The Falcons appear to have some players in last April’s Draft that are keepers for the future.  First round pick Jamaal Anderson didn’t live up to expectations in his rookie season but he flashed his talent at times.  He played in all 16 games last season and he made 30 tackles, defensed 3 passes and forced 1 fumble.  In the 2nd round the Falcons picked up a couple of players who should be starters for a long time.  Guard Justin Blalock played in 14 games last season and he appears to have a lock on a starting job for next season.  CB Chris Houston didn’t make a lot of big plays but he wasn’t overmatched either.  Houston played in all 16 games last season for the Falcons and he made 57 tackles, defensed 9 passes and forced a fumble.  WR Laurent Robinson was picked in the third round last season by the Falcons and he looked pretty decent.  He played in 15 games last season for the Falcons and he caught 37 passes for 437 yards (11.8 avg) with 1 TD grab.  OLB Stephen Nicolas flashed some talent as a backup last season as he played in 13 games and made 33 tackles and had 1 sack.  He could be a starter in the future.  Fellow 4th round pick Martrez Milner didn’t live up to his potential last season for the Falcons.  He played in 8 games and he caught 9 passes for 50 yards (5.6 avg).  DT Trey Lewis was the first of four 6th round picks for the Falcons.  He played in 9 games and he made 19 tackles, defensed 1 pass and intercepted one.  CB David Irons always seemed to be around the football.  He played in 15 games and he made 13 tackles and recovered 4 fumbles.  Center Doug Datish missed all of his rookie season due to injury.  Safety Daren Stone played in 12 games and he made 10 tackles.  7th round pick Jason Snelling was solid in the pre-season but he didn’t get much of a chance during the regular season to prove himself.  He played in 7 games last season and he carried the ball 13 times for 43 yards (3.3 ypc) with 1 TD run.

DRAFT GRADE FOR 2008:  C

DRAFT GRADE FOR THE FUTURE:  B

The Falcons running game suffered last season as Falcons’ coaches kept giving the football to a beat up, wore down Warrick Dunn instead of Jerious Norwood.  Dunn played in 16 games (15 starts) last season for the Falcons and he carried the ball 227 times for 720 yards (3.2 ypc) with 4 TD runs.  He also caught 37 passes for 238 yards (6.4 avg).  Dunn has played in 166 games (148 starts) in his NFL career and he has carried the ball 2,483 times for 10,181 yards (4.1 ypc) with 47 TD runs.  He also caught 463 passes for 4,009 yards (8.7 avg) with 15 TD grabs.

Jerious Norwood had another outstanding season for the Falcons but they didn’t get the football in his hands enough.  Norwood played in 15 games (2 starts) for the Falcons last season and he carried the ball 103 times for 613 yards (6.0 ypc) with 1 TD run.  He also caught 28 passes for 277 yards (9.9 avg).  Norwood has now played in 29 games (2 starts) in his NFL career and he has carried the ball 202 times for 1,246 yards (6.2 ypc) with 3 TD runs.  He also caught 40 passes for 379 yards (9.5 avg).

Rookie Jason Snelling had an outstanding pre-season but he didn’t get much of a chance during the regular season.  Snelling played in 7 games (0 starts) last season for the Falcons and he carried the ball 13 times for 43 yards (3.3 ypc) with 1 TD run.

Fullback Ovie Mughelli didn’t do a whole heck of a lot for the Falcons last season.  He played in 16 games (7 starts) for the Falcons last season and he carried the ball 6 times for 7 yards (1.2 ypc) with 1 TD run.  He also caught 6 passes for 36 yards (6.0 avg).  Mughelli has now played in 54 games (19 starts) in his NFL career and he has carried the ball 18 times for 57 yards (3.2 ypc) with 1 TD run.  He also caught 30 passes for 231 yards (7.7 avg) with 2 TD grabs.

Artose Pinner didn’t get much playing time for the Falcons but he played good when he got the chance.  Pinner played in 7 games (0 starts) for the Falcons last season and he carried the ball 5 times for 46 yards (9.2 ypc).  Pinner has now played in 47 games (7 starts) in his NFL career and he has carried the ball 250 times for 858 yards (3.4 ypc) with 8 TD runs.  He also caught 39 passes for 308 yards (7.9 avg).

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