Ben Garland Recognized For His Outstanding Effort

Atlanta Falcons Guard Ben Garland, a 2009 graduate of the Air Force Academy and current Colorado National Guard Officer, was selected as the NFL’s recipient of the 2018 Salute to Service award.

Garland is the third consecutive Falcons player/Coach chosen as the Salute to Service Award winner, Head Coach Dan Quinn was the 2016 recipient and WR Andre Roberts took home the honor in 2017.

Playing in 14 games for the Atlanta Falcons in 2018, with four starts against Washington, Cleveland, Dallas and New Orleans, Garland was an important piece to an offensive line that struggled at times with injuries and consistency.

Only signing a one year deal after last season, he is an unrestricted free agent going into 2019. With his ability to play both guard spots and center, I would be shocked if the Falcons did not attempt to resign him again for 2019.

It’s really easy to forget all the good that NFL players do in their communities as the majority of their time is not chronicled. However, Ben Garland and the entire Atlanta Falcons organization do a tremendous job in our community giving back to those that are in need.

We often talk about the “Falcons filter” as a negative, however, isn’t that perceived filter a major plus when you see the players on this roster routinely nominated for community service awards and winning military service awards? I believe so and I think you would all agree, its a lot better than being known as a locker room enigma.

This isn’t the hardware we were hoping the Falcons would bring home for the 2018 NFL season, but this is arguably the most important.