The Falcons will resume their 2012 draft on Saturday. When the clock strikes noon, rounds four through seven will commence to close out the draft.
On Friday night the Falcons had two picks, one in each round, their first two of the draft. They did not have a first-round pick this year. With Atlanta's first pick at No. 55 in the second round they selected Peter Konz, a center/guard from Wisconsin. Atlanta traded their No. 84 overall pick in the third round to the Baltimore Ravens in exchange for the Raven's No. 91 overall third-round pick and a fifth round pick, the 29th pick of the round.
With their third-round pick at No. 91 overall, they selected Lamar Holmes, a behemoth left tackle from Southern Mississippi.
Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff said he was focused on the offensive line with his first selection. He anticipates Konz is versatile enough to play either guard or center in the NFL, even though he was the full-time center at Wisconsin.
Konz said he was surprised by the Falcons selection of him. He did not have much contact with the team during the pre-draft process but said it was an honor to go anywhere in the draft.
"Being an NFL football player now, getting the opportunity is amazing," Konz said. "It doesn't matter where I fell to because I love the team that picked me. I have nothing but great respect for the organization. Now I get to help be part of a winning tradition."
The selection of Holmes completed a day of drafting where Dimitroff hoped to walk away with a few offensive linemen. He sees Holmes as a left tackle prospect, one that quickly developed into a player they were really interested in during his two years at Southern Miss.
Like Konz, Holmes said being selected by the Falcons capped off a dream-like experience.
"It was like the world's best feeling," he said. "It's been a dream since the day you could pick up a football or say the word 'football', something you've dreamed about your entire life. To have a coach call you and tell you you're part of the Atlanta Falcons now, it's something you can't really put into words. It's really great. I'm ready to go."
The Falcons' first pick on Saturday will come in the fifth round, No. 22 in the round. They'll pick again in the sixth round, also at 22. Their final pick will be in the seventh round, the 42nd pick of the round.
