2011 NFL Mock Draft: The Atlanta Falcons Select...

by Dave Cariello on Apr 22, 2011 6:00 AM CDT in 2011 CSC Community Mock Draft

With the twenty-seventh pick of the 2011 CSC Community Mock Draft, the Atlanta Falcons (represented by Dave Choate) select...

Justin Houston, DE/OLB, Georgia

The stars aligned for this pick.

Unless you've been living under a rock - and as Saints fans, it's entirely possible you have been - you've probably heard it mentioned that the Atlanta Falcons need a pass rush upgrade. There's a healthy debate as to whether or not a rookie defensive end should be groomed to replace John Abraham or immediately take over for Kroy Biermann, but either way, the need is definitely there.

Justin Houston fits, and he's becoming the closest thing to a consensus pick in this deep draft class. Having played both linebacker and defensive end at Georgia, Houston has a little versatility and a ton of talent. He's faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a runaway train and has more than twice the pass rushing acumen of a bullet train.

Ultimately, I believe Houston will get a year in the defensive end rotation to get up to NFL game speed. After that, he should be the successor to Abraham, and there is no reason to believe he can't top out as a double digit sack guy at this level. I'm excited to select him.

Thanks to all the CSC members who participated in this years community mock draft. Without your help, none of this would be possible.

Below are the complete results from our community mock draft.

Catch up with all of the mock draft selections in our 2011 CSC Community Mock Draft Section.

Pick	Team	Selection	Team Representative	Approval Rating
1	Carolina Panthers	QB Cam Newton - Auburn	DatFan	35%
2	Denver Broncos	DT Marcell Dareus - Alabama	Jeff.l.b	71%
3	Buffalo Bills	QB Blaine Gabbert - Missouri	SpreeGoogs	52%
4	Cincinnati Bengals	DE Da'Quan Bowers - Clemson	coldpizza	73%
5	Arizona Cardinals	CB Patrick Peterson - LSU	GRIZZ	61%
6	Cleveland Browns	DE Cameron Jordan - Cal	theprogrammerman	11%
7	San Francisco 49ers	LB Von Miller - Texas A&M	who dat patate	68%
8	Tennessee Titans	WR A.J. Green - Georgia	shipgoalie05	48%
9	Dallas Cowboys	CB Prince Amukamara - Nebraska	saints fan in cowboyland!	67%
10	Washington Redskins	WR Julio Jones - Alabama	VAsaintsfan	56%
11	Houston Texans	DE/OLB Robert Quinn - UNC	Jon Banks	62%
12	Minnesota Vikings	OT Tyron Smith - USC	HansDat	46%
13	Detroit Lions	OT Anthony Castonzo - BC	NorthFan	48%
14	St. Louis rams	DT Nick Fairley - Auburn	hakimdropstheball	54%
15	Miami Dolphins	RB Mark Ingram - Alabama	SpreeGoogs	48%
16	Jacksonville Jaguars	DE J.J.Watt - Wisconsin	Jay Preece	41%
17	New England Patriots	OT Derek Sherrod - Mississippi St.	FriarBob	27%
18	San Diego Chargers	DT Muhammad Wilkerson - Temple	DrewBreesManCrush	39%
19	New York Giants	OL Mike Pouncey - Florida	mknkachow	64%
20	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	DE Adrian Clayborn - Iowa	iori125883	45%
21	Kansas City Chiefs	DT Phil Taylor - Baylor	YESSaints/iori125883	63%
22	Indianapolis Colts	DT Corey Liuget - Illinois	MobileSaint	48%
23	Philadelphia Eagles	OT Nate Solder - Colorado	DeuceisLoose926	43%
24	New Orleans Saints	DE Ryan Kerrigan - Purdue	Dave Cariello	70%
25	Seattle Seahawks	QB Colin Kaepernick - Nevada	natde1016	20%
26	Baltimore Ravens	CB Jimmy Smith - Colorado	Dave Cariello
27	Atlanta Falcons	DE/OLB Justin Houston - Georgia	Dave Choate

Poll

Do you approve of this pick?

Yes

68 votes

No

38 votes

Indifferent

10 votes

116 votes | Poll has closed

Tweet Comment 18 comments | 0 recs |

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Comments

Aside from giving the Falcons a good player, this pick is solid.

"Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we kick the Vikings from the Dome to the foot of Canal Street!" - MtnExile

by Alex Swift on Apr 22, 2011 7:32 AM CDT reply actions

Well, aside from giving them an undersized DE who will be effective at the pass rush but is debatable about how good he’ll be on the run defense, I have to agree.

Then again, I suppose they may like that type of guy.

by FriarBob on Apr 22, 2011 9:37 AM CDT up reply actions

A 270 + lb RDE is hardly undersized.

"Aristotle was not Belgian. The central message of Buddhism is not 'every man for himself.' And the London Underground is not a political movement. Those are all mistakes, Otto. I looked 'em up."

by jeff.l.b on Apr 22, 2011 10:58 AM CDT up reply actions

Hi ya, Dave!

How’s life at the Falcoholic? Has Matt Ryan been experiencing any unexplained problems with his throwing arm lately? I just want to find out if that voodoo doll I bought is working. :)

"As soon as Tony (Dungy) said we had no chance, I knew we had 'em right where we wanted 'em"--Coach Sean Payton right after Super Bowl XLIV with the Lombardi Trophy firmly in hand. WHO DAT!!

by David "Satch" Kelly on Apr 22, 2011 9:57 AM CDT reply actions

Unfair!

by Dave Choate on Apr 22, 2011 2:14 PM CDT up reply actions

Such is life in the NFC South

All four teams are usually too competitive. We have to resort to all options no matter how sinister.

"As soon as Tony (Dungy) said we had no chance, I knew we had 'em right where we wanted 'em"--Coach Sean Payton right after Super Bowl XLIV with the Lombardi Trophy firmly in hand. WHO DAT!!

by David "Satch" Kelly on Apr 22, 2011 4:18 PM CDT up reply actions

48% approval?

Houston, we have a problem.

"I was not on the boat in question" -Darren Sharper

by coldpizza on Apr 22, 2011 10:37 AM CDT reply actions

It’s called “Atlanta picked a good player…..pan it because we don’t like Atlanta” syndrome.

"Aristotle was not Belgian. The central message of Buddhism is not 'every man for himself.' And the London Underground is not a political movement. Those are all mistakes, Otto. I looked 'em up."

by jeff.l.b on Apr 22, 2011 10:58 AM CDT up reply actions 1 recs

Agreed.

Canal Street Chronicles-A place of great Saints news and information. Oh and the stuff I write!

by Jon Banks on Apr 22, 2011 11:11 AM CDT up reply actions

pan it because we don’t like Atlanta

Hey, we don’t make the rules. But we’ve got to continue to play by them.

Wanna say something? Sign up! It's free!

by Dave Cariello on Apr 22, 2011 11:43 AM CDT up reply actions

Naw….you if you don’t like the rules…use manipulation and subterfuge to change them to how you want them to be.

"Aristotle was not Belgian. The central message of Buddhism is not 'every man for himself.' And the London Underground is not a political movement. Those are all mistakes, Otto. I looked 'em up."

by jeff.l.b on Apr 22, 2011 12:37 PM CDT up reply actions

funny - because Chris Houston had problems with Atlanta

Atheists just take a pass,
Watch football in their underpants.

by Hans Petersen on Apr 22, 2011 8:11 PM CDT up reply actions

Think it's OK

Yeah he’s supposed to be a decent player, which is good for Atlanta, but, and correct me if I’m wrong, wasn’t there secondary their biggest liability last year. So, while this may be good for them it could be better for us if Drew can quit throwing the INT’s.

When I say WHO DAT U say TWO DAT!!!

by cajuncommando58 on Apr 22, 2011 5:43 PM CDT reply actions

I would say the lack of a pass rush was the major problem

Secondary’s not exceptional, but it’s pretty good. Brent Grimes is achieving nemesis status against Brees.

by Dave Choate on Apr 22, 2011 11:56 PM CDT up reply actions

Yeah Dave, one leads to the other.

If you can’t get to Drew or any other elite QB like AR they will pick you apart.

When I say WHO DAT U say TWO DAT!!!

by cajuncommando58 on Apr 23, 2011 3:12 PM CDT up reply actions

P.S.

I lived in GA from around 84 to 91. Was the Circulation Mgr for The Griffin Daily News. I think it was 84 when I was transferred there. Lived in Jackson, actually, in between, off of 75.

When I say WHO DAT U say TWO DAT!!!

by cajuncommando58 on Apr 23, 2011 3:19 PM CDT up reply actions