Despite Todd Gurley Signing, Falcons Need to Draft RB

The former Georgia all-star running back, Todd Gurley is officially coming home. The Los Angeles Rams decided to let the running back go on Thursday afternoon and the Atlanta Falcons signed him to a one-year, $5 million deal Friday morning.

Though Gurley is filling a need at running back on the Falcons roster, they still need to consider drafting top running back in the NFL draft.

Gurley is very good and experienced at the running back position, but his bad knee could keep him from starting some of the time.

Selecting a running back in the second round of the draft will give the Falcons something fresh and young to work with.

Falcons Have 1-on-1’s With RBs

The Falcons met with 13 running backs at the NFL Combine last month.

• AJ Dillon, Boston College
• Anthony McFarland Jr., Maryland
• Cam Akers, Florida State
• Clyde Edwards-Helaire, LSU
• Darius Anderson, TCU
• Eno Benjamin, Arizona State
• J.K. Dobbins, Ohio State
• Jonathan Taylor, Wisconsin
• Joshua Kelley, UCLA
• Ke’Shawn Vaughn, Vanderbilt
• La’Michael Perine, Florida
• Patrick Taylor Jr., Memphis
• Zack Moss, Utah

Out of this list, Cam Akers of Florida State would be a great fit in Atlanta and the Falcons seem to like him the most.

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Falcons ‘Very Interested’ in Akers

After Akers met with the Falcons at the combine, he told the media that they were “very interested” in him.

 

Akers decided to forego his senior year at FSU and declare for the 2020 NFL Draft early. He balled out during his time as a Seminole.

At the end of his career, Akers ran the ball a total of 586 times for 2,874 yards. He also tallied 34 touchdowns and 27 of those were rushing touchdowns.

Akers would be a reliable playmaker for the Falcons, someone they need if Gurley can’t step up.

Draft Another Dawg

Gurley’s homecoming has grabbed not only Falcons fans attention, but the die-hard, solely college football Georgia Bulldog fans. A former Dawg in Atlanta on Sundays will have everyone in Athens heading to the city that day to watch him.

Former UGA running back D’Andre Swift and a name every football fan knows will be a part of this year’s draft. Swift made a name for himself throughout his collegiate career.

The Falcons did not meet with Swift at the combine, but Dan Quinn told the media he’s a fan of Kirby Smart’s ‘work’.

“Getting that many guys invited to the combine is such a big deal… It means they’re developing the players, so when we’re getting a guy from there [we know] this guy’s been in big moments; he’s played well in the big games, on the biggest stages.”

By the end of his career at UGA, Swift had rushed for a total of 2,885 with 20 touchdowns and 666 receiving yards. During his final year he injured his shoulder, yet still managed to pull off a career-high with 1,218 rushing yards and seven touchdowns. He was also named All-SEC following the 2019 season.

Swift is projected to go early in the first round, but you never know and the Falcons could end up picking him over a defensive player first, considering he’ll make many fans happy.

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