Atlanta Falcons: Training Camp Notes

The Atlanta Falcons have had plenty of interesting story lines to follow as camp has gotten underway. So far the Falcons have avoided any serious injuries as well  as we near pre-season football.

Atlanta Falcons’ cornerback Jalen Collins has been one of the biggest story lines so far in camp. After starting in the Super Bowl many thought that Collins had earned a spot on the Falcon’s roster as the third cornerback on the roster.

In training camp Collins has been taking reps with the third strings and taking very few reps at that. The demotion for Collins has been described as a “coaching decision” that begs the question what Collins has done to earn a demotion.

Collins was suspended four games earlier in his career for breaking the substance abuse policy. No question Collins is a player to keep your eye on as the training camp wears on.

Julio Jones took part in his first 11-on-11 drills today and has looked good so far in camp and has said he is healthy after his foot injury that he battled all of last season. Jones being healthy is good news and should be the most protected player outside of Matt Ryan in pre-season games.

Takkarist McKinley has been said to look dynamic early on in camp which is impressive considering that he has struggled to get healthy for the Falcon’s training camp. If the news is correct and Mckinley is ready to be a solid NFL contributor on defense the Falcon’s defense could be set to be one of the best in the League with the improvements that they have invested in this off-season.

In other camp news the Falcons will continue to have competition for who will return through pre-season games though it seems unlikely that anyone will surpass Taylor Gabriel.