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Believe it or not, Falcons training camp begins today. Player arrivals aren’t exactly chock full of news, but we’ll take what we can get until practices begin tomorrow. With the news that Julio Jones will be showing up after he and the team came to an unspecified agreement, it’s a happy day, and it’s always great to see the team showing up and getting ready to destroy, I dunno, the Saints.
What should I look for today?
Arrivals. This means lots of photos from the primary Falcons account—you should be following them on every social media platform, if you’re not—and plenty of speculation about players who slimmed down and bulked up over the offseason. You’ll always want to warmly welcome Julio Jones, who is showing up after ending his holdout last night.
Also, the press conference. Thomas Dimitroff and Dan Quinn will be speaking to the media at 1:30 p.m., likely addressing Julio’s contract, their own extensions, and a raft of questions about players and position battles. It’ll be worth hearing what they have to say, as it almost always is.
Otherwise, you’ll want to see what coaches say about what lies ahead, especially if they given even the slightest clue as to early favorites for position and roster battles. It’s just about the most we can expect to get before everyone hits the field.
Training Camp Arrival & Press Conference Updates
Players are showing up!
There's video so it definitely happened, right :) Julio Jones makes his arrival to Falcons training camp! https://t.co/8sAnwetkmy
— Kelsey Conway (@FalconsKelsey) July 26, 2018
Whatever you thought about the Julio Jones situation over the last few months, it’s good to have it over. Believe it or not, we’re pretty much universally delighted not to have to worry about a holdout or the team rolling over on a contract extension or any of that. Having Julio show up makes it all real.
New #Falcons right guard Brandon Fusco checking in. pic.twitter.com/FL2sntugTa
— William McFadden (@willmcfadden) July 26, 2018
Brandon Fusco is a large man.
“I know it’s semantics but we weren’t looking at it as a renegotiation, it was an adjustment for us.” Falcons GM Thomas Dimitroff on if the decision to adjust Julio Jones’ contract will set a precedent for players in the future to request deals early in their contracts. pic.twitter.com/psGiBlnV56
— Wes Blankenship (@Wes_nship) July 26, 2018
We’ll talk about this more in the days ahead, but the Falcons are very clearly trying to avoid setting a new precedent here.
Andy Levitre takes the cake for best training camp arrival. When asked what was behind the attire today, Andy said this shirt was a “dad shirt” and announced that he and his wife are expecting baby No. 2 in Feb. His training camp essential is La Croix grapefruit water pic.twitter.com/xKjZvzgjsj
— Kelsey Conway (@FalconsKelsey) July 26, 2018
BREAKING: My eyes.
Happy 23rd Birthday to #Falcons S Keanu Neal!!
— Evan Birchfield (@EvanBirchfield) July 26, 2018
In his two NFL seasons, Keanu has:
• Pro Bowl Selection (2017)
• PFWA All-Rookie Team (2016)
• Total tackles: 222
• Forced fumbles: 8
• Pass deflections: 14
• Interceptions: 1 pic.twitter.com/9yunjtTYhv
Good lord, Keanu Neal is only 23 years old.