Flick's Falcons Mailbag Part 3: Training Camp Surprises

Who has been surprising for the Atlanta Falcons during the first week of training camp?

The Atlanta Falcons are preparing to travel to south Florida for a week of practices and a preseason tune-up with the Miami Dolphins.

It's the first time the Falcons will line up against another team since the season ended on Jan. 8, and things are vastly different, marked by an active free agency period and productive draft class that have helped take expectations to a new level.

There's plenty of intrigue surrounding Atlanta's performance in Miami, especially considering the promising early returns from camp - which is largely what we're here to talk about.

You all asked, we've answered: here's Part 3 of 3 for this week's mailbag.

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Everyone always says iron sharpens iron, but is it just a saying or will it come to fruition? With the defense being better this year, does that get the offense better prepared? - @goldzco21

Absolutely - Smith and Fontenot have stressed for the past several months just how competitive this camp would be and how difficult it'll be to make the 53-man roster, and thus far, nothing has changed in that aspect.

Remember the run defense conversation from earlier? Atlanta's rushing attack should be one of the league's best, but the new-look defensive front has largely contained its counterpart, which should only help with preparation.

But don't just take it from us - hear what some of Atlanta's brightest stars have said about the competition on both sides of the ball.

"The defense is phenomenal," All-Pro right guard Chris Lindstrom said. "It's been great - battling against David (Onyemata) and Grady (Jarrett) every single day really, really makes us better."

"It's just good on good every day," said franchise rookie record-setting receiver Drake London, now entering Year 2, on his battles with All-Pro corner A.J. Terrell. "To be able to go up against him every day is a blessing and it's just going to help me in the long run."

So, whether it's iron sharpening iron or simply "good on good," the Falcons certainly are pushing one another each day - and it's probable the returns show up sooner rather than later.

Do you expect Arthur Smith to dial up more deep passes for Ridder as approach the joint practice with Miami? And do you think we Heinicke plays 75% of the snaps in the preseason? - @rammayos49

There should be more shown during the joint practices than training camp - after all, Smith, Ridder and company need to see what fully works and what doesn't, and doing so against an opponent's defense is the best form of evaluation.

So, expect Atlanta's playbook to expand more in Miami, just as much for the rest of the offense as for Ridder, with the goal being consummate insight as to the unit's current state.

As for Heinicke, 75 percent is a big clip - look for Ridder to see roughly a quarter's worth of work in at least the first two games, as Marcus Mariota did last year, while Logan Woodside should see most of the work in the second half of those two games before playing a majority of the preseason finale.

Thus, Heinicke's likely looking more at around a quarter to a quarter and a half of snaps, if we had to guess - the Falcons already know what they have in the veteran signal caller, and he doesn't have too much to gain from slinging the rock in the preseason. Anticipate Woodside getting the biggest snap share under center over the coming weeks.

Who surprised you most during camp, good and bad? - @carrielynnxox

The conversation has to start with third-round rookie Zach Harrison, who the Falcons' brass viewed as a longer-term project likely to take something of a redshirt year as a rookie but is quickly working his way into the mix for real playing time on the defensive front.

Harrison has consistently generated pressure during camp and drew praise from Smith for his growth potential, while veteran defensive tackle David Onyemata praised his power and work ethic. By all accounts, the former Ohio State standout is certainly ahead of where he was expected to be.

Conversely, Koo's struggles were particularly noticeable - he wasn't overly consistent from 50-plus yards and had multiple days with more misses than the Falcons have grown accustomed to. It's nothing to be concerned about and Koo has certainly earned the benefit of the doubt, but he did have his fair share of missed attempts.

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