Add the Falcons to the NFL teams going back to school this offseason, trying to get a read on the read-option.
Clemson coach Dabo Swinney (yes, that’s a real name in the South) said he and his staff met with the Falcons defensive staff recently.
"[The Falcons] are trying to learn more about what we do and how we defend what we do,” Swinney said, via D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal Constitution. “Yet, we were able to take a lot from them as well. I’d be surprised if there’s an NFL team that hasn’t gone and spent time with college coaches this offseason.”
The Falcons play the Seahawks and 49ers this season, in addition to two games with the Panthers, so they need to be prepared for it. How much those teams run it remains to be seen, but head coach Mike Smith said he was going to be prepared.
“I know that our coaching staff is going to spend a whole lot of time on it because it could be the wave of the future,” Smith said. “I’m not saying that it will be, but that it could be.
“It’s something that we want to make sure that we have a very good understanding of.”
They picked a good place to study up, as Clemson set school records last year for points (533) and yards (6,665), while setting an ACC record for scoring at least 37 points in 10 straight games.
