Will Isaiah Oliver's Return Affect Falcons Defense?

Atlanta Falcons cornerback Isaiah Oliver is close to returning to the gridiron for the first time in over a year. How - if at all - will his return impact Atlanta's defense?

The Atlanta Falcons have been without starting nickel cornerback Isaiah Oliver for just over a year, but that appears to be coming to a halt.

The Falcons activated Oliver off injured reserve earlier this week and he participated in his first practice on Wednesday. The team now has less than three weeks to officially return Oliver to the active roster.

However, Oliver appears poised to re-join Atlanta as soon as this Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Falcons coach Arthur Smith said that Oliver has "had a pretty good week" and the team will decide Saturday whether or not he plays.

Oliver suffered a knee injury in Atlanta's Week 4 loss to the Washington Commanders last season. The Falcons' defense found life difficult with Oliver in the slot, as defensive coordinator Dean Pees mentioned that not having a player with Oliver's versatility severely limited the deception he was able to throw at opposing offenses.

Last year, the Falcons played rookies Darren Hall, Avery Williams and Richie Grant at nickel in Oliver's place, but none were quite what Atlanta needed. Hall is now a reserve outside corner, Williams a running back and return specialist and Grant back to his more natural position of safety, though he still sees snaps at nickel from time to time.

Filling in for Oliver in this season's first four games have been Mike Ford and Dee Alford, a pair of new faces who've held down the ship and allowed Pees to execute his defense in the manner he wants to.

As such, Pees doesn't anticipate Oliver's return altering Atlanta's defense as much as it would've last year.

"It won't affect anything," stressed Pees. "It won't change how we call the game, it won't affect how we pressure, how we cover. It'll be just getting a good player back."

Without Oliver, Pees felt that opposing offenses knew which corners were capable of blitzers and which ones weren't, or that maybe one was better in man coverage while the other was better in zone.

But with the veteran Ford and offseason standout Alford holding their own, the nickel spot is as steady - and competitive - as ever.

"It's been good, it's been by committee a little bit," said Pees, on Ford and Alford filling in. "Mike's been doing a good job, Dee's been doing a good job. There will be competition with Isaiah coming back, so we'll figure what's the best thing to do with the guys that are involved. We'll ask them to do things that they do well."

It seemed likely that Oliver would quickly reclaim his starting spot, but with Alford making a game-winning interception last week and Ford providing solid play, his path back to the top of the depth chart may be less straightforward than initially believed.

Perhaps more importantly is that the Falcons don't quite know if Oliver is capable of doing all of the things he thrived at pre-injury. Pees stressed the significance of seeing Oliver practice at full speed and considering Smith's statement regarding the "pretty good" week of practice the fifth-year pro has had, his arrow looks to be pointing up. 

"Some guys are better cover guys, some guys are better blitzers, some guys are in better in zone," Pees said. "Did I think Isaiah could do (all of those things) a year ago before he got hurt? Yes. Do I think he can do it now? I don't know. If he can't, we've still got two guys that are playing very well."

Whether or not Oliver is able to join the starters on Sunday, his presence will soon be back on Atlanta's sideline. But regardless, the Falcons have built adequate depth in their defensive backs room, and getting Oliver back is only going to help as they fight to get over .500 for the first time since the 2017 season.

Atlanta and Tampa Bay will kickoff at 1 p.m. in Raymond James Stadium.

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You can follow Daniel Flick on Twitter @DFlickDraft

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