Falcons 'Comfortable and Confident' in Secondary Despite No Draft Additions

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. -- The Atlanta Falcons' defense has long been a punchline for struggles rushing the passer, allowing concerns in the secondary to be at least partially overlooked.

But Falcons head coach Raheem Morris and general manager Terry Fontenot entered the 2024 NFL Draft with plans of reversing that trend, intending to add another piece to a defensive backs room that helped Atlanta finish No. 8 league-wide in pass defense a season ago.

The plan didn't come to fruition. The Falcons made eight picks, five of which were used on defense but none on the back end.

Questions persisted around Atlanta's No. 2 cornerback spot opposite A.J. Terrell, a role held primarily by Jeff Okudah last season before rookie Clark Phillips III took over for the final five games. Okudah left for the Houston Texans in free agency, but Phillips returned - though with his 5-9, 184-pound frame, his long-term ability to play on the perimeter left some concerned.

Those concerns aren't felt inside Atlanta's headquarters in Flowery Branch, and Morris spoke highly of Phillips throughout the spring and into the summer. The same is true with veteran Mike Hughes, who emerged as the Falcons' starting nickel corner for the season's last four contests.

With Morris, defensive coordinator Jimmy Lake and secondary coach Justin Hood entering the fold this spring, Dee Alford has returned to the first-team nickel job while Phillips and Hughes have alternated reps as the starting No. 2 corner.

And while most - including the Falcons' decision makers - foresaw another name joining that competition this summer, Hood feels strongly about his room.

"Extremely comfortable and confident," Hood told FalconsSI near the end of OTAs. "We've got guys that come in and compete and work every single day. When I sit there and think about it, it's never a 'Find a guy opposite A.J.'

"To me, it's, 'Find a guy that's going to come in and execute and compete every single day.' And that includes A.J."

Falcons assistant head coach/defense Jerry Gray is one of several carryovers from Arthur Smith's staff to Morris's, and he's remained involved in defensive back meetings. Gray, Hood and defensive assistant Lance Schulters are the main coaching presences in the room.

Like Hood, Gray likes what he's seen from the group - particularly Hughes. Gray was the Minnesota Vikings' defensive backs coach when they drafted Hughes in the first round in 2018, and he said Hughes looks like the player who was in Minnesota before injuries took a toll on the earlier stages of the 27-year-old's career.

Another who's made an impression on Gray is second-year pro Anthony Johnson, who spent part of last season on the practice squad of the Green Bay Packers, where Hood was a defensive quality control coach. The 6-2, 205-pound Johnson, who's nicknamed "AJ2" by his coaches, is going to be a good player, Gray thinks.

Phillips, Hughes and Johnson make up Atlanta's top outside corners behind Terrell. At nickel, Gray believes Alford is taking the next step in his progression, and the 26-year-old has put a strong hold on the spot this summer.

There may not be a shiny new face, but Hood believes there are capable options.

"We feel very comfortable in the young men that we have in that room, their ability to come in and compete, understand the game plan or what we're trying to get accomplished executed at a high level," Hood said.

But Atlanta's secondary question extends beyond cornerback.

The Falcons have one of the game's best safeties in Jessie Bates III, a Pro Bowler and All-Pro last season after leading the team with 132 tackles and six interceptions.

Competition exists next to Bates, with ascending second-year pro DeMarcco Hellams appearing well-positioned to win the starting job, but Richie Grant remains in the picture. Hellams took a majority of the first-team reps during OTAs and minicamp with Grant rotating in for a smaller portion.

Morris previously said he owed Grant an apology because he wasn't familiar with the former UCF standout's skill set upon arrival but now views him as a strong piece. Hood is similarly high on Hellams, citing his intelligence, work ethic and practice habits.

The room belongs to Bates, but during training camp, all eyes will be on the spot alongside him. Hood feels there are plenty of positives coming out of the summer's early phase.

"I like the guys' mentality," Hood said. "That's across the board. I think Jessie obviously sets the tone, being the most accomplished or established guy in the room, but at the same time, you get a guy like Richie, who's played a lot of football. 'Marcco comes in, who's played a lot of football, and then the other guys are able to come in and compete."

At safety, those "other guys" are led by Micah Abernathy, who played in 12 games a season ago and is the favorite to be the team's No. 4 safety this fall. Other contenders include six-year veteran Dane Cruikshank, who signed with the team after trying out May 10 at rookie minicamp, and Tre Tarpley III, a returning-practice squad member from last year, among others.

With several spots open, each day, each practice, is a battle - which is exactly what Hood wants.

"The biggest thing to me is going to be competition," Hood said. "And those guys understand that. So, throughout the offseason and OTAs, just those guys being able to come in and learn the scheme and understand what we're asking them to do and then go execute so they can put their best-foot forward when they step across the lines. That's built on competition."

With seven safeties and 11 cornerbacks currently on the 90-man roster, Atlanta's defensive backs room will look much different come Week 1, when the roster is trimmed to 53 players.

Currently, Gray sees Bates, Terrell and a lot of veterans, and that's ultimately how the room may look when the Falcons take the field in the fall. But Bates, conversely, sees a plethoa of young players.

Bates acknowledged some of those younger players, like undrafted rookie corners Trey Vaval and Jayden Price, may not get their opportunity in Atlanta, but by the time they leave, he hopes they'll recognize the standard set in the room.

What is the standard? Simple, Gray says: To be the best.

"Those guys know that they're competing, but they're competing in a way to we're going to get better at it," Gray said during OTAs. "We're not competing against each other; we're competing to be the best secondary in the league. And that's the standard those guys want to set."

Morris and Lake are bringing some of the defensive principles they had with the Los Angeles Rams last season to Atlanta, spearheaded by more zone coverage after the Falcons were amongst the league leaders in man coverage a season ago.

The new defensive staff is emphasizing the need for each player to do their respective job and trust the other 10 on the field. It's a particularly relevant request for the secondary, which Hellams said is the backbone of the defense.

Defensive backs can be the brains of the operation, Hellams noted, because they see the field from the widest perspective. They can adjust calls and, under Lake, are taking on a more communicative role.

With the growing importance of secondary players under Morris, the lack of a big-name addition becomes more questionable - but Hellams sees it differently.

"It definitely was something the guys looked at as far as, 'Okay, if this is what Rah and Lake and Terry did, then obviously that says how they feel about us,'" Hellams said in the middle of May. "They feel like the guys in this room can get it done, and every guy in that room feels the same way. So, it wasn't a surprise when no one was drafted in the DB room.

"It was just another look at each other like, 'Okay, we know what we said before: We all we have, we all we need.'"

The Falcons, Morris pointed out post-draft, added a few defensive backs in free agency, with veterans Antonio Hamilton Sr. and Kevin King.

Hamilton wasn't present at the start of OTAs, and when he returned, he was Alford's backup at nickel. King, meanwhile, worked under Gray in 2020 and 2021 with the Packers but hasn't played a snap since; he sat out the 2022 season due to personal reasons and tore his Achilles during offseason training in 2023.

Atlanta added Johnson and Cruikshank a few weeks after the draft, and signed veteran corner Harrison Hand after the last practice of mandatory minicamp June 11.

But the top of the Falcons' defensive backs room doesn't appear poised to change in the immediate future, and Alford sees the offseason moves - or lack thereof - as a vote of confidence.

"It does, as a person, make you feel like, 'Okay, they really believe in this DB group,' and we know that," Alford said May 21. "We won't let anyone down. We'll continue to get better and continue to build."

The Falcons have five more weeks of summer break before returning for training camp. They don't have a starting secondary penciled in, but barring injuries, know this much: Bates and Terrell will lead whoever else is with them.

After two and a half months of offseason training, Bates said the defensive backs are very tight. Some may feel there's still one or two pieces missing. Bates isn't one of them.

"There's always going to be Twitter GMs everywhere, but if we trust each other in the group that we have already - which we do - don't matter who's on the field," Bates said during OTAs. "The standard's going to be the standard for our DB room."