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RFlagg · 02-02-2012, 01:55 PM

I have been thinking a lot up this offseason, all the moves already made on the coaching staff, and all the moves to come with free agency, the draft, trades...pretty much 2 weeks without football (the Pro Bowl was not football) already has me itching for the 2012 season. However, with it being so far off, I felt I should write down some of my desires for what we could do this offseason. So, without further ado, here is my completely unprofessional opinion on moves the Falcons should make this offseason.

Free Agents I'd Look to Keep
DE - Kroy Biermann
S - Thomas DeCoud
WR - Harry Douglas
CB - Kelvin Hayden
LB - Curtis Lofton
C - Todd McClure
RB - Jason Snelling
LS - Joe Zelenka
TE - Michael Palmer (exclusive rights)
OG - Andrew Jackson (exclusive rights)
DT - Vance Walker (restricted)

Free Agents I'd Let Walk
DE - John Abraham
OL - Kirk Chambers
CB - Brent Grimes
TE - Reggie Kelly
LB - Mike Peterson
QB - Chris Redman
OL - Brett Romberg
S - James Sanders
WR - Eric Weems
RB - Antone Smith (exclusive rights)

I've given this a lot of thought, and I'm sure there are some names I'd let walk that wouldn't be popular (Abraham being way up on the list.) However, I thought about each one and the only player I really waffled on was Grimes. I love him, hell, he's my favorite player, but I think he's going to be asking for more than we can afford to pay him.

As for the players I'd like to keep, I know DeCoud has drawn the ire of many fans, but I think a lot of his problems came from coaching. This season, we will have a new DC and DB coach, and I think that combination will let us see more of his 2009 form. As for McClure, I think he's been the anchor of our oline for a long time, and I also don't think we have a serviceable replacement for him yet (I really wanted Maurkice Pouncey a few years ago).

Free Agents I'd Like To Target
Demetrius Bell - OT - Buffalo
Has been pretty good for Buffalo, and a definite upgrade over Baker and Svitek at LT. Not to mention, I wouldn't be surprised if one of those 2 was gone.
Dan Connolly - OG - New England
RG was a problem for us most of the season, and Connolly could be the solution to the revolving door we had there. I think Connolly could be a real steal, and I'm honestly starting to think the player I'd really like to have (Carl Nicks) is not going to hit the market.
Calais Campbell - DE - Arizona
Calais finished 2011 with 72 Tackles, 8 sacks and 2 forced fumbles. He also won't be turning 26 until September, and I think he could fit in well with the scheme Nolan is looking to run.
William Gay - CB - Pittsburgh
William Gay has been in the league since 2007, but has not put up big numbers in terms of INTs, having only 3 in 5 seasons. But, seeing as I don't expect Carlos Rodgers to hit the market, I think William Gay could be a good pickup for us. And yes, I know, he got trucked by AP. I've seen the video.
Ted Ginn - WR - San Francisco
Why? I think he could be a good receiving threat (especially as a #4 or #5 option), and I wouldn't mind seeing him return kicks. I've got us dropping Weems, and Ginn would be a pretty good replacement.

Players To Either Trade Or Cut
LT - Sam Baker
For God's sake, end our suffering.
DT - Peria Jerry
I don't think he's every fully recovered from his knee injury, and I'm doubtful now that he will.

Explanations For Keeping
Dunta Robinson
Dunta did not fit into BVG's zone scheme well. he's much better in man and press man coverage. I really think this is the type of coverage we can expect under Nolan, and I think we'll see an improvement from Robinson.
Michael Turner
I think he's actually going to see his carries diminish this year, and he only has 2 years left on his contract. I'd say keep him, but start running a constant rotation of Turner, Snelling and Quizz, with no one getting more than 40% of the carries.
Ray Edwards
Sure, he had a down year for us, but he was coming off an injury and BVG's system was pretty simple to figure out. I want to see how he does under the new system with a full offseason to heal and learn the playbook.
Garrett Reynolds
Reynolds is big and strong, and like Robinson and Edwards, he will be in a new system this season. Even if we do sign Connolly or another G, I think he can be a serviceable backup for us.
Joe Hawley
When he was moved from Center to Guard, he showed real improvement. Maybe a full offseason will help him as well. Remember, Hawley won't turn 24 until near the end of October.

Draft Targets
First things first, these targets assume all of the above moves are made and we don't move any of our picks. I don't have us getting any compensatory picks this year, because I honestly don't think we will.
2nd Round, 54 Overall - Coby Fleener, TE, Stanford
We have to draft an heir apparent to Tony G., and that's what Fleener could be. He's big, athletic, and can catch. If he's still around at 54, take him. Quick.
3rd Round, 85 Overall - Aaron Henry, FS, Wisconsin
Henry finished his senior season with 4 INTs, he has 16 pass deflections over the last 2 seasons, 120 tackles in 2 seasons. He's not polished, but under Nolan, he could blossom.
5th Round, 149 Overall - David Molk, C, Michigan
6th Round, 182 Overall - TaShaun Gibson, CB, Wyoming
7th Round, 213 Overall - Eric Page, WR, Toledo

Feel free to butcher me for anything you disagree with, I'm no expert and I don't pretend to be part of the Falcons front office. These are just the opinions of one fan that's already missing the game.

monoxide · (This post was last modified: 02-02-2012 02:08 PM by monoxide.)

My problem with this is that we would clearly be drastically worse next year if this was our offseason. Letting our best defensive back and only effective pass rusher from last year go in replacement for inconsistent free agents like Demetrius Bell and William Gay would be terrible. Connelly would be a huge upgrade, but compared to guys like Nicks and Grubbs (I think they will both be there), it's not even close. However, I think he is effective and probably cheap enough to pull the trigger on. As for Calais Campbell, I think he would be good, but I'm skeptical on him leaving Arizona.

Going to the draft, I will say that I like it in the long run. With that said, it kinda stings to think that our first draft pick won't start next year. Like I said, in the long run it would be great to have him behind Gonzo so he can learn, but looking at next year I'm not so sure. Not saying we should draft specifically for right now (we did that last year with Julio), but I'm looking at a competitive season for next year. Looking at your draft, I don't see any players on that list who would come in and start right away. I think if we sign a guy like Ben Grubbs and go tackle in the 2nd round, it would work for both next season and the seasons after. After shitting the bed every year in the playoffs, I think we will be stressing next year's season. Mike Smith knows that time is running out, and with the hiring of Nolan, I think we'll bring in at least one huge free agent for a lot of money. We do it every year, this one won't be different.

Jayhawk-Falcon2012 · 02-02-2012, 02:07 PM

meh, i'll wait till stuff actually happens. Tooo many variables to even make a list (for me at least). nice list, thanks for sharing.

Although I'd probably consider a few of your "Keep players" leaving or being released by us.

b3nz · 02-02-2012, 02:10 PM

keeping decoud and letting sanders walk makes no sense if you plan on drafting a safety for the future. to me, if you go safety in the draft, you have to let decoud go, and keep sanders as vet leadership.

Anomaly · (This post was last modified: 02-02-2012 02:30 PM by Anomaly.)

I honestly don't see how everyone thinks that we'll be able to draft Coby Fleener. Most projections and mock drafts I've seen have him going early in the 2nd round and a few late 1st round.

RFlagg · 02-02-2012, 02:38 PM

(02-02-2012 02:29 PM)Va Falcon 88 Wrote: I honestly don't see how everyone thinks that we'll be able to draft Coby Fleener. Most projections and mock drafts I've seen have him going early in the 2nd round and a few late 1st round.

I was looking around and I saw him going late second and early third. Most of those drafts I saw had us taking a DE in the 2nd and a TE in the third (not Fleener).

I admit, I would not be surprised if he was gone by the time we came up, but with Tony G announcing his retirement after 2012, I think we have to draft his heir this year.

illmusic · 02-02-2012, 06:37 PM

Tony said he's giving it one more year?

monoxide · 02-02-2012, 07:19 PM

(02-02-2012 06:37 PM)illmusic Wrote: Tony said he's giving it one more year?

Being that we just signed him for to a 1 year 8 million dollar deal, I sure as hell hope so.

Jimusmc · 02-02-2012, 07:49 PM

he said after next season it's likely his last year

juraitwaluzka · 02-02-2012, 11:11 PM

I don't like keeping Decoud, I'd rather take my chances trying to find a replacement and I wouldn't want to let Redman go unless we sign a suitable vet to take his place. If we go into the season with JPW as the backup we are literally one play away from season over.