Why The Falcons Drafted Kroy Biermann

Here's a hint: It's what you were probably expecting.

Essentially Biermann will be filling the Josh Mallard Memorial role for the Falcons this season. For those of you who don't really remember Mallard, he was a hybrid DT/DE who excelled at exactly one thing. For a while, a game where J-Mal didn't crush the quarterback didn't seem like much of a game at all.

Biermann is different because he's more of a classic tweener. As a guy whose elusiveness is his main advantage, it's not surprising that he will probably split time between defensive end and outside linebacker. Clearly, defensive line coach Ray Hamilton sees Biermann as a specialist, and he's trying to get his newest weapon in the weight room to improve his chances against guys much bigger than him.

I'm actually kind of relieved to hear this officially. When he was first drafted, I recall swearing and asking what the hell we needed with yet another outside linebacker. If the team can turn him into an effective pass rusher who can hang out on the field occasionally and not get blown away by the pace and size of the NFL game, then that draft pick was probably worth it. Particularly with an injury prone John Abraham and a huge question mark in Jamaal Anderson.

How many sacks this year for Biermann?