Offensively, the Falcons don’t have many jobs up for grabs. Everything is pretty set in stone except for center and left guard, which will be an open competition throughout the offseason. The Falcons did take two rookie offensive linemen — Jalen Mayfield and Drew Dalman — in this year’s draft, and both could end up starting in Week 1. However, early on at OTAs, a veteran seems to be getting the bulk of the first-team snaps at left guard.
Among the AJC’s D. Orlando Ledbetter’s many observations, he noted that Josh Andrews is spending a lot of time next to Jake Matthews.
I’m going to go out on a limb and say that very little weight should be put into who is receiving first-team reps right now. We are still WAY too early in the offseason to be determining who is winning roster battles. It’s probably a case of them wanting the rookies to learn together. Several players will receive first-team reps at left guard and center before decisions are made.
Josh Andrews has played five years in the league, spending last season with the New York Jets where he appeared in 15 games and started in four… and let’s just say it wasn’t pretty. He had a 41.2 grade — according to PFF — and was an absolute liability as a pass blocker. If the Falcons really end up having to start him at left guard to begin the season, their offensive line is in a lot worst shape than what it looks like on paper right now.
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