NFL teams have a lot to juggle every season. They have 53 players on their active roster—plus a practice squad—and they must learn each of their individual strengths and weaknesses. Most of us can’t even identify our own strengths, much less 67 other people. In other words, there is bound to be some misusage of players, and the Atlanta Falcons are no different.
It is a game that requires coaches to do a lot of mix and matching. Players aren’t always going to be put in their most optimal position but there are a few players, specifically, that were routinely misused.
Now you are asking yourself, who are those players? We will identify four players—two on offense, two on defense—who were routinely put in the wrong position this past regular season.
1. Jaylinn Hawkins, S, Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons decided to test out their two young safeties on defense this past season, one of which was Jaylinn Hawkins.
Hawkins, by no means, is a big body (6’1″, 205 lbs) but he plays bigger than his size. Coming out of college he was seen as a physical player who doesn’t have great speed. And while he played well in 2022, he was put in the wrong position.
You would think he would play closer to the line of scrimmage but that isn’t how Dean Pees used him. Out of his 955 defensive snaps, he was in the box or on the defensive line for a combined 265 snaps. Compare that to his 587 snaps at free safety and 103 snaps at cornerback and it shows that he wasn’t used to his strengths.
You cannot ignore his athletic limitations. He should be put in a position where he can use his physicality, rather than his speed, on every down.
2. Cordarrelle Patterson, RB, Atlanta Falcons
Most of you probably know the skillset of the Atlanta Falcons playmaker Cordarrelle Patterson. He was drafted as a wide receiver a decade ago and then switched to running back.
Patterson has receiving skills, is powerful as a runner, and has explosive burst and speed. Throughout the entire year, Patterson was rarely used as a receiver, instead, he almost exclusively lined up in the backfield.
Related: Cordarrelle Patterson hopes Falcons sign five-time Pro Bowl WR.
We can all agree that his 2021 season was the best of his career, and uncoincidentally, he was used all over the place quite routinely. Sure, there were quarterback limitations for much of 2022 but his usage out wide/in the slot dropped much more than you can blame solely on that.
Look at his snaps by position in 2022 compared to 2021, according to Pro Football Focus:
*Note: 2021 snaps in parenthesis*
- Total snaps: 382 (472)
- Backfield: 304 (294)
- Slot: 35 (65)
- Wide: 42 (97)
Although he played almost 100 fewer snaps, his snaps at receiver did take a big tumble this past season. In 2021 he was used at WR on about 34% of his snaps compared to just 20% in 2022. His snaps at receiver should be >30% each season.
3. Richie Grant, S, Atlanta Falcons
Wow, a common theme isn’t it? The Falcons, or more specifically Dean Pees, did not use their safeties in the most ideal way during the season.
If you couldn’t guess, Jaylinn Hawkins and Richie Grant’s roles should have been reversed. While neither of them are extremely athletic, there is no doubt that Grant is more apt to play deep zones. However, that isn’t the picture that his snaps by position would paint.
- Total snaps: 1116
- DLine/Box: 340
- CB: 310
- FS: 466
Richie Grant is a versatile defender, so seeing him play so many snaps at all of those positions is great, if, there is an uber-athletic safety behind him—that wasn’t the case in 2022. Jaylinn Hawkins played more than 100 more snaps at free safety—and played one less game—than Richie Grant.
You would think that the defensive coaching staff would rather see Grant back there making plays on the ball than Hawkins. Richie’s snaps close to the line of scrimmage shouldn’t have been so high with the circumstances of the roster.
4. Kyle Pitts, TE, Atlanta Falcons
Most of the NFL was aware of the misusage of Atlanta Falcons tight end Kyle Pitts. Fantasy owners were sick and tired of the lack of production due to a lack of opportunities in the passing game.
At times it was worth wondering if Arthur Smith thought Kyle Pitts was the one who retired last offseason, not Lee Smith. It was frustrating, to say the least.
This one doesn’t need much explanation but we will dive in just a little bit. During Pitts’ rookie season, he pass-blocked on just 2.7% of passing plays, but in 2022 that number rose to 6.7%. You can live with the 2.7% because sometimes you draw up a play like a screen pass that goes the way of Cordarrelle Patterson (or others), so Pitts should be blocking, but 6.7% is just too high.
However, there is more to it than just the over-usage as a blocker, he wasn’t put in a position (partially due to QB limitations) to go out there and play like a wide receiver. Pitts was used more on the line and less out wide than during his rookie season. Sure, he is a ‘tight end’ but much like Cordarrelle Patterson, he should be used in a wide variety of ways.
Not to mention, there were hardly ever any play calls that were simply designed to get the ball in his hands. Hopefully, in 2023, Arthur Smith will have a consistent quarterback and will get back to using him as he did during both of their first seasons in Atlanta.