lcons and pinpoint the highs and lows of their ability."Biggest weakness: LengthOnce again Black Desmond Trufant Jersey , we stumble across the element of lack of arm length from the Falcons’ newest members to their offensive line. When compared to other notable offensive tackles in the 2019 draft, McGary has a discrepancy that stands out: Andre Dillard, OT, Washington State33 1⁄2 arm length80 3/8 wingspan Cody Ford, OT , Oklahoma34 82 1⁄2 Tytus Howard, OT , Alabama St. 34 81 5/8 Greg Little, OT, Ole Miss 35 1⁄4 85 McGary 32 7/8 79 3⁄4 As you observe, McGary does not have the length that a number of other prospects possess, which will make his footwork and his ability to strike effectively with his hands a little more pressing at the NFL level to help alleviate his lack of long arms. Round 4, 111th Overall - Kendall Sheffield, CB , Ohio State Biggest strength: Speed Sheffield possesses enough speed to loan some to another player and still have enough to hold his own. That part has never been questioned about his game, even during his collegiate career, where he bounced from Alabama to Blinn College to Ohio State. Sheffield’s long speed as well as his short area quickness allows him to keep his position against just about any receiver. His footwork is improving and that will only allow him to be more able to utilize his strength on the boundary as well as in the slot. Biggest weakness: Ball skills With his raw skill set Desmond Trufant Jersey 2019 , there are a few things that can be highlighted as weaknesses for Sheffield. But I point to ball skills, because it is an aspect that impacts his game in various ways. Sheffield only has two interceptions in two seasons in Columbus to go along with 15 pass deflections. However, where I’m turning my focus is Sheffield’s inability to properly track the ball when he is targeted. I have seen it a number of times when viewing his film against several different route combinations. Once Sheffield is able to improve in this phase, it should equate to more interceptions or just more plays on the ball. Round 4, 135th Overall - John Cominsky, DL , Charleston Biggest strength: Natural strength Cominsky was a dual-threat quarterback coming into college at close to 220 pounds. Over his career, Cominsky swelled to north of 280 pounds and became a stout defensive lineman who is rarely moved when blocked one-on-one. When Cominsky bursts out of his stance and engages with the defender initially, he has the power in a bull rush to give offensive linemen plenty of trouble in the battle of leverage. Cominsky proved to be a weight room warrior while at the University of Charleston. The Falcons wanted to add some muscle to their defensive line and Cominsky does just that. Biggest weakness: Pass rush skills It should be noted and repeated that Cominsky has only been playing the position for a handful of years, so he is not seasoned as of yet. This particular component showed signs of maturation on film, but just not consistently enough to consider him a legitimate pass rusher at the moment. Cominsky will need to generate an arsenal of pass rushing moves and utilize his hands effectively on a more consistent basis. Power won plenty of battles at the collegiate level for Cominsky and will win a fair share at the NFL level. But Cominsky needs development here or he can easily be a one-dimensional lineman who is very limited. Round 5, 152nd Overall - Qadree Ollison, RB , Pittsburgh Biggest strength: Power There is no sugarcoating it when describing Ollison’s skill set. He’s a power back to runs behind his pads and is a tough individual to bring down when he gets a full head of steam. Ollison has a fairly tall frame as a 6’1 running back, but he has developed his ability to lower his shoulder when need be and keeps his legs churning even when engaging with tacklers. His leg drive as a runner makes arm tacklers regret not bringing their hard hats when it comes to tackling attempts. Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images Biggest weakness: Agility There is pretty much no elusiveness in Ollison’s running ability. Ollison is about as straight-line of a runner as you can get as his change-of-direction skill is also minimal. While his backfield mates, Devonta Freeman and Ito Smith, are known for what they can create in space Black Damontae Kazee Jersey , Ollison does not offer that. What you see is what you get with Ollison. Round 5, 172nd Overall - Jordan Miller, CB, Washington Biggest strength: Frame/length The selection of Miller was an interesting one for the Falcons. While Miller was overshadowed aplenty at the University of Washington thanks to the amount of talent in the secondary, what he offers the Falcons is exactly they covet. At 6’1 and 186 pounds with almost 33-inch arms, Miller is a long corner with size and speed who is able to play his best in a zone coverage scheme, one much like the Falcons’ Cover 3 system. Thanks to that size, Miller should be able to contest catches a little more regularly than most zone corners. Biggest weakness: Play strength Miller’s lack of play strength shows up considerably in his tackling ability, where he demonstrates a trend of diving low at the ankles of ball carriers instead of proper wrapping-up ability. While Miller has a frame that can fill out over time and improve his play ability, the lankiness at this stage holds him back. At this year’s combine, Miller only registered six reps on the 225-pound bench press. It’s not the end of the world, but it is something to monitor early on in his career. Round 6, 203rd Overall - Marcus Green, WR/RB, Louisiana-Monroe Biggest strength: Versatility Everyone will likely point to Green’s 4.38 speed as his biggest asset. That dangerous speed in the open field is a definite plus, but Green’s value lies in how many different ways he can impact a football game. Green had 202 total receptions during his four seasons of college play as well as 23 receiving touchdowns. He also carried the ball 51 times during his career and averaged 9.6 yards per carry. In the kickoff return phase, Green averaged 25.2 yards per return during his career with over 1 Damontae Kazee Jersey 2019 ,700 return yards. Green can be a weapon regardless where he lines up on the field. Biggest weakness: Hands Green is not the greatest pass catcher and at times tends to “double-catch” the ball instead of instantly securing the pass. That plus his inability to make contested catches leaves Green somewhat shaky in terms of securing catches. Of course, this can improve over time. Without a large frame, timing as a route runner will magnify which can result in better catch rates over time.Falcons vs. Eagles preview: 5 questions, 5 answers about Atlanta’s Week 1 opponent We asked Brandon Gowton, the amiable Eagles fan and Bleeding Green Nation manager you all remember from his humble (and as it turns out, happily inaccurate for Philly fans) predictions for the Divisional Round game last year. In between celebrating a Super Bowl victory and gearing up for Thursday night’s game, Gowton was kind enough to share his thoughts on the game ahead with us. Wentz & FolesDave Choate: The status of Carson Wentz seems critical, as good as the Eagles roster is. When do you expect him back, and can Nick Foles keep up his magical recent run in the meantime? I’m not going to be guilty of underestimating him or the Eagles again. Brandon Gowton: To be honest, I expected Carson Wentz to play Week 1. Reports from as far back as January indicated the Eagles thought he’d have a chance to play in the season opener. I saw no reason not to believe this reporting after watching all of his practices throughout the spring and summer. I think the Eagles are just legitimately being extra careful with him, which I can’t fault them for. I tend to think we might see Wentz back in Week 3 since Peter King recently threw that date out there. But who knows for sure at this point.Can Nick Foles keep up his magical run? I do think he’s capable of doing so, yes. But I also think it’s entirely possible he doesn’t play well. Foles stunk it up in the preseason this year by going 16 of 26 for 171 yards, zero touchdowns, two interceptions, and a 48.7 passer rating (not to mention two fumbles lost). In fairness to the reigning Super Bowl MVP, he didn’t have a strong supporting cast considering a number of offensive starters weren’t playing. And it’s not like Doug Pederson was heavily game-planning the preseason. The reality is that Foles is just a high variance player. Foles has 18 starts with a passer rating over 100. He has 16 starts with a passer rating below 80. Only eight of his starts have fallen between that range. Eagles fans will hope to see Good Foles (and not Bad Foles) show up on Thursday night.Personally, Foles seems always seems to play his best when I doubt him Black Brandon Fusco Jersey , so maybe I should continue to keep that strategy going and try to motivate him. :) Ajayi, Clement & SprolesDave Choate: There’s quite a bit of talent at the running back position, but I’m curious as to how you think snaps are going to shake out. Will Ajayi dominate touches or will Clement be heavily involved in the passing game?Brandon Gowton: I do think Ajayi will take a bulk of the Eagles’ carries. He’s going to be a free agent after this season and it doesn’t seem likely the Eagles will be retain him due to their cap situation. So why not ride him hard this year? Ajayi did average 5.8 yards per carry with the Eagles in the regular season last year. He has the potential to be very effective behind an offensive line that returns all five starters from last year. I will add that I don’t think Ajayi will dominate all the running back touches. Darren Sproles and Corey Clement are better options as third down backs. I think Clement could especially play a factor in the red zone. Those guys are going to get mixed into the game plan. They can also spell Ajayi when necessary. Jordan MailataDave Choate: So we’ve all heard about Jordan Mailata at this point, and it’s a hell of a story. What’s his upside, and is there any chance we’ll see him during this first game with the injuries Philly’s dealing with?Brandon Gowton: It’s really incredible that a dude who hadn’t even played a football game in his entire life until last month made the Eagles’ 53-man roster. And really, he earned his spot on the team. Former NFL offensive linemen have been absolutely raving about this 21-year-old mammoth who measures in at 6-8, 350 pounds. Brian Baldinger said “he’s taken a thousand light years of steps in four months.” Ross Tucker said Mailata is going to be an All-Pro. Football scout/writer Tommy Lawlor said Mailata already reminds him of sure-fire future Hall of Famer Jason Peters. The feeling here is that Mailata still has a long way to go before he’s ever going to see meaningful playing time, but his progress has been nothing short of remarkable. Mailata is likely to be inactive on game day for the entire season. He still has a lot to learn and the Eagles have a number of players who are ahead of him at tackle on their depth chart. The hope is he can continue to learn and eventually be Peters’ replacement. Peters turns 37 in January. What the Falcons should attackDave Choate: Defensively, what should the Falcons be looking to attack? Atlanta had virtually no luck on offense against Philadelphia less than a year ago, so I’m wondering what has changed. Brandon Gowton: If I’m the Falcons, I’m looking to see if I can get Tevin Coleman going. He had 10 carries for 79 yards (plus one reception for 14) against the Eagles earlier this year. Compare that to Devonta Freeman’s 10 carries for seven yards. If I recall correctly, he had some success on runs to the outside. The Eagles will be without starting linebacker Nigel Bradham so they could look to test the likes of new starting linebackers Kamu Grugier-Hill and Nathan Gerry.I’d also be looking to test the Eagles in the slot. The Eagles’ starting cornerbacks (Jalen Mills and Ronald Darby) have had very good offseasons but 2017 second-round pick Sidney Jones is new to playing the slot. He had some good moments this summer but this is also going to be his first real season and I think he could be prone to making some mistakes. If I’m the Falcons, I’m looking to mix Calvin Ridley and Julio Jones in the slot to test Jones. Dave Choate: A classic: How do you expect this game to turn out, and what are your expectations for the season? Can this Eagles team repeat as Super Bowl champions, and will they? Brandon Gowton: I genuinely can’t believe the season is here already. I feel like I was just in Minnesota watching the Eagles beat the Patriots in the Super Bowl. I almost don’t even feel ready to turn the page on last year. But alas, I must. I don’t think I have a great feel for this game yet. I don’t feel ready to pick against the Super Bowl champs just yet. But the Eagles do have a number of players coming off injury and I could see them having somewhat of a physical hangover. I just can’t help but wonder if the Falcons are going to come in pissed off and really want this game more than the Eagles want it. Then again, the Eagles are 15-3 at home in the Doug Pederson era Brandon Fusco Jersey 2019 , and one of those losses was when the starters didn’t play in Week 17 last year. Philadelphia still has a lot of talent on their roster even though they’ll be missing Wentz, Alshon Jeffery, and Timmy Jernigan. I’ll be boring and say this is another game that comes down to the wire. I’ll take the Eagles to win in a close one, 28 to 27. As far as my season expectations go, I think this is still a double-digit win team. This team might be due for a slow start but I think they’ll start to hit their stride eventually. I just believe in Carson Wentz’s ability and Doug Pederson’s coaching too much to think otherwise. This Eagles team CAN repeat as Super Bowl champions. I mean, they won it all last year despite not even having the likes of Wentz, Peters, Sproles, Jordan Hicks, and Chris Maragos suit up for them in the big game. They may be uniquely qualified to do something that’s only been accomplished once before in the salary cap era.But it certainly won’t be easy. The NFL is just such a year-to-year league. Heck, there hasn’t even been a repeat NFC East champion since 2004. We know this Eagles team has a high ceiling. It’s just a matter of if they can reach their potential.
