The pressure is on Vic Beasley. The defensive end was drafted in the first round with the expectations that he would be inserted immediately as a starter. Comparisons to John Abraham began to fly who was the last Falcon to record double-digits in sacks. However, the one thing that could derail all of that from happening is an injury which Beasley has officially suffered as he still remains unsigned with OTAs coming to a close.
According to D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Beasley will likely miss the rest of OTAs after suffering a shoulder strain. Both the rookie and head coach Dan Quinn downplayed the issue of the injury. Beasley has been earning rave reviews so far in practice and fans will be anxious to get a good look at him come mini-camp time. Beasley does not believe the injury will linger too long.
"It's going good," Beasley said, via the Atlanta Journal Constitution. "I think coach Quinn has a good plan for this team and specifically for my position, the Leo, and this whole defense. Rarely in life do you actually get an opportunity to have a head coach that works your position. It's a blessing for me to have him, a guru, at the position. I'm just learning everything from him."
The bigger question for Beasley might not be his shoulder, but his contract. The rookie remains the lone draft pick unsigned, but that could change very soon. ESPN's Vaughn McClure is reporting that Beasley is getting very close to signing his rookie deal and it "should be soon" that he is finally under contract. It is unclear what has been holding up negotiations, but Beasley has shown no ill-will towards the issue as he has not held out of practice so far.
One contract that is nowhere near complete is the deal for Julio Jones. General manager Thomas Dimitroff made it clear that the team's top priority now was to sign the wide receiver before the start of the season as Jones prepares to enter the final year of his contract. The issue is that the market for top receivers is relatively unknown at the moment. Dez Bryant and Demaryius Thomas are also awaiting new contracts which is stalling the process for everyone. Jones has made it clear that he is not worried and fully intends to be with the Falcons for life.
Meanwhile, the offense is dealing with increased expectations as coordinator Kyle Shanahan comes in with a new system. Plays like Roddy White and Matt Ryan along with both Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman have praised the new system which could help the Falcons finally begin to look like that 2012 team that went to the NFC Championship Game.
