Much to my delight, Isaiah Oliver has been terrific so far in 2021. In discussion with David Walker of the Falcoholic on their podcast, we broke down Oliver’s role coming into 2021 and how keeping him off of the boundary would likely result in improved play. Even when I said Oliver was “over-hated, wasn’t that bad,” and he would be “fine” in 2021 if he played in the slot, it looks like I was selling him short to this point.
Me and @FalcoholicDW talked about Isaiah Oliver this offseason on @FalcoholicPod, and we may have been selling him short.
He’s now PFF’s 11th highest graded corner. pic.twitter.com/GFDIEYDSmp
— SportsTalkATL Jake (@cantguardjake) September 27, 2021
For Week 3 against the Giants, Oliver kept up his outstanding play.
Top-5 #Falcons PFF Defensive Grades vs. Giants (Week 3)
1. LB Mykal Walker – 92.7
2. CB Isaiah Oliver – 90.2
3. DT Grady Jarrett – 89.8
4. CB Avery Williams – 76.0
5. LB Dante Fowler Jr. – 70.2— Evan Birchfield (@EvanBirchfield) September 27, 2021
#Falcons Isaiah Oliver is the NFL’s 2nd ranked CB for Week 3, only behind Greedy Williams who played just 8 snaps. Oliver’s pass coverage of 90.8 is the best in the NFL for Week 3.
— Evan Birchfield (@EvanBirchfield) September 27, 2021
Now that Oliver has been relegated to slot duties, for the most part, I’m feeling even better about my comparison to Logan Ryan, who was a staple of many Dean Pees defenses. Yes, I understand Oliver is technically second according to PFF, but he played 57 snaps — over seven times as many as Williams.
He’s first in my book. Those who have watched the games have also noticed Oliver has used his size to his advantage, and he is making his presence known in the run game. I thought Oliver would be much improved in 2021, but even I didn’t see this coming. Hopefully, this continues, and he can be a staple of this Falcons secondary moving forward.
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