Long before William Moore was injured, the Falcons were already raving about safety Kemal Ishmael.
Falcons head coach Mike Smith sang his praises.
Unsolicited, defensive coordinator Mike Nolan would drop his name out of the clear blue sky.
Moore himself talked about the progress that Ishmael had made from his first year in the league to his second after being selected in the seventh round (243rd overall) in the 2013 NFL Draft. He played just three snaps from scrimmage in 2013.
“With that year of experience, I knew what I had to get done,” said Ishmael, who starred at Central Florida. “I had to get bigger, faster and stronger. I knew I had to get my body right and change certain things as far as my weight and agility.
“I wanted to come back in here and perform at the level that they want me to perform.”
Over the offseason, the Falcons were looking for a couple of players step forward at safety after they released free safety Thomas DeCoud and were uncertain about the return of Zeke Motta from a neck injury.
They tried to stack the position by signing Dwight Lowery as a free agent, drafting Dezmen Southward in the third round and by signing safety Rafael Bush to an offer sheet.
Motta didn’t make it back and was put on the physically unable to perform list to start the season. The Saints matched the offer to Bush. Ishmael was able to move ahead of Southward, who was injured during stretches of training camp.
Now with Moore out for at least eight weeks, Ishmael is set to make his first NFL start against two-time Super Bowl winning quarterback Eli Manning of the New York Giants.
“I just have to keep my composure ,” Ishmael said. “I don’t want to get too over confident or down. Just stay cool and play the game like I’ve always played it.”
Moore was the leader and enforcer of the defense.
“He’s the general in our defense,” Ishmael said. “I’m going to try to do the best impersonation that I can. I’m just going to try to step up and be just like him or even better. While he’s down, I’ll try to fill his role.”
The Falcons are expecting Moore to help Ishmael, while he’s out injured.
“When I spoke to William today, I talked to him specifically about even though he’s not going to be between the lines we are going to need his leadership, much like Sean (Weatherspoon),” Smith said. “Sean is with us in the meetings and I expect William will be as well.”
With Ishmael in the starting lineup, the Falcons are set to face the Giants with three second-year defensive backs. However, cornerbacks Desmond Trufant and Robert Alford were taken in the first and second rounds of the 2013 NFL draft.
“It’s rough,” Trufant said. “(Moore’s) like the backbone of the defense. We communicate every play, so I’m used to him being out there with me. We just have to adjust. We have to try to fill the void.”
Alford believes that Ishmael will fit in just fine.
“We have a lot of confidence in Kemal,” Alford said. “He had a lot of chances with us in OTAs and in camp to go with the first team. We are comfortable with him. I’m pretty sure that William Moore is going to help him out, too.”
Nolan had already started incorporating Ishmael in the defense. He was playing in some dime packages with six defensive backs. He returned an interception 23 yards for a touchdown in the 56-14 rout of Tampa Bay on Sept. 18.
“He has really improved from a year ago,” Nolan said. “From a year ago until now he’s probably the most improved guy. It’s better that he’s going in now after having played in the first few games than it is all of a sudden cold turkey.”
Ishmael had to finish up the Minnesota game after Moore went down. He played 66 of the 76 (87 percent) snaps against the Vikings. He finished with seven tackles and rated strong against the run, but weak in coverage by Pro Football Focus.
Ishmael plans to be up for the challenge.
“I’m just going to continue working hard and doing the same things I’ve been doing,” Ishmael said. “It’s an opportunity for me since William went down, but it’s more than that. It’s being a part of the defense and trying to help it improve.”
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