After the very first day of training camp on Wednesday, Arnold Ebiketie was candid about where he feels like he was coming into his very first professional practice.
“I think the more I go, the better I will become over time,” the Falcons second round draft pick said.
After Friday’s practice, outside linebackers coach Ted Monachino doubled down on this note saying the young edge rushers – Ebiketie and DeAngelo Malone, particularly – are coming along, but they’ve got a long road ahead of them.
If you take a look at the Falcons outside linebacker position you’ll notice fairly quickly how young it is. Ebiketie and Malone are three practices into their rookie year. Ade Ogundeji is only in his second season after slotting in rotationally last year. If you’re looking for a veteran, that’s Lorenzo Carter. Even Quinton Bell is a second year player.
And there you have it: Your Falcons outside linebacker core. It’s because of this youth and inexperience in the league that everyone should take a deep breath before jumping to any conclusions about the position group.
It goes without saying that the Falcons have to – need to – improve their pass rush. However, this may require some patience. It’s not something that is going to change overnight. It’s not something that’s going to change after one training camp. It may not even be an obvious change after a whole season.
The answer to the pass rush conundrum will not come in quick fashion because this defensive staff still has a number of questions to answer regarding their young edge rushers. This process and transformation, Monachino confirmed, is going to take a lot of work. It’ll also take a bit of trial and error.
“Throughout the season it’s going to be about what roles can we find for them to get them that real experience over the course of a game,” Monachino explained. “You never know what those are going to be. We’re a long ways away from making those decisions.”
Ultimately, they’re going to be trying a lot of different things…
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