John Cominsky is going to be a household name among Falcons fans after a year with Dean Pees. The 25-year-old is entering his third NFL season but has played less than 500 defensive snaps in two years — untapped potential. At 6-foot-5 and 285-pounds, Cominksy was brought in a couple of years ago as an edge defender but was quickly asked to be a defensive tackle too.
When the Falcons were in their base defense, Cominsky played on the edge. When Atlanta was in any sub-package, he slid inside to play defensive tackle. The new coaching staff will likely take a similar approach with Cominsky. His athleticism coming out of college was elite, posting a Relative Athletic Score of 9.42 with great size and agility, according to Ken Lee Platte.
Under Pees, I’m really excited to see Cominsky move all along the defensive front, and I believe this could be his breakout year. Cominsky’s ability to align in multiple positions gives him a shot to play in most personnel packages. In base defenses, he can line up as an edge defender with his hand in the dirt in even fronts and standing up in odd fronts. He can slide down to play the five-technique defensive end in odd-man fronts in those same base defenses. Cominsky can align in a one, three, four, or five-technique in nickel and dime packages depending on the situation — yes, one-technique.
I believe so much in Cominsky’s ascension, especially in this new-look Falcons defense, that I’ll say he starts against the Eagles in the opener. The defensive line would look something like Cominsky in the five-technique, Grady Jarrett in the three-technique, and Tyeler Davison or any other nose tackle as the zero or one-technique in base personnel. With Marlon Davidson, Steven Means, and Ta’Quon Graham, the Falcons could potentially have a valuable defensive line rotation if Cominsky thrives in the system like I think he will.
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