Jawaan Taylor’s first months with the Atlanta Falcons have already asked him to do something different.
The veteran right tackle, who joined Atlanta in free agency after leaving the Kansas City Chiefs, spent the offseason rehabbing and getting back into football shape before settling in with the Falcons’ starting offensive line. Now he’s working through another adjustment: lining up next to a left-handed quarterback in Tua Tagovailoa.
That changes the job in a real way for Taylor, who is now responsible for protecting Tagovailoa’s blind side from the right tackle spot.
“It definitely changes a little bit the game for me for sure,” Taylor said. “I got to definitely be more conscious of that, especially when you’re on the backside of a quarterback now.”
Taylor said Tagovailoa’s setup in the pocket forces him to stay alert to spacing and positioning.
“They kind of set up a little bit more closer to you,” Taylor said. “So I just got to make sure I’m being conscious of that. Make sure I’m keeping the width in the pocket a little more than I’m used to.”
As Atlanta heads toward the regular season with Tagovailoa under center, Taylor said the quarterback’s standing in the locker room was never really in question, even with the offseason competition involving Michael Penix Jr. drawing so much attention.
“He’s been great, man. We have the utmost confidence in him,” Taylor said. “We know he’s going to get the job done at a high level.”
Taylor also pointed to the way Tagovailoa has settled into Kevin Stefanski’s offense and new offensive coordinator Tommy Rees’ system.
“He’s definitely taking ownership and you can see his confidence levels rising each and every day,” Taylor said.
That growing comfort has shown up in the huddle, where Taylor says Tagovailoa has taken charge.
“He keeps us going as an offense,” Taylor said. “He stays on top of us.
He makes sure we’re sharp in the huddle, sharp being out of the huddle. He’s confident making his calls, et cetera.
So we love that.”
For Taylor, the focus now is simple: keep shaking off the offseason rust and build consistency with his new line.
“It’s been great,” Taylor said. “I’ve been enjoying it and just knocking the rust off each day and getting that used to football.”
With the season drawing near, Taylor’s work on Tagovailoa’s blind side could end up being one of the key pieces of Atlanta’s new-look offense.
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