Are The Falcons Considering Cornerbacks Early In The Draft?

by Dave Choate on Feb 21, 2009 8:00 AM EST in Falcons News

There's so many questions that this Atlanta Journal-Constitution article raises.

The first question is, what kind of article is this? It says at the beginning that our good Comrade Thomas Dimitroff is looking hard at cornerbacks and defensive ends, but that's never backed up by any direct observations or quotes from Dimitroff. It's just stated as a fact and we all get on with our lives. I'm not really sure what to make of that premise.

Let's assume for a second that D. Orlando Ledbetter is correct here, and Dimitroff is seriously considering cornerbacks and defensive ends, possibly in the second round and lower. This is an intelligent thing to do, because both of those areas are ones where the Falcons could improve, though they're not the needs I'd put on top of my list. Our need for a better pass rush is particularly acute, so propping up the front seven would help considerably.

I'm still a little bit confused about this purported need at cornerback, though. Given my complete conviction that Lawyer Milloy wants to get his Seahawk on and isn't nearly the coverage athlete he once was, I can see targetting safety pretty early. I'm good with that. When I look at our cornerbacking corps, I see an improving Chris Houston, an ultra-athletic Brent Grimes and future starter Chevis Jackson. I also see Domonique Foxworth returning, along with helpful nickel type Von Hutchins. I also see--and probably not for long--David Irons, who I still like quite a bit.

Dimitroff proved last year that I'm a mouth-breathing idiot for doubting his draft philosophy, so I can't even begin to criticize him. Unless he's not expecting to get Foxworth back or Houston is turning back into a zucchini at midnight on September 1, though, I guess I don't understand the rationale for looking at cornerback before the fifth or sixth round. Most of the most dire needs begin and end at the line of scrimmage for the Falcons, so I'm still hopeful we'll head there when the time comes.

Thoughts?

Poll

When should the Falcons look to draft a cornerback?

1st round

14 votes

2nd-3rd round

55 votes

4th-5th round

59 votes

6th-7th round

8 votes

2010 or later

12 votes

3111, after the Great Cornerback Wars

8 votes

156 votes | Poll has closed

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Comments

Interesting

Some people on this site have suggested that we need to pursue a FA CB or two.

In response, some people on this site have disagreed, arguing that the existing CB corps can get the job done.

If the Comrade really does pursue a CB in the early rounds of the draft, I think one or more of the following must be true:

1. Houston isn’t developing quickly enough
2. We either can’t lock up Foxworth long-term or we don’t want to
3. Jackson’s development might take a while
4. Brent and Von aren’t going to get it done

"He's getting better, but he's not there yet ..."
- Bobby Cox (talking about Boyer)

by FrankyWren on Feb 21, 2009 6:52 PM EST reply actions

I pretty much agree

I just think there has to be a compelling reason to add one in the early rounds. If the good Comrade wants to pull the trigger on a guy later in the draft that he thinks could develop into something, I’m not even going to bat an eyelash.

by Dave Choate on Feb 21, 2009 7:14 PM EST up reply actions

Great post

Foxworth is a must-keep and Jackson should mature.

I’m very interested to see what Von can do – haven’t seen any previous experience but trust Dimitroff’s instincts regarding FA.

Shoring up our lines and a LB/TE should be first priority in the off-season.

by ashdeadite123 on Feb 21, 2009 9:02 PM EST up reply actions

Interesting

FrankyWren what do you have against Brent and Von, and why aren’t they able to get it done, do you know something that the Coaches don’t? I know that these sites are for people to voice their opinion, but I always thought that it wasn’t fair to judge unless I had a real basis for my judgement. What is yours?

by Debilah on Feb 24, 2009 12:00 PM EST up reply actions

Well … notice that I didn’t say any of those things were necessarily true. I was trying to do some deductive reasoning (based on the premise that the Falcons are going to pursue a CB early in the draft). So yeah, I think you may have misunderstood the point of my post.

Von: He sustained a season-ending injury on the first day of camp last year. So (1) he’ll have to show he can rebound from injury. Besides that, (2) he plays at a replacement level, at best. He isn’t going to be better than Jackson or Houston, and the objective would be upgrading the secondary.
Grimes: He’s incredibly athletic. In fact, he might be the most athletic dude on the team, but he was utterly and completely outplayed several times last year.

Again, my original post was pure conjecture, entirely based on the idea that the Falcons will pursue a CB early (as the original report suggested). I too think it’s unfair to judge unless you have a fair basis for your judgment …

"He's getting better, but he's not there yet ..."
- Bobby Cox (talking about Boyer)

by FrankyWren on Feb 24, 2009 6:36 PM EST up reply actions