The Atlanta Falcons recently partnered with Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta to host the inaugural girls flag football week at their practice facility in Flowery Branch, Georgia. The event included a free clinic for girls, led by former and current Falcons players, aimed at promoting the sport and offering opportunities for skill development.
Jalon Walker participated in the clinic and said, “This was an amazing opportunity — actually a new opportunity for me — to learn so much about what’s going on.” He added, “I heard earlier that you can get college scholarships from girls flag football now which is just amazing. So, having these girls come out here to show their talent, to come out and enjoy themselves? It’s great.”
One notable story involved 11 students from Valdosta High School who traveled six hours to attend the clinic. Their coach, Sandy Turner, commented on the growth of the sport: “We just have a microcosm of what’s going on for girls flag football,” Turner explained. “The first year, girls were hesitant. … But our numbers have constantly risen. More girls are interested, and actually we have started a middle school league, because it has taken off so much.”
The week concluded with GACA All-Star games held at the Falcons’ facility. Diana Flores, two-time gold medalist in women’s flag football for Mexico’s national team, addressed participants: “I almost can’t believe where we are today when looking back and seeing where we came from,” Flores said. “Nobody talked about the sport. Nobody knew what it was. Nobody believed in the game. And now, thanks to organizations like (the Falcons), people who believed in maybe what even we couldn’t see or imagine years ago, it’s now a reality. It’s going beyond what we could have ever dreamed.”
In addition to community initiatives, organizational changes continue within the Falcons as they prepare for future seasons in the NFL’s NFC South division (official website). The team hired Jordan Reid as assistant quarterbacks coach and Shawn Heinlen as director of college scouting. Heinlen brings experience from roles with Buffalo Bills, Philadelphia Eagles—where he worked with general manager Ian Cunningham—and Cleveland Browns.
Defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich discussed plans regarding linebacker Kaden Elliss: “to replace Kaden would take more than one human being.” Ulbrich described Elliss’s versatility: “He gave us this really unique flexibility…to think a guy could play world-class line of scrimmage play but at the same time…play world-class stack linebacker play.”
On offense, coaches Tommy Rees and Kevin Stefanski aim to build upon existing strategies rather than overhaul them completely. Stefanski noted: “I think that’s a really good place to start when you’re talking about run game,” he said. “I do believe you can’t be good at everything…I think you have to hang your hat on specific things.”
With offseason activities underway—including contract discussions involving tight end Kyle Pitts—the franchise tag window opened February 17th with a March 3rd deadline for decisions.
Looking ahead, general manager Ian Cunningham and head coach Kevin Stefanski will attend this week’s NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis.
The Atlanta Falcons began as an expansion team in 1965 (official website), are based in Atlanta (official website), reached Super Bowls in 1998 and 2016 (official website), advanced twice overall (official website), and feature Freddie the Falcon as mascot (official website).
