The Falcons have lost rookie WR Kerry Meier for the year as he was placed on the Injured Reserve List due to a knee injury.  This will hurt the Falcons who don’t have a lot of depth at WR.  Meier played in both pre-season games for the Falcons this year and he had 3 receptions for 34 yards (11.3 avg).  He was a fifth round pick of the Falcons but he will have to wait until 2011 to show what he can or can not do.

The Falcons have selected safety Shann Schillinger with the 171st pick overall (6th round) of the NFL Draft.  Schillinger is on the skinny side at 6′1″, 199 pounds.  He had 11 tackles and 4 interceptions at Montana last season.  In his career at Montana, Schillinger had 40 tackles, 11 passes defensed, 1 forced fumble and 7 interceptions.  This pick was a long shot for the Falcons but Schillinger was at the right place at the right time a lot in college.

The Falcons have picked WR Kerry Meier with the 165th overall pick (5th round) of the NFL Draft.  Meier is a converted QB but he learned quickly as a possession type receiver.  He is 6′2″, 219 pounds and he runs a 4.65 40.  Meier is aggressive going for the ball most of the time even though he is shy sometimes over the middle.  Meier played in 12 games for Kansas last season and he caught 102 passes for 985 yards (9.7 avg) with 8 TD grabs.  He has played in 47 games (37 starts) in his four years in college and he caught 226 passes for 2,309 yards (10.2 avg) with 18 TD grabs.  The Falcons can also use Meier on trick plays as he was a QB when he got to Kansas and as a holder for kicks.  I think this was a solid pick for the Falcons.

The Falcons have picked CB Dominique Franks out of Oklahoma with the 135th overall pick (5th round) of the NFL Draft.  Franks is a outstanding athlete as he is 5′11″, 190 pounds and he runs a 4.4 40.  Franks is a gambling type as he makes a lot of big plays but he also gives up his fair share.  He is also a standout return man which is part of his game that could help the Falcons in the near future.  Franks played in 13 games (all starts) last season at Oklahoma and he had 47 tackles, he broke up 5 passes, he had 2 interceptions (97 return yards), he forced 1 fumble and he recovered 1 fumble.  Franks has now played in 40 games (28 starts) in his three years at Oklahoma in which he had 95 tackles, broke up 15 passes, he had 6 interceptions (149 return yards), he forced 1 fumble and he recovered 2 fumbles.  Franks has a nice upside as many experts predicted him to be picked in the 2nd or 3rd round.

The Falcons have selected G/C Joseph Hawley with the 117th overall pick (4th round) of the NFL Draft.  Hawley is a big guy at 6′3″, 311 pounds.  He can handle guard or center and he is also a good long snapper adding value to his overall game.  He is a good run blocker and a solid pass blocker who has a nasty attitude at times.  Hawley played in 12 games (all starts) at UNLV last season and he has played in 47 games (33 starts) in his four years there.  Hawley could develop into a starter fairly soon for the Falcons and I really like this pick for them.