AUBURN | Marlon Davidson played a lot of different positions at Auburn and he’ll do the same in the NFL.

But with the Tigers, Davidson played most of his snaps at defensive end. That won’t be the case with the Atlanta Falcons.

“He’s been a defensive end, he’s been standup, he’s been down. We’re going to try and feature him at the defensive tackle spot over the guard as much as we can,” Atlanta head coach Dan Quinn said. “Having a guy with that kind of versatility, you can imagine we’re going to partner him up inside as often as we can. His intensity, his physicality, I think that all shines through.”

Atlanta selected Davidson in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft Friday night. They plan to insert the No. 47 overall pick directly into a playing rotation at defensive tackle, which includes Grady Jarrett and Tyeler Davison.

“So much of what Marlon has is what Allen Bailey has, that type of quickness for a big guy,” Quinn said. “So adding a player of his caliber into the rotation and into the mix, you can see why we’re so excited to do that. Most of the best defenses we’ve been around have that kind of rotation where guys are rolling through. It was just a unique opportunity to add a player of his caliber into this group. It’s an excellent group because of the strength of the group.

“Last year, I think that was certainly the case with San Francisco … with Philadelphia maybe two years prior to that. Having a wave of rushers to keep attacking, keep playing well, I think that’s important.”

One of the biggest reasons Quinn likes Davidson at defensive tackle is because he’ll spend the majority of his snaps rushing the passer. Davidson played inside at Auburn on some passing downs so it shouldn’t be much of an adjustment. He should also have opportunities to line up in a more familiar position.

“In the base defense, which in the NFL now only makes up 30-35 percent of the time, we definitely want to give him some reps at defensive end, the hardball run stuff,” Quinn said. “That’s what makes this player so unique. He’s lined up all the way from the outside to inside. Passing downs you want to feature him inside the guards. Heavy running downs, that’s when he can play some of the defensive end spots.”

Davidson was one of six former Auburn players drafted over the weekend, which ties last year’s group for the most since the NFL Draft contracted to seven rounds in 1994.