Jan 1, 2015; Tampa, FL, USA; Auburn Tigers quarterback Nick Marshall (14) during the first half in the 2015 Outback Bowl at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
The 2015 NFL Draft is now only two days away. All of us here at Blogging Dirty are bursting with excitement to learn who the new additions to the Atlanta Falcons will be.
More from Atlanta Falcons Draft
- Atlanta Falcons trade up for a quarterback in this full mock draft
- Atlanta Falcons: 3 trade packages to land first-overall pick
- 4 QBs Atlanta Falcons could target in rumored trade for No. 1 pick
- 3 Things Atlanta Falcons fans learned from Terry Fontenot at combine presser
- NFL insider says Atlanta Falcons will make play for No. 1 pick in draft
In the meantime, we realized that each of us had differing ideas on who we thought the Falcons should target in each round and why. What better way to voice our opinions and pass the time until the real draft than by having our very own Blogging Dirty Writers’ Mock Draft?
The Writers’ Mock Draft works like this: each writer will make their pick for the Falcons in each round, based upon who they believe will be available and their perception of the team’s needs. They will then provide a short summary of the pick to explain the reasoning behind it.
This mock assumes no trades, and that the Falcons will be picking based on the official draft order. Let’s get drafting!
In the 7th round, most teams are looking for players with potential to become depth and that have a good chance of making an NFL roster. From time to time, players fall because of injury or character concerns, and the 7th is a good time to pick up some of the more risky project players. There are plenty of solid selections left at this point in the draft, so let’s see who our writers think can make a difference for the Falcons.
In case you’ve missed the previous rounds, here they are: Round 1, Round 2, Round 3, Round 4, Round 5, and Round 6.
Keep in mind, the Falcons have two picks in this round. Who did our writers select with the Falcons’ seventh round picks? Let’s find out!
Kevin Knight
Previous Picks: Round 1 – OLB Randy Gregory; Round 2 – ILB Stephone Anthony; Round 3 – FS Damarious Randall; Round 4 – G Jarvis Harrison; Round 5 – RB Karlos Williams; Round 6 – TE Wes Saxton
Eric Robinson
Previous Picks: Round 1 – OLB Randy Gregory; Round 2 – FS Derron Smith; Round 3 – G Tre’ Jackson; Round 4 – RB David Johnson; Round 5 – DE Lynden Trail; Round 6 – WR Dezmin Lewis
James Hicks
Previous Picks: Round 1 – DE/OLB Bud Dupree; Round 2 – RB Ameer Abdullah; Round 3 – TE Clive Walford; Round 4 – DT Gabe Wright; Round 5 – G/T Chaz Green; Round 6 – WR DeAndre Smelter
Adnan Ikic
Previous Picks: Round 1 – OLB Randy Gregory; Round 2 – TE Maxx Williams; Round 3 – CB Alex Carter; Round 4 – G Arie Kouandjio; Round 5 – ILB Bryce Hager; Round 6 – DE Ray Drew
David Neff
Previous Picks: Round 1 – DE/OLB Bud Dupree; Round 2 – CB/FS Eric Rowe; Round 3 – C/G Ali Marpet; Round 4 – WR Tre McBride; Round 5 – TE MyCole Pruitt; Round 6 – RB Synjyn Days
Righteous Chester
Previous Picks: Round 1 – CB Trae Waynes; Round 2 – OLB Eli Harold; Round 3 – RB Jeremy Langford; Round 4 – G Mitch Morse; Round 5 – FB Jalston Fowler; Round 6 – ILB Ramik Wilson
Harrison Nayler
Previous Picks: Round 1 – OLB Randy Gregory; Round 2 – C/G Ali Marpet; Round 3 – DE Nate Orchard; Round 4 – S Durell Eskridge; Round 5 – RB David Cobb; Round 6 – TE Wes Saxton
Sunny Minhas
Previous Picks: Round 1 – OLB Randy Gregory; Round 2 – CB Jalen Collins; Round 3 – C/G Ali Marpet; Round 4 – RB Mike Davis; Round 5 – WR DeAndre Smelter; Round 6 – DT Tory Slater
Freddie Boston
Previous Picks: Round 1 – DE/OLB Bud Dupree; Round 2 – CB Kevin Johnson; Round 3 – RB Ameer Abdullah; Round 4 – CB Steven Nelson; Round 5 – ILB Mike Hull; Round 6 – WR Darren Waller
Aloïs Piet
Previous Picks: Round 1 – DE/OLB Bud Dupree; Round 2 – FS Damarious Randall; Round 3 – WR Tre McBride; Round 4 – RB David Cobb; Round 5 – CB Justin Coleman; Round 6 – C/G Shaquille Mason
As is expected this late in the draft, there was a lot of variety in the final picks. There were a lot of positions selected, including TE, LB, RB/FB, WR, DE, T, CB, and S. No two writers ended up picking the same prospects, proving how many quality choices there should be for the Falcons at the conclusion of Day 3.
Round 7 seems to have bucked the trend of offense-heavy late rounds, with nine offensive players taken to 11 defensive players selected. The secondary was the area that was addressed most commonly, with five total picks (three CB, two S). WR and T were also popular selections, with each position receiving three picks each.
This late in the draft, teams are looking for players that can come in and compete for a roster spot, or that they can stash on the practice squad to develop. Generally, these players will become your core special teamers and your rotational depth. It’s rare, but occasionally you can find a starter quality player in the 7th round or UDFA.
The Falcons have actually done well in this regard, with several 7th rounders and UDFAs contributing early on. In 2014, Kemal Ishmael (7th) and Paul Worrilow (UDFA) each played a large amount of snaps on defense for Atlanta.
That’s it for the Blogging Dirty Writers’ Mock Draft. We hope you’ve enjoyed reading it as much as we enjoyed putting it together. Stay tuned in the next few days for more draft coverage, as we get closer to finding out (at long last) who the Falcons 2015 draft class will be!
What do you think about the Round 7 picks? Is offense or defense more important to you at this point in the draft? Are there any priority UDFAs that you think the Falcons should pick up?
Next: NFL Mock Draft 2015: Shane Ray to Atlanta Falcons?