FLOWERY BRANCH — The Atlanta Falcons made quite a splash in last year’s NFL draft.
This year, they’ll likely spend a lot of time sitting around.
The Falcons are one of three teams that do not have picks in Thursday night’s first round.
Instead, the Falcons were focused on filling their needs beginning in the second round, where the Falcons had the No. 55 overall choice.
In a way, the low-key draft is in keeping with the theme of Atlanta’s offseason. The team has spent most of its time re-signing its own free agents, which has sparked plenty of grumbling from impatient fans who thought the Falcons might be poised for a major shake-up, given owner Arthur Blank’s harsh public critique of the 2011 campaign.
The Falcons do have new coordinators on both sides of the ball, hiring Dirk Koetter to run the offense and former NFL head coach Mike Nolan to handle the defense. With some of the changes they have in mind, Atlanta will be looking to fill more subtle needs, such as better protection from the offensive line and more depth in the secondary.