Raheem Morris Reveals 2 Falcons Rookies Who Look Like 'Future Captains'

Like a plumber is tasked with fixing a leak, Atlanta Falcons head coach Raheem Morris knows the only way to fix their pass rushing problems is to attack the problem head on.

"I get beat up all year about not getting sacks, and that's got to change," Morris declared during rookie mini camp. "The only way you can change that is to change that. That was part of our process, very intentional, going out and trying to fix the edge room."

The Falcons finally addressed glaring needs on their defense, including the pass rush. Atlanta only had five picks in April’s draft, but they’re not afraid to place big roles on their rookies. The double dip in the first round of the draft to grab edge rushing duo Jalon Walker and James Pearce Jr.,most definitely needs to bear early fruit.

"Make no mistake about it, we're going to have some real intentionality about playing our rookies this season, getting them on the grass and giving them the opportunity to play a significant amount of football," Morris insisted.

Of course Rome wasn't built in a day, so the key addition of veteran edge rusher Leonhard Floyd cannot be underestimated, that's because he will help bridge the rookie to old head gap this coming season.

Even so, the Falcons didn't grab former Georgia standout Walker with both hands without having one eye on him assuming a leadership role fairly quickly. 

You can see this is a well-coached man before he even went to college,” Morris said of Walker. “And when he got to college, he got some of the best coaching in the world from Kirby [Smart] and those guys. I talked to him about the leadership and some of the growth that they brought to that program.

“I hate to even talk about him this way, but it's hard not to when you talk to guys like that. Now Xavier Watts, a little bit of the same cloth, but you see future captains in these guys’ makeup.”

In all fairness, rookie mini camp still remains primarily about dipping your toe into how things might eventually stack up. 

While easing everyone into the system and etiquette is crucial, Morris is also determined to get his smaller stable of draft picks up to speed whereby they can run full pace with the vets for the forthcoming OTAs.

"This is really just to get (the rookies) acclimated to how we do things so next week when they're with the vets, they don't slow them down," the Falcons boss admitted.

After redshirting his first draft class in 2024, it’s easy to see paths to significant playing time for Walker, Pearce, Watts, and nickel Billy Bowman Jr. 

The 2024 version of the Falcons defense was painful to watch. The passive-prevent scheme will be scrapped in favor of an attacking style loaded with young, hungry players. 

How they come together will dictate a lot of the season’s success, but it should definitely be more entertaining than last year’s death by 1,000 cuts.