By Position, Falcons are 10th in NFL

Yahoo’s Jason Cole has been working his way through ranking every position category in the NFL and today we’ll review his choices for linebackers and defensive backs.

The Falcons had finished in the top half of the league in every category but that changed with the DB rankings.

Hit the jump to see how the Falcons ranked among the NFC South and how they’ve done as a team versus the rest of the league.

Linebacker Rankings

"15. Atlanta: The Falcons are hoping that first-round pick Sean Weatherspoon will become the play-making linebacker the team desperately needs. Aside from end John Abraham, the Falcons are decidedly short on guys in the front seven who can make a game-changing play. Fellow linebackers Curtis Lofton and Mike Peterson are above-average players, but hardly impact guys. If the Falcons defense is going to take strides in the right direction this season, it’s going to need a lot more from this group."

Defensive Backs

"28. Atlanta Falcons: The Falcons’ secondary did more to promote speed training around the NFL than any other group in the league. Opposing receivers took one look at that coverage and realized all they had to do was run straight lines as fast as possible and they were probably going to make a play. That goes a long way toward explaining why Atlanta spent big on CB Dunta Robinson in free agency, giving him a six-year, $57 million contract. Robinson is really good, but he isn’t a game-changer. The Falcons still have to hope that CB Brent Grimes makes significant progress. Safeties Thomas DeCoud and Erik Coleman are solid against the run, but obviously vulnerable against the pass."

Digging Deeper

Cole has ranked seven position groups so far (QB, RB, WR, OL, DL, LB, DB) and I wanted to see how the teams are stacking up cumulatively. Using his rankings for each position we can see which teams are well-rounded and which ones could be in for a long season.

We start with the entire NFL:

In a surprise (to me), the Baltimore Ravens have been the most well-rounded team in Cole’s rankings. Their lowest position rank is wide receiver with a 14. Four times they’ve ranked in the top five.

A close second is the New Orleans Saints with the Minnesota Vikings, Dallas Cowboys and Green Bay Packers rounding out the top five.

The Falcons finish tenth in the rankings with the defensive backs bringing down their overall rating. The offensive line was rated the best, coming in at fourth.

Now on to the NFC teams only:

The Saints and Vikings are number one and number two – just as they were at the end of the season. The Cowboys and Packers are solid threats and the Falcons have a solid showing at number five. That means a wild-card berth in the tough NFC South.

And speaking of the South:

The Falcons are second behind the Saints but have better players at running back and linebacker. The Panthers and the Buccaneers have combined for only one top finish in 14 category rankings.

What do you think? Any positions rated lower/higher than you think? Let me know in the comments.