Damontae Kazee, a converted free safety and fifth-round pick from San Diego State, is slated to make his first NFL start Sunday.
He will be on the hot seat when the Falcons host the Buffalo Bills at 1 p.m. at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Starting safety Ricardo Allen in the NFL’s concussion protocol.
“I don’t know how that works,” Kazee said. “Whenever (Allen) gets back they can put him at the starting spot. I’m for whatever. That’s my teammate. I’m not trying to out-better him. I’m just here to replace him.”
Kazee played quite a bit of cornerback for the Aztecs, for whom he had 15 interceptions in his two final seasons, and the Falcons relish his ball-hawking skills. Allen was a cornerback in college, too, at Purdue, before transitioning into NFL defensive quarterback as the free safety.
Allen has built a keen reputation for recognizing the formations and tendencies of opponents and making many calls to line up the Falcons’ defense before the ball is snapped.
Defensive coordinator Marquand Manuel said that Kazee will face expectations if he plays, even though he’s played only 25 of 223 defensive snaps – mostly in nickel and dime formations.
“The standard is the standard, man, and I’m not just saying that to say that,” Manuel said. “(Strong safety) Keanu (Neal) is going to do his job, but we’re not counting on Kazee to do every job that Rico did. I think from the standpoint that we’ve prepared him to go out and play, and that 10 other guys are going to help him do his job.”
