The Falcons’ starting safeties still have a long road to get back to where they were before their season-ending injuries in 2018. Losing Keanu Neal to an ACL tear in Week 1 and then Ricardo Allen to a torn Achilles two weeks later proved devastating for Atlanta’s defense.
After seeing the defense collapse the way it did, if nothing else, Falcons fans should have learned to appreciate how valuable both of them are. It sounds like Neal and Allen have also grown together as a result of their shared misfortune. Here’s what Neal had to say about rehabbing with Allen, per the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
“Most definitely, go through the rehab and grow with each other. . . When you sit out the whole year and be around each other, it definitely has allowed us to grow more, for sure.”
As for Allen, he commended Neal for his focus.
“You can tell how deep he’s been focusing on his injury and how he can return to the game. This has brought us so much closer.”
The two have high expectations for themselves and the defense as a whole in 2019. Allen told the AJC that the Falcons “easily” have a top-10 unit when everybody is available.
