When Raheem Morris was running the defense for the Rams, the NFC West club won a Super Bowl in 2021 and advanced to the playoffs in 2023.
That success helped Morris land the Falcons head coaching job and Atlanta will be hoping he can build another strong defense even though they don’t have the likes of Aaron Donald to threaten offenses. They also don’t have Bud Dupree and Calais Campbell, who tied for the team lead in sacks last year before departing as free agents this offseason.
Without those players, the Falcons will be looking to others to provide pass rush. Their outside linebacker group will be at the forefront of that search and position coach Jacquies Smith likes what he’s seen from the relatively inexperienced group. 2022 second-rounder Arnold Ebiketie had six sacks while playing a third of the defensive snaps and the team also has 2022 third-rounder DeAngelo Malone and 2024 third-rounder Bralen Trice along with veteran Lorenzo Carter.
“When we do get a chance to show the world maybe they might have a different tune of what they’ve been saying,” Smith said, via the team’s website. “We can’t talk about it with our mouths, we’ll get that chance to be able to prove it on the field. . . . The potential is growing and the pressure is mounting for us to get more. We see it, now we want more.”
If the group can’t live up to Smith’s advance billing, it is going to be tough for the Falcons to slow anybody down on the field in 2024.