Falcons general manger Thomas Dimitroff was ready to move up in the draft to land Vic Beasley if there was a run on pass-rushers early in the draft.
“We were focused on Vic right from the beginning,” Dimitroff said. “We were projecting that he might be there between six and eight. We were fortunate that he was there at eight for us, and we didn’t have to get antsy and jump up a pick, two or three to get him.”
The Falcons stood pat at six last season and selected offensive tackle Jake Matthews.
In 2013, they did get antsy and moved up to select cornerback Desmond Trufant. The Falcons traded with St. Louis from 30 to 22. They gave up a third- and a sixth-round pick.
In 2011, they made the mega-move to jump from 27 to six to select Julio Jones in a 5-for-1 trade with Cleveland.
“In our situation there is always a thought about moving up,” Dimitroff said. We’ve been aggressive over the years. Our approach here, (coach) Dan (Quinn) was in line with process. If there was to be a run on pass-rushers that might have precipitated us moving up. We were fortunate that he was there.”
Beasley bits: Quinn, a defensive line coach by trade, was leading the pass-rush drills during the team's minicamp session. He'll be charged with helping to develop Beasley, who needs to develop a signature pass-rush move.
He hopes to have more than just Beasley chasing around quarterbacks.
“When the pass rush is at is best, is when four or five guys are all working together,” Quinn said. “That’s been my experience. When a tackle and a defensive end work together or when all four of the guys know how to collapse the pocket, that’s when we’ll be at our best.”
Mixed reviews: ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. thought the Falcons selected Beasley too high in the draft.
The folks over at ProFootballFocus.com approved of the pick:
“Could this draft have gone any better for Atlanta? In the words of Ben Stockwell they’ve drafted the best pure pass-rusher in this draft, a need so glaring that it was nearly impossible to imagine Atlanta going elsewhere. Beasley had the fourth-highest pass-rushing grade of all edge defenders with his explosiveness off the edge being unmatched in this class. He can turn the corner in a way the Falcons have sorely missed since the days of John Abraham.”
Beasley does have some flaws.
“He is a little lightweight against the run, and it wouldn’t be the biggest surprise in the world if the team used him in a similar fashion to how the 49ers used Aldon Smith as a rookie; sub-package superstar who is told to get up field and get at the quarterback,” according to profootballfocus.com.
Some view Beasley solely as a pass-rusher.
One NFL Scout had this to say about Beasley in Nolan Nawrocki’s NFL Draft Preview: “I think he is a one-trick pony who played better as a junior than he did as a senior. He’s going to be drafted more highly than where I would take him. I think he’s so one-dimensional, and that one dimension is not as elite as I thought it was. … He is not as strong or physical as (Seattle 2012 15th overall pick) Bruce Irvin, who I thought was a reach.”
Anthony “Booger” McFarland, who’s working on SiriusXM NFL Radio, said the Falcons landed the best pass-rusher in the draft.
Irvin report nixed: Dimitroff nixed the draft-day report by ProFootballTalk.com that the team was working a trade to land Seattle linebacker Bruce Irvin on Friday.
The website cited a league source, which likely was an agent, for its report.
Irvin, a native of Atlanta who played at West Virginia, played for Quinn for the past two seasons. The Seahawks reportedly are not prepared to offer Irvin the fifth-year option on his rookie contract.
PFT reported that a deal could be done during the draft.
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