FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. – The Atlanta Falcons wrapped up their 2019 NFL Draft on Saturday after adding seven new players to the team. Atlanta addressed a majority of its needs in the draft, selecting two offensive linemen, two cornerbacks, two running backs and a defensive end.
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So, what do Falcons coach Dan Quinn and general manager Thomas Dimitroff think of their draft haul? They spoke with the media and provided their thoughts on each pick, which we have briefly curated below to give the best picture of what they like in each new Falcon.
Chris Lindstrom, G, Boston College
Dimitroff: "Well, he is a very aggressive, very urgent football player. He comes off the ball very well for us. He can slide well. He's a good athlete as well as being tough and gritty. I mean, he's just one of those guys that bring to the table - again, both on and off the field can be obviously very good."
- Video: Boston College highlights
Quinn: "For me, two of the traits that we look for that we grade each player on is competitiveness and toughness. And the way we look at competitiveness is the urgency, and the player that he comes off the snap or passes off a stunt. That type of urgency and finish really jumped out to me when I started the process."
Kaleb McGary, OT, Washington
Dimitroff: "We were very focused on him. We thought that we were able to get him in the middle of the second and the more that we looked at it, the more we started talking to more people about where we were going with our offensive line picks. We felt like we needed to be aggressive."
Quinn: "It might not have been shiny, but I don't think grit is real shiny. These guys have got a lot of dog in them. And that, to me, was one of the real emphases of what we wanted to get done. I'm really thrilled that they'll be a part of our group for a long time."
Kendall Sheffield, CB, Ohio State
Dimitroff: "Yeah, this guy can fly. He is really fast. He's one of the faster guys in this year's draft. Obviously, (he) wasn't able to run at the combine. He's an aggressive guy, as well. He's a guy that we looked to continue to grow with, and he has the ability to play on the outside."
Quinn: "We really expect these guys to have an impact right away. The reason is ... the ball skills on Miller, the game-readiness of those two players. They've been in it, they can stay right at the line of scrimmage and battle for it. The speed that we've added in Sheff, and the ball skills that we've added in Jordan, you're always trying to feature the good things that a player has."
John Cominsky, DE, Charleston
Dimitroff: "He's (2)85 right now, and the ability to get bigger and to be (2)95-plus is something that we believe can happen. But here's a guy that can move around really well. He is a hard-charging, intelligent guy who's really, really gritty and really driven, and we look at the versatility."
Quinn: "So yeah, what we saw is, one, quickness, toughness, for a guy who is that size. And then the physicality that could go along with that, and then you saw the jump take place at the Senior Bowl and the work that he did during the week ... The more we spent time with him, the more we found out about him, and now we really have a clear vision of where we think he can go."
Qadree Ollison, RB, Pittsburgh
Dimitroff: "He's a big back. We've been looking for a big back to add to that group. We think that, again back to versatility, he's a big guy, a strong guy. Actually has really nice feet and game-speed ability about him for a bigger back like that. He has pass-pro ability as well and can catch the ball as well, so there's a versatility element to a bigger guy."
Quinn: "We expect him to have an impact on all four downs."
Jordan Miller, CB, Washington
Dimitroff: "His injury was an ankle situation that was taken care of after last year, and he had a little bit of a brush this year, but it wasn't anything that's concerning going forward. Actually it was one of the reasons that we believe that he got to where he did get to for us because again, he has some real value for us ... And we were, again, very encouraged to get him where we got him."
Quinn: "To have the ball skills outside, how important that is. We talk about it every Wednesday and Thursday and Friday, so for another guy to have the chance to turn the ball over, he's got plenty of experience outside, inside, and so we couldn't be more pumped to add both the corners into the group."
Marcus Green, RB, Louisiana-Monroe
Dimitroff: "Speedy guy, quick-twitch guy, as well. He's a rocked-up guy, too. He's not slight. He's a guy that can, again, combination of height, weight -- sorry, not height. Speed and bulk."
Quinn: "So, Green - kick return, punt return, running back ability, receiver ability. We'll start him off at running back and incorporate him into that way. But like most guys, we're going to find out as much as we can."
