Falcons Safeties 'Taking Charge', Says Coach Dean Pees

The Atlanta Falcons are led by young safeties Jaylinn Hawkins and Richie Grant. The youth movement in the secondary is spreading positive development throughout the team.

Jeremy Brener | Oct 22, 2022

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The Atlanta Falcons are playing well beyond the expectations set for them at the beginning of the season.

The team has the chance to move over .500 for the first time in five years with a win Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals on the road. If the Falcons are going to win, they will need their young safety group to keep up the good work.

In the past three seasons, the Falcons have drafted Jaylinn Hawkins (2020, fourth round) and Richie Grant (2021, second round). Those two now lead the safety group in Atlanta, and the duo has played well to start off the season.

"I think they both have improved quite a bit, become much more verbal, taking charge much more," defensive coordinator Pees said. "And the good thing about those two guys is they're very good students in the classroom. They don't take anything for granted... They can still be better, but they're a lot better than they were and progressing all the time. Both very conscientious. Really like both of them."

Along with Hawkins and Grant at the top of the depth chart are veterans Erik Harris and Dean Marlowe, who both offer as much off the field as they do on, allowing the young starters to be the best versions of themselves.

"It's rare to have two backup safeties that can also put their egos aside because they played in this league and started and now they're giving that job up to younger guys, but they're still mentoring them," Pees said.

With a talented first-team and a knowledgeable second-team, the Falcons safeties are helping form the strongest unit on the defense, and perhaps the entire team so far.

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Published Oct 22, 2022

JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.