The defense's weakest position group will be a full-blown competition, as it should be.
Last year, the Falcons went with a linebacker grouping of Justin Durant (no longer with the team), Brooks Reed (injured, out of shape, and ineffective) and Paul Worrilow (up and down), with the likes of Philip Wheeler, Kroy Biermann, and others mixed in. It was not, to put it charitably, a great group.
This year's group may not be either, but the Falcons have added options and will, as linebackers coach and cliche master Jeff Ulbrich puts it, let "the cream rise to the top.