PFF's rankings continue and with that, another underrated player for the Atlanta Falcons that show just how talented this roster is. Today's position rankings are at the center position and Atlanta's Drew Dalman ranked in the top ten, as the ninth-best center in the NFL.
Dalman has struggled as a pass-blocker in his three NFL seasons, recording a 53.0 grade in 2023, but he has been one of the best run-blockers during that time. Dalman’s 90.0 run-blocking grade in 2023 ranked third among centers, as did his 82.3 grade. If he can become an all-around blocker, he could be one of the game's few elite centers.
Atlanta has one of the top offensive lines in the league that's centered around their talent in the interior. Right guard Chris Lindstrom is arguably the best guard in the game, and second-year player Matthew Bergeron showed a ton of upside as an all-around guard on the left side.
With that kind of talent in the interior, the Falcons decided they should run only 109 rushing plays in the interior, according to Stathead, by far the least in the NFL. It's egregious enough that the difference between the next worst team, the Minnesota Vikings (168), is more than the gap between Minnesota at 31 and the Los Angeles Chargers at 20 (217).
A common theme in the Arthur Smith regime rears its ugly head again. Refusing to utilize the strengths of the roster and handicapping the offense. Hopefully, offensive coordinator Zac Robinson will be more receptive to building the offensive strategy around the offense's weapons do well.