Defensive tackle Peria Jerry is the pick at No. 24 for the Atlanta Falcons, and head coach Mike Smith couldn’t be happier. The 6-foot-2, 290-pound player brings Atlanta strength up front on defense, an area that was often the catalyst for the defense Smith coached in Jacksonville during his four years as the Jacksonville Jaguars defensive coordinator. “You have to be able to stop the run in this league, Smith said after the pick was made, “That’s something that we talked about from day one.” With a philosophy centered around the run game both on offense and defense, the pick makes sense. Atlanta spent much of their offseason last year revamping their run game by bringing in Michael Turner, and it worked brilliantly for Thomas Dimitroff and company.
Now they’re looking at making alterations for a run defense that struggled last season, and must replace Grady Jackson at defensive tackle.
Jerry certainly has the credentials to step in and fill that void. He was named first-team All-America by the Associated Press and ESPN, and was also a first team All-SEC selection. He lead the conference in tackles for loss with 18, which was good for first in the SEC.
Dimitroff and Smith also credited Jerry for his strong work ethic. He served as team captain at Ole Miss and also received the 2008 Most Dedicated Player Award from the Ole Miss Alumni Association.
As for the second round, the Falcons were upbeat about the situation. And Dimitroff was willing to give a little insight, although mentioning names at this point would obviously be quite premature.
“Hopefully some more speed at whatever position it is [that we draft],” he said about the second round pick.
SECOND ROUND
Safety William Moore is the man for Atlanta in the second round. And just like first round pick Peria Jerry, he should compete for a starting spot immediately.
Moore was one of the most productive safeties in the country over his final two seasons at Missouri. He made 115 tackles and picked off eight balls his junior season. Moore’s success continued into his senior season, recording 86 tackles, 6.5 of them for a loss, and forced three fumbles en route to first team All-Big 12 honors.
Moore is also a great athlete, with the closing speed and leaping ability to hang with plenty of wideouts in coverage.
Moore does have some weaknesses, the main one of those being his durability. He missed games during his freshman and senior season, and did not participate in spring practice in 2007 after suffering a torn labrum that required shoulder surgery. He isn’t a particularly physical player either, and experts say he can be fooled by smarter quarterbacks.
Again, this pick makes sense for Atlanta. Dimitroff promised that he would be focusing on defense in this draft, and it was fairly clear that we’d see two defensive players drafted on day one after Atlanta traded for Tony Gonzalez to shore up the right end position.
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