Falcons: Despite position change, it looks like Jalen Mayfield hasn't changed

Jalen Mayfield was supposed to come in and be a main piece for the Atlanta Falcons in 2021. Instead, he almost got franchise legend Matt Ryan killed and spent his entire sophomore season on injured reserve.

This offseason, the Falcons made a last-ditch effort to save Mayfield's career by switching him back to the position he played in college—offensive tackle. While it is still too early to right him completely off, things are not looking positive for the third-year pro.

Falcons might have to move on from OG/OT Jalen Mayfield pretty soon

Terry Fontenot's third draft selection as the general manager of the Atlanta Falcons will not go down as one of his best draft picks. Fontenot used the 68th pick in the 2021 NFL Draft on offensive lineman Jalen Mayfield.

Mayfield went on to have a historically bad season as the team's left guard.

Not many Falcons fans lost any sleep when Jalen Mayfield was placed on injured reserve in his second season. Some might even call it the "phantom injured reserve."

It was unknown what Mayfield's fate would be going into this offseason but we quickly found out that he would be moving to offensive tackle, in what seems like a desperate attempt to salvage his NFL career.

Well, one week into training camp and Mayfield already went viral, for all the wrong reasons. He was absolutely blown up by third-round pick Zach Harrison.

For anyone who was hoping for a miracle with Jalen Mayfield, this is not a good sign.

If you look closely his technique is extremely poor. It appears like he had no firm platform and was basically doing high knees. He was anticipating more of a speed rush and Harrison just came straight at him and wrecked him. If that is what happens in practice then it is scary to imagine what would happen in a game.

This is not a good look for him and it certainly won't help his confidence.

Even from the start, his move to offensive tackle wasn't likely to pan out. When we saw him on the field, he struggled mightily in pass protection and was decent but not great as a run blocker. Putting him at offensive tackle will only accentuate his struggles.

As was just mentioned, his confidence probably isn't sky-high, and putting a player with low confidence on an island with quick and powerful edge rushers isn't going to do him any favors.

Nevertheless, we all had given up on Kaleb McGary a year ago and he suddenly became worthy of a contract worth $34.5 million. Until he is released, all hope is not lost. Hopefully, he will figure things out because the Falcons are currently desperate for a backup offensive tackle, especially after Ethan Greenidge's injury.