Falcons roster battles on offense to look forward to this summer

NFLPA Rookie Premiere — Photo by Aubrey Lao/Getty Images

There are no battles for starting jobs on offense, but the Falcons still have roster fights to watch.

It’s never too early to start daydreaming about summer. This Atlanta Falcons training camp figures to be a consequential one, with an early glimpse at what’s expected to be a significantly improved offense, as well as a heavy and likely lengthy battle for roles and roster spots on the defensive side of the ball.

While most of the starter-related intrigue is on the defensive side of the ball, there are roster battles ahead on offense that will be well worth monitoring when late July arrives. Let’s look ahead a little bit.

QB2: Taylor Heinicke vs. Michael Penix

Expected winner: Penix

As we’ve written multiple times here, Heinicke has an outside chance of actually sticking on this roster as Kirk Cousins’ direct backup, especially if the Falcons are leery of Penix having to get into game action early in his career. It just doesn’t seem particularly likely.

Fundamentally, Cousins and Penix are similar players, in that they are not pocket escape artists but passers who want to set their feet and let it rip. Heinicke is a fundamentally different sort of quarterback, an improviser who can be a deadly scrambler and has scattershot accuracy. That means the offense has to look a bit different if he gets into the game, whereas the transition from Cousins to Penix is (if all goes well, assorted caveats) a bit more seamless. Penix is also an relatively old rookie—perhaps you’ve heard that—who should be ready to step in if called upon, making it more likely than not that he beats out Heinicke for the QB2 job.

I do think the Falcons will take this deeper into the summer than you might be inclined to think.

WR4: KhaDarel Hodge, Ray-Ray McCloud, Casey Washington, Josh Ali, Austin Mack

Expected winner: Washington

One of the more underwhelming picks of the draft on first glance in my April eyes, Washington has grown on me a bit in May. The Falcons mostly have a set of unproven players or veterans who excel more on special teams than they do catching passes, which affords an opportunity for someone like Washington to step up.

That’s my working expectation at the moment, with Hodge and McCloud slotting in behind him on the depth chart. If Washington shows well this summer and can forge a rapport with Kirk Cousins, his quality hands, route running, and ability to work outside should earn him a long look as the nominal fourth receiver, which might afford him some chances when the Falcons kick Darnell Mooney into the slot and kick Rondale Moore off the field. If Washington doesn’t step up, expect Hodge to begin the season in this role, given his track record of reliability in limited snaps.

TE3: John FitzPatrick, Tucker Fisk, Ross Dwelley, Austin Stogner

Expected winner: Dwelley

FitzPatrick has struggled to get significant playing time, albeit under Arthur Smith, with even Fisk seeing more work at the end of last season than him. With no proven option behind Kyle Pitts and Charlie Woerner, there’s room for a new player to step up, and that player figures to be Dwelley.

A decent pass catcher and passable blocker who has been lauded for his locker room presence and a player who has dabbled at fullback, Dwelley’s well-rounded (if not particularly inspiring) game on offense and special teams ability figure to give him a real shot to unseat FitzPatrick. The latter will have to take a big step forward to knock Dwelley out, given that he’s a hand-picked player for the new regime, but the fact that he’s a clearly superior blocker may give FitzPatrick a fighting chance. Fisk and Stogner are probably fighting for the practice squad.

OL 8/9: Jovaughn Gwyn, Tyler Vrabel, John Leglue, Kyle Hinton, Barry Wesley, Ryan Coll, Nolan Potter

Expected winners: Kyle Hinton, Barry Wesley

This is a tough one. There are many players competing for a couple of spots alongside Ryan Neuzil and Storm Norton, the anticipated multi-tool on the interior and swing tackle, respectively. Some have ties to Dwayne Ledford because they were on the Falcons just a year ago, while others figure to interest an otherwise new coaching staff on the offensive side of the ball.

For all that, I’m betting on a pair of incumbents. Hinton played pretty well last year when pressed into action, which likely earned him Ledford’s trust, and the Falcons could use more help on the interior after Chris Lindstrom got banged up at times last year. Wesley hit injured reserve in early September last year and unfortunately never got the chance to appear in a game for Atlanta, but he has considerable experience at multiple positions and was quality in the XFL as a tackle, making him another option behind Norton.

At the moment, I don’t think the Falcons keep 10 players along their offensive line, but you should see them stock the practice squad with multiple options as this team has been wont to do with Ledford coaching the line.

What battles am I missed? Do you expect any of these to shake out differently?