Falcons select Peters, Johnson in third round

FLOWERY BRANCH -- The Falcons call it the "FBI" quotient.

It stands for "Football Intelligence" in their draft jargon, and they think the first three players they selected in the NFL draft have high FBI rankings.

They continued to focus on defense when they selected Kentucky defensive tackle Corey Peters at pick No. 83 and then moved over to offense and selected Alabama guard Mike Johnson at No. 98, both in the third round.

"Football intelligence is a big part of what we are trying to develop here," Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff said. "Both of our picks today fall in the line with what we are needing on this football team, as far as football-intelligent guys, players that going to handle themselves properly off the field."

First-round pick Sean Weatherspoon, Peters and Johnson each excelled in the classroom and on the football field in college. All three have graduated, and Johnson entered Alabama as a 4.0 student.

Peters, who is 6-foot-3, 300 pounds, started all 26 games over his last two seasons with the Wildcats and was a team captain last season. He also made the SEC academic honor roll in 2007 and 2008.

"He's a very disruptive defensive linemen," Dimitroff said.

Johnson, 6-6, 312, was an Associated Press All-American last season. He started all 14 games at left guard last season and helped the Crimson Tide win the national championship.

"He's another versatile offensive linemen," Dimitroff said. "We were fired up that he was there."

Peters did not do the 225-pound bench press at the NFL scouting combine because of a right-shoulder injury, but he did lift that weight 26 times at his pro day. Georgia defensive tackle Jeff Owens was the top lifter among defensive linemen at the combine with 44 lifts.

"I still think I need to get stronger," Peters said. "I need to work on my conditioning a little bit. Those are the two major things that can be improved."

Peters had a fifth- to sixth-round grade by Pro Football Weekly. He was the 21st-ranked defensive tackle and had a seventh-round projection by NFLDraftScout.com.

"I saw some of the projections," Peters said. "I wasn't really paying too much attention to that, but I do appreciate the Falcons for believing in me. ... I'm looking forward to proving them right."

Peters, who made the SEC's academic honor roll in 2007 and 2008, also visited Tennessee, Baltimore and the New York Jets.

"I think I'm really a heady player," Peters said. "During the week I'm preparing myself well. I will know my opponents' weaknesses, and I do a good job taking advantage of that."

Johnson was also projected to go in the fourth or fifth round by Pro Football Weekly. He was rated as a third-round pick and the third-best guard in the draft by NFLDraftScout.com.

Johnson started 41 consecutive games for Alabama, including 26 at left guard, 10 at right tackle and three at right guard and two at left tackle. Johnson's versatility had to be a plus because under coach Mike Smith, the Falcons have cross-trained their linemen at multiple positions.