That’s not difficult. It was only one year ago when the Falcons ranked near the bottom of the league in total defense and dead last in red-zone stops.Those memories made Allen smile on Wednesday John
Franklin-Myers Color Rush Jersey , because defense has become a point of
pride for the Falcons, who play at the Los Angeles Rams in a wild-card game on
Saturday.For the first time since Atlanta’s first Super Bowl season in 1998, the Falcons (10-6) finished the regular season ranked in the top 10 in scoring
defense (19.7) and total defense.Allen was especially proud to note the Falcons have climbed to No. 5 in the league in red-zone defense.Unlike 2016, when the Falcons leaned heavily on the NFL’s top-scoring offense for their Super Bowl run, Atlanta takes better balance into the postseason.”Going from being one of the bottom defenses in the league last year … it’s big growth,” Allen said, adding the improvement has come ”much faster than I
thought it would be.”The Falcons have emphasized defense in recent drafts, and that commitment has produced results. Defensive starters added in the last three drafts include
linebackers Vic Beasley Jr., Deion Jones and DeVondre Campbell and safety Keanu
Neal.Six defensive starters on last year’s defense were first- and second-year players.Coach Dan Quinn said he has seen second-year players Jones, Campbell and Neal ”take a big step from year one to year two just as you hoped it would
happen.”Jones, Neal and Campbell are Atlanta’s top three leaders in tackles.Quinn said he sees better communication on the field through ”hand signals, just sometimes an eye contact.”Allen says there’s room for more improvement.”Oh man, if we keep growing and we stay humble and we keep enjoying the process, the sky is the limit,” he said. ”I think we can be one of the best
defenses in the league for sure.”Quinn, the former Seattle defensive coordinator, enjoys seeing the young starters play lead roles. He also sees more improvement to come.”I think this group can take another jump,” Quinn said. ”They’re athletic, they’re tackling well, the communication piece is there, so I’m very hopeful for
where that group can go.”The defensive upswing has been important, because the Atlanta offense that led the league in scoring in 2016 has struggled at times this season . The
Falcons’ scoring has dropped from 33.8 to 22.1 points per game.Atlanta has been held under 30 points in five straight games, including last week’s 22-10 win over Carolina to clinch a playoff spot.NOTES: Special teams coach Keith Armstrong will interview with the Cardinals next week as a candidate to replace coach Bruce Arians. ”To me it’s a sign of
respect,” Armstrong said after Wednesday’s practice. ”I’ve been doing this 24
years now. That’s quite a long time in this league. It’s good to have someone
recognize you for what you’ve done.” … Return specialist Andre Roberts
(knee Cedric
Ogbuehi Jersey , ankle) did not practice. A long list of players were
limited, including RB Devonta Freeman (knee), WR Julio Jones (ankle, ribs), DE
Adrian Clayborn (calf), WR Taylor Gabriel (hamstring), C Alex Mack (calf) and TE
Levine Toilolo (knee).—A rare losing season without a playoff appearance led to significant front office changes for the Green Bay Packers.A new structure is in place at the top of the front-office flow chart, and new general manager Brian Gutekunst is signaling that the Packers might be a
little more aggressive in free agency.The ”draft-and-develop” philosophy will still be the foundation of the way that Green Bay builds the roster, Gutekunst said Monday at his introductory news
conference at Lambeau Field.”But I do think I will lead in my own personality and probably a little bit more aggressive in certain areas,” said Gutekunst, formerly Green Bay’s player
personnel director.”We’re not going to leave any stone unturned as far as every avenue of player acquisition.”Predecessor Ted Thompson is now a senior advisor following a 13-year tenure highlighted by the Super Bowl-winning 2010 season.The Packers went to four NFC title games and won six NFC North crowns under his watch.Thompson also took heat from some vocal fans for being timid in free agency, especially at a time when two-time NFL MVP quarterback Aaron Rodgers is still in
his prime at age 34.The defense did not improve over the past four seasons despite being stocked with high draft picks.Thompson had the titles of executive vice president, general manger & director of football operations – positions that will now be held by different
executives under the structural change initiated by team president/CEO Mark
Murphy.”It’s very difficult for one person to handle all of those responsibilities, so really looking at it, I decided it would be in the best long-term interests
of the organization to change the structure,” said Murphy, who oversaw the GM
search.Gutekunst, 44, will have complete control over roster decisions as general manager.Coach Mike McCarthy, who is under contract through 2019 after receiving a one-year extension during the season, will now report directly to Murphy. He
will have the authority to hire and fire the head coach.Russ Ball, the team’s salary cap expert and chief contract negotiator, was promoted to executive vice president/director of football operations after
serving as vice president of football administration/player finance. Ball, who
interviewed for the GM
job Ricky
Wagner Jersey , will also report directly to Murphy.Murphy said he decided to make the change during a broad re-evaluation sparked by the GM search. He hoped that lines of communication would improve in
order to break down ”silos” that had built up over the years.”I just felt like there were too many silos in football, whether that be coaching and personnel, the college and the pro side, and breaking down those
silos” was necessary, Murphy said.Murphy is the highest-ranking administrator on a team without a traditional owner – the Packers are the NFL’s only publicly-owned franchise. In times when
there might be close calls, Murphy would cast a tiebreaking vote.”But I hope it never gets to that,” Murphy said. ”That’ll be the goal, is that we can work together and through good communication we’ll all be on the
same page.”He has more football experience than the average team president, having played safety under Hall of Fame coach Joe Gibbs for the Washington
Redskins.Also a lawyer, Murphy had extensive experience in sports administration before becoming Packers president/CEO in 2007, including athletic director
stints at Northwestern and Colgate.Entering his 20th season with the Packers, Gutekunst is also a football lifer, but on the personnel side. He spent the past two seasons as player
personnel director. He also oversaw college scouting for four years, and worked
11 seasons as a regional college scout in the talent-rich Southeast.Gutekunst got his start in Green Bay as a scouting intern in the summer of 1997, spent most of 1998 as a scouting assistant for the Kansas City Chiefs
before returning to the Packers for good when then-GM and Hall of Famer Ron Wolf
hired him as a scout on Dec. 30, 1998.Gutekunst had interviewed for other GM openings in recent years. In fact, he got the call from Murphy offering him the Packers’ job while on a trip over the
weekend to Houston to interview for the Texans’ vacancy.The interview with the Packers on Friday ended up being his last one.”I let Mark know on Friday that this was my dream job, that I absolutely love this place,” Gutekunst said.Interjected Murphy: ”You didn’t tell your agent that.”It all worked out in the end.”I’m really glad that it came to where we are now,” said Gutekunst, as his wife and children watched from the front row of the auditorium.The Packers also interviewed director-football operations Eliot Wolf, who is the son of the former GM and friends with Gutekunst; and former Buffalo Bills GM
Doug Whaley.Gutekunst said he hoped that he could keep Wolf as his ”right-hand man”, but wouldn’t hold him back if other opportunities arose.—
