{"id":204083,"date":"2025-07-13T14:25:12","date_gmt":"2025-07-13T14:25:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/204083\/"},"modified":"2025-07-13T14:25:12","modified_gmt":"2025-07-13T14:25:12","slug":"atlanta-falcons-rugged-offensive-line-is-a-strength-of-the-team","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/204083\/","title":{"rendered":"Atlanta Falcons’ rugged offensive line is a strength of the team"},"content":{"rendered":"

The other starters \u2014 left tackle Jake Matthews, left guard Matthew Bergeron, right guard Chris Lindstrom and right tackle Kaleb McGary \u2014 remain intact and are set to report July 23 for training camp.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have to, this is my own thought process, eliminate presnap stuff,\u201d Lindstrom said. \u201cThen handle \u2014 do our job \u2014 every play consistently so the guys can make plays. I know they are driven like that. We have 11 self-driven guys who have accountability for each other.\u201d<\/p>\n

Also, reserve tackle Storm Norton and guard Kyle Hinton were re-signed. The Falcons also drafted former Wisconsin tackle Jack Nelson in the seventh round of the NFL draft. <\/p>\n

\u201cObviously, losing Dalman hurts,\u201d Falcons offensive line coach Dwayne Ledford said. <\/p>\n

Neuzil, who\u2019s 6-foot-3 and 301 pounds, is a former undrafted college free agent from Appalachian State. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a very explosive guy,\u201d Ledford said. \u201cJust has a lot of power. At the center position, (he has) the quickness \u2026 that you need there. \u2026 It\u2019s a good combination to have.\u201d<\/p>\n

The starts last season helped convince the front office to re-sign Neuzil, who was a restricted free agent. He earned a two-year, $9.5 million deal.<\/p>\n

\u201cI definitely learned a lot,\u201d Neuzil said. \u201cPractice is more important for getting the looks, but getting the games reps \u2014 being able to just know the speed, know the looks, different looks and everything \u2014 it was good just getting hold of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The unit, anchored three of former general manager Thomas Dimitroff\u2019s draft picks (Lindstrom, Matthews and McGary), has been a strength for the Falcons with the affable Lindstrom achieving second-team All-Pro status the past three seasons.<\/p>\n

ExploreWith Robinson and Allgeier, do Falcons have one of league\u2019s best backfields?<\/a><\/p>\n

Matthews has one Pro Bowl selection (2018) and McGary has developed into a punishing run blocker. <\/p>\n

\u201cContinuity is key,\u201d Ledford said. \u201cWhen you can bring as many guys back as you can, it\u2019s, definitely a comfort. But it\u2019s also exciting because, like all the things you\u2019re talking about and working on, you\u2019re just ready to take that next step.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Falcons must keep left-handed quarterback Michael Penix Jr. protected. That makes McGary, who\u2019s struggled at times against elite pass rushers, the blindside tackle. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a little bit different,\u201d Ledford said. \u201cLike, if there was a lot of stuff underneath center that you used to see, I think that you would have those conversations. But now, with everything, kind of being in the (shotgun), our pistol for us \u2026 it\u2019s a little bit different now.\u201d<\/p>\n

There hasn\u2019t been a discussion of Matthews and McGary switching sides of the line, Ledford said. <\/p>\n

The Falcons also want to break some longer runs. <\/p>\n

\u201cTalking to (running backs coach Michael) Pitre a little bit,\u201d Ledford said. \u201cIt sounds like increasing the amount of explosives, and maybe turning some of these runs into longer extension runs. What does that look like for your room in getting that job done?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ledford believes the offensive line will be up to the task. <\/p>\n

\u201cSo for us, how much longer can we strain, all right?\u201d Ledford said. \u201cYou know, just finishing blocks longer, being willing and able to strain longer than that guy in front of us, seeing more guys downfield \u2014 that\u2019s a big part of it. Like, if we get an opportunity to get the second or third level, that\u2019s going to help us create explosives as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

Neuzil will be key.<\/p>\n

Neuzil, 27, played guard in college and was converted to a center by the Falcons. The Falcons signed him to their practice squad Sept. 1, 2021. He spent most of two seasons on the practice squad before he was signed to the active roster Nov. 22, 2022.<\/p>\n

ExploreAfter acknowledging he put self ahead of team, Kirk Cousins risks backlash<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s great,\u201d Lindstrom said. \u201cSo proud of him. So happy for him as a friend. As a teammate, he\u2019s worked hard. He did it the hard way as an undrafted free agent. He worked as hard as he could for five years, growing his role every single year.\u201d<\/p>\n

Neuzil also started three games in the 2023 season.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery time that we counted on him, he was there for us,\u201d Lindstrom said. \u201cHe\u2019s been rewarded. I\u2019m incredibly happy for him.\u201d <\/p>\n

The pass protection will get tested during joint practices with the Titans on Aug. 12-13. <\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the first things that we talk about, like, when you talk about pass protection, really, the No. 1 thing is you (must) have more desire than that guy across from you from getting to the quarterback,\u201d Ledford said. \u201cWe have to not let him get to the quarterback. That desire for me to not let him do that, that\u2019s got to show up. That\u2019s first and foremost.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Falcons gave up 32 sacks last season, which ranked as the ninth fewest in the league. <\/p>\n

\u201cSo, all the other stuff, fundamentals we will work on,\u201d Ledford said. \u201cEverything like that. But for one first thing, it\u2019s a mindset. Hey, I\u2019m not going to let that guy touch our quarterback.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Ryan<\/p>\n

Credit: Miguel Martinez-Jimenez<\/p>\n

\"icon<\/p>\n

Credit: Miguel Martinez-Jimenez<\/p>\n

Projected Depth Chart<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s the Falcons\u2019 projected depth chart heading into training minicamp:<\/p>\n

OffenseQB: Michael Penix Jr., Kirk Cousins, Easton Stick, Emory JonesRB: Bijan Robinson, Tyler Allgeier, Carlos Washington Jr., Nathan Carter, Elijah Dotson, Jashaun CorbinWR: Drake London, Chris Blair, Jesse Matthews, Quincy Skinner Jr., Makai PolkWR: Darnell Mooney, Casey Washington, David Sills V, Nick Nash, Dylan DrummondSWR: Ray-Ray McCloud, KhaDarel Hodge, Jamal AgnewTE: Kyle Pitts Sr., Feleipe Franks, Teagan Quitoriano, Joshua SimonTE: Charlie Woerner, Nikola KalinicLT: Jake Matthews, Brandon Parker, Tyrone Wheatley Jr., Jordan Williams, Joshua GrayLG: Matthew Bergeron, Elijah WilkinsonC: Ryan Neuzil, Jovaughn GwynRG: Chris Lindstrom, Kyle Hinton, Matthew CindricRT: Kaleb McGary, Storm Norton, Jack Nelson, Joey Fisher, Kilian ZiererDefense (4-2-5 nickel)DE: Leonard Floyd, James Pearce Jr., DeAngelo MaloneDT: Ruke Orhorhoro, Brandon Dorlus, Ta\u2019Quon Graham, Simeon Barrow Jr.DT: David Onyemata, Morgan Fox, Kentavious Street, LaCale London, Khalid KareemDE: Jalon Walker, Arnold Ebiketie, Bralen Trice, Zach HarrisonILB: Kaden Elliss, JD Bertrand, Josh Woods, Caleb JohnsonILB: Divine Deablo, Troy Andersen, Malik Verdon, Nick KubitzLCB: A.J. Terrell, Kevin King, Natrone Brooks, Dontae ManningRCB: Mike Hughes, Cobee Bryant, Lamar Jackson, Keith TaylorNCB: Billy Bowman Jr., Clark Phillips III, Dee AlfordSS: Jordan Fuller, Xavier Watts, Josh ThompsonFS: Jessie Bates III, DeMarcco HellamsSpecial teamsK: Younghoe Koo, Lenny KriegP: Bradley PinionLS: Liam McCulloughKR: Jamal Agnew, Ray-Ray McCloudPR: Jamal Agnew, Mike Hughes <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The other starters \u2014 left tackle Jake Matthews, left guard Matthew Bergeron, right guard Chris Lindstrom and right…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":204084,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2074],"tags":[2566,223,254,2554,224,7,6337,6],"class_list":{"0":"post-204083","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-atlanta-falcons","8":"tag-ajc-freelancer","9":"tag-atlanta","10":"tag-atlanta-falcons","11":"tag-atlantafalcons","12":"tag-falcons","13":"tag-football","14":"tag-mercedes-benz-stadium","15":"tag-nfl"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/114846388994362645","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/204083","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=204083"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/204083\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/204084"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=204083"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=204083"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=204083"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}