What Atlanta Falcons should do in second round of NFL Draft

Oct 18, 2014; Tempe, AZ, USA; Arizona State Sun Devils defensive back Damarious Randall (3) celebrates after recovering a muffed punt by the Stanford Cardinal in the second quarter at Sun Devil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Secondary needs help

One of the defensive keys of the Falcons’ new head coach Dan Quinn is to possess a strong and powerful secondary capable of playing fast and agressive. No surprise here. It means the secondary can’t afford to have a weak spot.

The Falcons’ defensive backs unit, unfortunately, is not full of talent.

Cornerback Desmond Trufant and safety William Moore are an excellent base to start from, without forgetting cornerback Robert Alford as a great complementary piece.

But the free safety position, as well as the slot cornerback position, are not set in stone at all for the moment.

It is not a good news considering the influence these positions had in the Seattle Seahawks’ defense the last couple of years.

Grabbing a starting free safety in the second round, capable of playing a centerfielder position with a lot of range, would be huge for Atlanta. But this year’s draft does not offer such type of player, at all.

A good consolation prize for Quinn could be Arizona State’s Damarious Randall. The Sun Devil has been climbing the boards for the past month and he is now projected by many as a second round pick. Blogging Dirty’s Kevin Knight provided an extensive work on Randall a week ago.

Utah’s Eric Rowe, who played both cornerback and free safety positions with the Utes, could also be an interesting piece to add. He fits perfectly with Quinn’s requirements as a tall player playing with fire and character.

Kevin Johnson, a very talented player who build his game in the shadows and could end up as a steal in the second round.

However, drafting another cornerback is not out of discussion. The depth at the position is not pretty. Robert McClain, Javier Arenas and Josh Wilson are all gone, and Phillip Adams has been brought in during the off-season.

It is worth noting the majority of the prospects who worked out for the Falcons are projected for the late rounds, Quinn’s recipe for success during his tenure in Seattle. However, the franchise is tied with two first round talent who could legitimately fall into the second round.

The Falcons’ head coach was recently seen on the Washington Huskies’ campus to work out cornerback Marcus Peters. Even if he faced controversy because of his behavior, which led him to be kicked out of the program earlier this year, the former Husky is arguably a top-notch player on the gridiron. Blogging Dirty’s Eric Robinson studied the young man earlier this week.

The Falcons are also interested in Wake Forest’s Kevin Johnson, a very talented player who build his game in the shadows and could end up as a steal in the second round.

Next: Building a talented front-seven