Atlanta Falcons: Jackson, Soliai In Great Shape

Many of the Atlanta Falcons took what HC Dan Quinn told them about “having the best offseason they’ve ever had” to heart in 2015.  Two players in particular came to camp in great shape and made a big impact in the first preseason game against the Tennessee Titans: Defensive Linemen Tyson Jackson and Paul Soliai.

Both veteran defensive linemen came to Atlanta last year as two of the marquee signings for Falcons GM Thomas Dimitroff.  Jackson was a standout at LSU and coming off his best season as a professional with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2013.  It seemed like the former Top 5 pick was finally putting it all together in the NFL.

-= Vic Beasley To Play With More Effort Against the Jets =-

Soliai came to the Atlanta Falcons as a former Pro Bowl NT with the Miami Dolphins.  The giant Samoan and former Utah Ute played between the 1 and 3-Technique for Defensive Line Coach Bryan Cox last year.

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Maybe it was just the season in which they came to Atlanta but neither Paul or Tyson had what you would call great seasons for the Atlanta Falcons in the last season of the Mike Smith Era.  Both rarely made plays in the backfield and just used their bulkiness to bring down tailbacks in the running game.  After an underwhelming 2014, both players had to make a change to stick in Atlanta with Dan Quinn in charge.

To better fit in Quinn’s 4-3 Base Defense, Jackson and Soliai shed some weight in favor of speed this offseason.  Many, myself included, wondered if this would make Jackson or Soliai better players as they have relied so much on their size in the past.  I needed to see them in live action to see if they could make the necessary adjustments to lead the charge for the Atlanta Falcons up front in 2015.

Fate would have it that arguably the most memorable play of the first preseason game involved both Tyson Jackson and Paul Soliai.  Both interior defensive linemen stormed into the Titans backfield and collectively brought Heisman Trophy to the turf in the Georgia Dome.  Even slimmer versions of Jackson and Soliai are still WAY bigger than anything that fell on top of Mariota in Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Oregon while playing for the Ducks.

-= Atlanta Falcons to Test Offense Against Jets D =-

With players like Tyson Jackson and Paul Soliai agreeing to slim down for Dan Quinn, it seems like everybody on the roster is buying into new identity Quinn is creating for his Atlanta Falcons.  I know we’ve only seen one preseason game of the Dan Quinn Era, but everything feels different.

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We’re not drinking the Kool-Aid.  Instead we’ve been water to slake our thirst and refresh our minds.  Continuous self-improvement is vital to the health of a football team, just like water is to its players.  The Atlanta Falcons are shedding themselves of old habits brought on by complacency in the latter years of the Mike Smith Era in favor of progressiveness, a never-ending quest to get better, one day at a time.

Next: Atlanta Falcons: 5 Players to Watch Versus the Jets

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