The Atlanta Falcons have quietly tethered their fate to the Philadelphia Eagles this offseason. Not only have they tried to emulate the Eagles' Super Bowl-winning front office approach, they brought in several people with ties to an organization that has grown synonymous with winning in recent years.
Before being hired by the Falcons, Ian Cunningham worked under Howie Roseman in Philadelphia, as did assistant GM Jeff Scott and Senior Vice President of Football Administration (and the salary cap guy) Bryce Johnston. However, the two ex-Eagles who have made the biggest impacts came on-field.
Atlanta signed Jahan Dotson in free agency and traded two Day 3 pick swaps to acquire Sydney Brown--and both of those decisions have offered a return on investment. And the reason why? The pair of ex-Eagles have been two of the biggest standouts across the first week of Falcons camp.
Sydney Brown and Jahan Dotson have shined at Falcons training camp
Let's start with Dotson. The former first-round pick was paid WR3 money to operate as Atlanta's WR2, and that decision had quickly been vindicated. He's consistently been on the field during 3-WR sets, and he's typically been the second wideout on the field during 2-WR sets alongside Drake London.
The 26-year-old is in an excellent situation with the Dirty Birds. He's the deep threat who will make it harder for defenses to key in on London. His main issue is that he struggles as a separator, but Jahan Dotson has been thrust into a niche role that he fits perfectly--which is why he has excelled in camp.
And Brown has been an interesting case study as well. The running expectation was that he'll be the third safety behind Xavier Watts and Jessie Bates, but that's not the only way the Falcons have utilized his versatility. They have also lined him up in the nickel amid the open competition there.
The fourth-year DB has received nickel reps with the first-team defense, where he's in a good spot to win this job over AJ Woods or Darnay Holmes. During Wednesday's practice, he had a great rep in 1-on-1 against Zachariah Branch, and picked off Michael Penix Jr. during the 7-on-7 portion--though the play was blown dead for a sack.
The change of scenery from Philadelphia to Atlanta has helped both Sydney Brown and Jahan Dotson, as both ex-Eagles are pushing for key roles with the Falcons as training camp progresses. And the better they look in camp, the more hopeful both of their redemption arcs become.
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