Natrone Brooks is spending this offseason in a different kind of audition.
The Falcons are asking the third-year defensive back to do more than just line up at cornerback. Under defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich, Brooks has been working at nickelback and safety too, a move that could give him a real path to carving out a bigger role in Atlanta.
“Cross-training,” Falcons head coach Kevin Stefanski told reporters at mandatory minicamp. “Versatility is a great thing for young players.”
That kind of flexibility has already caught the attention of Jessie Bates III. The Falcons All-Pro safety sees a player whose value could rise fast if he keeps handling the extra responsibilities.
“With him being able to play nickel, corner, and safety, it helps you stick around here,” said Falcons All-Pro safety Jessie Bates III. “He’s very versatile - very smart guy, even better person. I’m glad to see him get his opportunity, for sure.”
Brooks, who is 26, has been with Atlanta since 2024 after going undrafted out of Southern Miss. His college path included a stop at Copiah-Lincoln Community College before he finished at Southern Miss, where he built a reputation as a versatile defensive back with sound tackling, tight coverage and value on special teams. He also handled return duties for the Golden Eagles and piled up more than 400 punt return yards.
That all tracks with what Atlanta has seen so far. Brooks is listed at 5-foot-11 and 175 pounds, and in two seasons with the Falcons he has appeared in 26 games with one start.
Most of his impact has come on special teams, where he has 15 kick returns for 288 yards. On defense, he has been used sparingly and has 15 career tackles.
Still, the opportunity is there if the secondary work translates. Atlanta’s pass defense ranked 15th in the NFL in 2025, right in the middle of the league, and a player who can fill multiple spots gives the team more ways to deploy him.
“When you can do multiple jobs, it can really help a football team,” Stefanski said. “When you can line up in the back third, the nickel position, bounce out to corner, you can be a guy that we can deploy - that helps your value, but it can also really help your football team.”
Bates believes Brooks is already showing the right traits for that kind of jump.
“Trone, I’ve been impressed with him since he walked in the building,” Bates said, giving Brooks his props. “I feel like if you’re a UDFA, you’ve got to know the game.
You’ve got to know and be ahead of the installs, [and] be ahead of motions. Trone has been impressive since day one.”
If Brooks keeps stacking those reps, he could be in line for a bigger role in 2026.
In Other News...
Michael Penix Jr. Just Exposed A Falcons Problem Fans Feared
Michael Penix Jr. left mandatory minicamp with a pretty clear message about what the Falcons are trying to clean up as they reset the offense under a new coaching staff. The biggest shift, according to Penix, is a heavier emphasis on footwork, something the current group is drilling far more aggressively as it works to get him more comfortable and more consistent in the pocket.
That matters because Penixs early production under the previous setup never quite settled in, with his completion rate sitting below 60 percent during that stretch. Now the Falcons are asking him to sharpen the details that can make a young quarterback steadier from snap to snap, and that work comes with real stakes as he continues competing for the starting job. [Read more 🡒]
ESPN Just Buried The Falcons Despite All That Star Power
The Falcons have spent the offseason looking like a team with plenty to sell on paper, from Bijan Robinson and Drake London to Kyle Pitts and a defense that has added names like James Pearce Jr. and Brandon Dorlus. Even so, ESPNs latest projected-starting-lineup rankings for 2026 were not kind, slotting Atlanta tied for No. 29 and leaving only Cleveland and Miami behind them.
The harshest part of the evaluation came where it often does for this franchise, at quarterback, while the running back room drew the strongest praise. Bijan Robinson and Brian Robinson Jr. were singled out as the teams best unit, which only sharpens the contrast with the uncertainty under center and explains why a roster with this much talent still has so much to prove before anyone starts talking like a contender. [Read more 🡒]
Falcons May Finally Have An Answer To Their Biggest WR Problem
Deebo Samuel Sr. is still on the market after one season with Washington, and that alone keeps him in the conversation for teams looking to patch a receiver room without forcing a young player into a role he is not ready to carry. For Atlanta, the appeal is easy to see: Samuel has long been viewed as the kind of versatile, short-to-medium-range weapon who can fit into a scheme built to create space and YAC, while also taking some of the pressure off Drake London as the top target.
There is also a broader roster angle here, because Samuels experience would give the Falcons another veteran presence in a group that includes rookie Zachariah Branch. Branch and Samuel share a similar style, and having a proven player around who understands how to work after the catch and handle multiple alignments could help Atlanta in more than one way. The question now is whether the Falcons decide this is the right time to turn that fit into an actual move. [Read more 🡒]