After 1,955 miles, it's my last stop for the Jeep Compass rental, which made it all the way through Missouri, Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Tennessee and, now, Georgia. Our five takeaways from Falcons camp …
Dale Zanine/USA TODAY Sports
- Drake London has come back moving like a more confident player—and the Falcons are seeing a more complete player in camp, too, one who’s ultracompetitive and who’s been excellent playing away from the ball (he flashed what he can do with the ball last year). And he, obviously, is expected to be the key guy in a group with more players capable of playing multiple spots, and excelling as blockers, which is, of course, a direct reflection of what coach Arthur Smith and GM Terry Fontenot have worked to build in Atlanta.
- The competition’s been fierce in the secondary, too, where the depth at both corner and safety has been bolstered. One spot that’s still open a week into camp is the nickel corner position, where Dee Alford, Mike Hughes and rookie Clark Phillips III are fighting for one. Safety Jaylinn Hawkins—one of the pleasant surprises in camp who has made a steady stream of plays on the back end—can also moonlight in that position, so Atlanta has options there.
- The offensive line figures to be a strength with four of five starters back, including right tackle Kaleb McGary, who is having a very strong summer (the Falcons signed the former first-rounder to a big contract in March). The one open spot is left guard. Matt Hennessy got the first crack at it, but he’s banged up. And that opened an opportunity for rookie Matthew Bergeron, who has quickly earned the respect of vets on both sides of the ball with his strength and toughness.
- The Falcons have tried to temper the hype on running back Bijan Robinson, but what they’ve seen from a talent perspective is enough to have the staff pretty excited. And it’s not just what he brings as a movable piece who can catch the ball as well as he can run inside—it’s also his athletic makeup. Early in camp, he’s shown unique balance and stop-start ability. Pairing him with London and Kyle Pitts should make the Falcons a bear to contend with offensively and make quarterback Desmond Ridder’s job a lot easier.
- If there’s a camp sleeper, it might be linebacker Nate Landman. He’s had a nice summer after making the team last year out of camp as an undrafted free agent (he spent part of the year on the practice squad).
