

The Falcons also selected Washington cornerback Desmond Trufant in the first round (22nd overall) of the draft.

Alford, 5-foot-10, 185 pounds, and Trufant could be the Falcons’ starting cornerbacks of the future. Both are physical and fast. Alford ran the 40-yard dash in 4.39 seconds at the NFL scouting combine. Trufant ran a 4.38.

They both will get to learn the ropes in the NFL under veteran cornerback Asante Samuel.

“Asante will be out there ramping up the enthusiasm as we all know,” Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff said. “We’ll see how that all works out.”

Southeastern Louisiana plays in the Southland Conference. Alford was the first player taken in this draft from an FCS school.

Alford started his career as a receiver before converting to defensive back. He finished his career with 10 interceptions and 21 pass breakups and was a captain for the Lions.

He was academically ineligible for his first season in 2008. He said that he took the wrong class in summer school on the advice of a former coach.

He missed all of the 2010 season with a shoulder injury.

“It was a scrimmage game, and I went in on a tackle and my head went up a certain way, and I got a shock through my arm,” Alford said. “I went to the sidelines, and I couldn’t raise it. Toward the end of the season I was able to raise it up high, but the doctors suggested that I not have any contact on it. I ended up missing the whole year.”

Alford had a private workout with the Falcons and impressed them with his play at the Senior Bowl. He also interviewed with the team at the scouting combine.

“To tell you the truth, I didn’t think they’d draft another cornerback, but I’m glad to be here,” Alford said. “I’m going to battle just like any other player on the field. I coming in and I’m just going to compete for a starting spot.”

Like Trufant, Alford has a brother, Fred Booker, who played in the NFL. Booker, who played at LSU, played 12 games for the Saints in 2005.

“My brother helped me a lot during this process,” Alford said. “He’s been there and done that. Every answer that I needed to know about the NFL I’d go to my brother and asked him about it. He would give me the correct advice.

Alford was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease at the age of 15. “It’s like a flare up that gets inside of your stomach,” Alford said. “It’s certain foods that you have to eat. You can’t eat any spicy food or high fiber food.”

The Falcons have seven picks remaining over the last four rounds of the draft.

“There was no trading around today,” Dimitroff said. “We knew that we were going to be hanging tight at 60. We were very, very targeted on a couple of positions. One happened to be corner going into the second day as well.

Dimitroff knew that some people expected the team to attempt to improve the pass rush. But they couldn’t pass on Alford.

ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper had the Falcons selecting Alford in the first round of the draft.

“His ball skills are top notch,” Dimitroff said. “He can fly. He’ll be one of if not the fastest guy on our football team. He has the ability to also return. He’s a versatile guy who can play outside and inside.”

The Falcons lost three of their top five cornerbacks this season.

“Knowing where we were with our secondary, as much as we have other needs on our team, we thought it was in the best interest of the team, not only today and for years to come here, that we continue to fortify this secondary,” Dimitroff said. “We lost three this year, and we think it’s very important that we are solid with our secondary going forward.”