Nickel back battle to go into regular-season
The Falcons re-stocked the nickel back position over the offseason and like the players they added along with returner Robert McClain.
Over the offseason, they signed cornerbacks Josh Wilson and Javier Arenas to compete for the spot.
They all have started and have been rotated in as the second nickel back over three exhibition season games. All have played and had their shining moments. Wilson started camp working with the first-team defense, but Arenas and McClain have come on strong.
Instead of declaring a winner, Falcons coach Mike Smith said the competition will continue and that it will offer the team some matchup options based on each players’ strengths.
“To me, this is the one that’s going to go down through the fourth game,” Smith said. “There is not going to be a declaration that our starting nickel is ‘this guy.’ ”
The Falcons open the season with three games in the first 11 days of the season. They open against the New Orleans Saints on Sept. 7 at the Georgia Dome. They play at Cincinnati on Sept. 14 and then host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in a Thursday night game on Sept. 18.
The nickel back will be partly based on who the opposition plays out of the slot. Smith has long considered the nickel back a starter, since the Falcons play a nickel defense about 65 percent of the time.
“The nickel position is becoming, when you say it’s the third corner, it might be your best corner on some teams,” Smith said. “It just depends on who they line up in the slot.”
About the Author
Honored by the Pro Football Hall of Fame in recognition of his "long and distinguished reporting in the field of pro football," D. Orlando Ledbetter, Esq. has covered the NFL 28 seasons. A graduate of Howard University, he's a winner of Georgia Sportswriter of the Year and three Associated Press Sports Editor awards.
