Atlanta Falcons: Checking out the most important position battle

Which position is the most important camp battle for the Atlanta Falcons according to the fans, and is that the right one to be concerned with?

Training camp is just around the corner (finally) and that means some long-awaited position battles will finally take place. The question though is, which is the most important one in terms of sustaining success for the Atlanta Falcons?

Recently Falcons’ digital content producer Kelsey Conway reached out to the fans to see which ones they felt deserved the most attention. In a Twitter poll Conway asked fans what battle is most intriguing to them out of right guard, nickel back, linebacker and kick returner.

In a bit of a surprise, the fans said linebacker. Now initially this seems like it isn’t the most important battle, but again Conway asked what the fans are most “interested” in. Looking at it from this angle makes sense as fans may be excited to see if rookie third round pick Duke Riley can win the weak side job. If so, he would be starting alongside former LSU teammate Deion Jones (middle linebacker) and De’Vondre Campbell (strong side).

However, if we were to ask what is the most important to their success, it would probably have to be right guard. This is a position of weakness, and while many hoped to see a player selected here early on in the 2017 NFL Draft, the team didn’t agree.

Instead, they waited until Round 4 to take Oregon State’s Sean Harlow. He will now compete with second-year pro Wes Scweitzer and fourth-year player Ben Garland for the job. Whoever can rise up here and perform the best could go a long way in determining the way the season plays out for the Falcons.

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That makes the guard position much more important, even if it isn’t the most fun to watch — like the linebackers very well could be.