The Falcons will send a full entourage of player personnel men, scouts and coaches to the NFL scouting combine which started on Sunday and will run through Monday, March 2.
The Falcons are not expected to make any announcements about the pending free agency of tight end Austin Hooper or linebacker De'Vondre Campbell. With the ongoing negotiation of the extension of the collective bargaining agreement, the team, which is low in salary cap space, is essentially in a holding pattern.
The Falcons have extensively used post- June 1 designations to create salary cap space, but that move is not available to them this under the expiring agreement.
» MORE: NFL combine is now in prime time
Therefore, any cap casualty cuts will also be delayed as the NFL and NFLPA tries to hammer out a new agreement that may include a 17-game season and expanded playoffs.
The uncertainty of the CBA perhaps explained owner Arthur Blank's comments about improving through the draft as the offseason focus.
With the uncertainty about free agency, salary cap moves and the pushing back of the franchise tags, the Falcons know they must add some key player via the draft.
They have the 16th overall pick and here are five players on their radar heading into the combine:
1. LSU DE K'Lavon Chaisson. The team said it would not re-sign defensive end Vic Beasley so there is a hole at the position. Chaisson has some upside. "In terms of on-field workouts, I'm anxious to see how big and how heavy K'Lavon Chaisson is from LSU," NFL draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah said. "He's an explosive edge rusher for them and got better as the season went along, tore his ACL in '18."
Chaisson is listed at 6-foot-4 and 250 pounds.
“As you watched him through the season, you started to see him really pick it up and get better,” Jeremiah said. “So, I don’t know, I’ve heard he played in the high 230s. I’ve heard he could be in the low 250s now. So how big he is could go a long way in helping him.”
Beasley weighed 232 pounds and played at 244, which proved to be too light against the run at times.
2. Iowa DE A.J. Epenesa. He's stout at 6-6 and 280 pounds. He was a five-star recruit coming out of high school. He would add some bulk to the defensive line and has the ability to rush inside in some situations.
“I think it’s going to be big to just see him and see him move around and see him test,” Jeremiah said. “He's a skilled, skilled rusher.”
Epenesa doesn’t possess the flat out speed around the edge that intrigued the Falcons about the Beasley.
“I really didn’t see bad tape on him,” Jeremiah said. “He’s not real, real explosive when you watch him coming off the edge. He’s big and powerful. He has great hands. He can flip his hips and finish. He’s got a variety of hand moves.”
He’s considered a safe pick.
“The guy has a high floor,” Jeremiah said. “You’re not going to miss on A.J. Epenesa. Now, whether or not you’re going to get a 14-sack guy or eight- or nine-sack guy, I think that’s the debate.”
3. LSU DB Kristian Fulton. The Falcons need to improve their coverage in the secondary. For the first half of last season, wide receivers roamed around the secondary unescorted at times. Fulton is one of the top cornerbacks in the draft.
“When you get some guys that maybe have a little bit of a question mark (in the speed area), how fast are they going to run?,” Jeremiah said. “Kristian Fulton from LSU would be the prime example — really solid, really good football player, just concerns about his deep speed, what does he run?”
4. Alabama DE Terrell Lewis. He had an injury-plagued career at Alabama. Lewis is 6-5 and 258 pounds and was a second-team All-SEC pick after the 2019 season. He had 31 tackles, 11.5 tackles for losses, six sacks and two pass breakups in 11 games, which included three starts. Defensive line trainer Chuck Smith compares Lewis to Montez Sweat, the former Mississippi State standout who was picked in the first-round (26th overall) of the draft by Washington last season.
“If I’m the Falcons, I’m looking at Lewis from Alabama, a true edge guy,” Smith said.
He had a upper arm injury and a torn ACL injury that caused him to miss most of two seasons.
5. South Carolina DT Javon Kinlaw. The Falcons need to place someone strong next to Grady Jarrett in the interior of the defense. He's a massive defensive tackle listed at 6-5 and 315 pounds by NFL.com. "Probably his best position is three-technique, but he's so big," Senior Bowl executive director Jim Nagy said. "You can play him at (nose tackle). If you were an odd front, he can be a (defensive end). He can be a big five technique in a 4-3. He's so versatile because he's so big and athletic. You can move him all over the place."
About the Author
