Keanu Neal remembers the thoughts that raced through his mind before he ran onto the field for his first NFL game.
Neal, who was coming off knee surgery, was nevertheless bouncing off the walls in the bowels of the Mercedes-Benz Superdome before the Falcons faced the Saints on Monday Night Football on Sept. 26.
“Just to do my job,” Neal said. “That was the biggest thing for me going into that game. Going out there and playing with some enthusiasm and excitement.”
A lot was expected from Neal. Barely five months earlier, the Falcons had selected him out of Florida with the 17th pick of the draft.
“Oh man, it seems like yesterday though,” said Neal on Wednesday as the Falcons (10-5) prepared to face the Saints (7-8) on Sunday at the Georgia Dome. “This season is just going by so fast. I’m just trying to cherish every moment.”
In his debut, Neal played 52 of the 81 defensive snaps (64 percent) and finished with four tackles in the 45-32 victory. Since then, he has developed into a solid strong safety, tied for the team lead in tackles with 100 with fellow rookie linebacker Deion Jones. Neal’s four forced fumbles are tied for the most recorded by a rookie defensive back in NFL history.
“I totally can remember because that was the first game that I put on Sunday when I started to watch. It was like, ‘Oh, there’s 22.’ ” Falcons coach Dan Quinn said. “I had kind of forgotten that was his first time. You saw the physicality.”
Quinn said the Saints aren’t the same team they faced that night but then, neither are the Falcons. He has preached to the team to get incrementally better over time and no player has personified that notion better than Neal.
“I would never say that his confidence wasn’t there, but now that he’s playing so much faster, the communication, the physicality that he’s playing with, his identity as a ball player is really coming alive,” Quinn said. “We saw glimpses of it in that game for sure. Now that we’ve seen the hits and the physicality that he plays with … he shows that style really clearly every time that he goes to work.”
Neal has started every game since.
“As the season progressed, it has slowed down a lot for me,” Neal said. “Personally, as far as improvement, I’m playing better. I’m playing with more instincts instead of trying to guess and things like that. That comes from the studying and all of that good stuff. I feel like I’m progressing in that aspect.”
In the process, Neal has also earned the respect of his teammates.
“I’m very impressed with him,” cornerback Robert Alford said. “He’s a tremendous talent and he’s helping us out back there on the back end. Everyone can see that each and every Sunday.”
Defensive end Vic Beasley, who leads the league in sacks with 14.5, has benefited from Neal’s coverage of tight ends.
“He’s a ball hawk,” Beasley said. “I’m exceptionally thrilled to see a young player like him coming in as a rookie and playing to the level that he’s playing. It’s exciting to see him play. It’s a blessing for us to have him on our team.”
Quinn is not surprised that Neal is tied for the team tackling lead.
“We put him in the action a lot,” Quinn said. “We thought he’d have a chance to.”
One element the team hoped that Neal would add is a physical presence. He has not disappointed.
“One of the things that I really admire about his style is that he doesn’t just try to hit the man,” Quinn said. “He tries to hit through the guy. Not just the target, but he tries to hit through the target. That’s a little different than just a normal tackle.
“He has a real understanding of where the strike zone is. When he can line that thing up in the strike zone, he likes to throw a fastball. We’re pumped about how he’s playing.”
Neal intends to finish his rookie season in strong manner and declines to acknowledge the existence of a “rookie wall” that has been know to slow first-year players in the closing weeks of the NFL grind.
“Here, we do a good job of avoiding that, avoiding the rookie wall,” Neal said. “The training staff helps us out a lot around here. I haven’t felt that yet and I don’t think I’m going to feel it. I feel pretty good.”
Now he is finishing the year same way he started it: vs. the Saints.
“Just the thought of being in the NFL has kind of forced me to pinch myself sometimes,” Neal said.
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