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Atlanta Falcons: What will be Vic Beasley’s ceiling in 2016?

By Colin Hubbard

May 26, 2015; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Falcons linebacker Vic Beasley (44) warms up on the field during OTA at Falcons Training Facility. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
May 26, 2015; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Falcons linebacker Vic Beasley (44) warms up on the field during OTA at Falcons Training Facility. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports /
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What can we expect from the Atlanta Falcons’ 2015 first-round pick in 2016?

Most of us knew coming in that Vic Beasley wasn’t going to be a superstar right away for the Atlanta Falcons. This was a player that would need a couple of years under his belt before his true potential shinned through and that just might turn out to be true.

Beasley as a rookie in 2015 never really lived up to expectations. Let’s face it, recording four sacks for a guy that was the eighth overall pick in the draft just wasn’t good enough. When a player’s one and only job is to rush the passer, you expect to produce more sacks than that but he was a rookie so we’re giving him the benefit of the doubt.

As he enters his second summer as an NFL pro, what can we expect to see out of him in 2016? In a perfect world we would love to see him record at least 10 sacks but that’s still being generous. If Dan Quinn is truly trying to recreate the Seattle Seahawks’ defense in Atlanta, having a 10-sack guy really isn’t needed.

Let’s take a look at the Seahawks’ 2013 season under Quinn in which the won the Superbowl.

Michael Bennett led the Seahawks that season with 8.5 sacks and Cliff Avril followed right behind with 8. Clinton McDonald finished with 5.5 and Bobby Wagner finished with 5. It was clear that the Seahawks’ 2013 defense was a team effort. It wasn’t just one guy recording all of the sacks.

Will Beasley ever be as good as J.J. Watt? Absolutely not. But, do the Falcons need him to be that good? Absolutely not. What the Falcons need is for Beasley to lead the pack and have three or four guys under him chipping in.

Speaking hypothetical here, let’s take a look at what the Falcons could achieve as a team in sacks.

  • Beasley – 8
  • Shelby – 6
  • Clayborn – 5
  • Jarrett – 4
  • Upshaw – 4

If these five players could put up numbers close to these, that would give them 23 sacks. Sprinkle in seven or eight more amongst some linebackers and secondary players and you have at the very worst a 10-sack increase from a season ago.

Those numbers above are very realistic. Those aren’t numbers that are far-fetched by any means. Is that the ceiling for that group? Absolutely not. The ceiling for that group would be 30 sacks combined from those five players. Could that happen? Sure, but odds are it won’t happen.

Next: Five second-year players that will have an impactful 2016 season

The main takeaway is this. The Falcons don’t need Beasley to put up crazy sack numbers in order to be successful. They need everyone contributing in order to succeed. Quinn’s system calls for his entire defensive unit to play at a high level and that’s hopefully what we will start to see more and more as he continues to build the defense.

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