Atlanta Falcons draft Central Florida safety Richie Grant in second round

The Atlanta Falcons bolstered their secondary early on Day 2 of the NFL Draft.

New general manager Terry Fontenot and new head coach Arthur Smith selected versatile safety Richie Grant in the second round (No. 40 overall) Friday night. Atlanta had the No. 35 pick, but traded back with the Denver Broncos and added a fourth-round pick (114 overall) as part of the deal.

Grant is a 2020 finalist for the Thorpe Award, given to the nation’s top defensive back, and is versatile enough to play both safey spots.

The 6-foot, 197-pounder had 72 tackles and three interceptions in nine games in 2020, his third straight first-team all-conference season for Central Florida. He had 109 tackles in 2018 and 78 tackles in 2019.

“Grant offers versatility to play deep or down safety and has decent man-cover ability against matchup tight ends,” NFL.com analyst Lance Zierlein said. “He’s at his best as a high safety, where he has an overview of the field. He can key quarterbacks and use his ballhawking tendencies to force turnovers. His play as a down safety was marked with bouts of coverage confusion from bunch sets and occasional busts. He’s a willing, physical tackler but just average when asked to do it in the open field as a last line of defense. Grant’s size and length were on full display at the Senior Bowl, where he put together a strong week. He followed that up with a good pro day workout. He has been a fast riser up the boards and should go on Day 2.”

Atlanta drafted Michigan offensive lineman Jalen Mayfield with its third-round pick (68 overall) later Friday night. Mayfield, limited to two games last season by an ankle injury, made 18 career starts in college. The 6-foot-5, 319-pounder played tackle at Michigan, but likely projects at guard in the NFL.