Justin Blalock Justin Christopher Blalock ( born December 20 , 1983 ) is an American football offensive guard for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League ( NFL ) . He played college football for the University of Texas , and earned All - American honors . The Atlanta Falcons chose him in the second round of the 2007 NFL Draft . Early years . Blalock was born in Dallas , Texas . He attended Plano East Senior High School in the Dallas suburb of Plano . He was three - year starter at offensive guard , but also saw playing time at defensive tackle . As a sophomore in 1999 , Blalock was named second - team all - district after recording 151 pancake block s , as he helped lead Plano East to an 11 - 3 record and the Texas 5A Division II state quarterfinals that season . The offensive lineman was named all - district and all - area as a junior after registering 130 knockdowns . In 2001 , Blalock posted 134 knockdown blocks , did not allow a sack and opened holes for an offense that averaged nearly 300 rushing yards per game . His top game of season was a 21 - pancake performance vs . Plano Senior High School . Blalock was selected to play in the 2002 U . S . Army All - American Bowl . He also earned first - team All - American honors from " USA Today " as a senior , and was also a first - team Class 5A All - State , all - area and all - district selection . The " Sporting News " rated him as the nation ' s top offensive lineman prospect as well as the No . 15 high school prospect overall . Blalock was also an outstanding track and field athlete in the shot put and discus throw , where he was selected all - state . He captured the Region II - 5A shot put title with a toss of 58 - 8½ in 2002 and finished fourth ( 55 - 2½ ) at the 2002 UIL Championships ( Class 5A ) . He also registered the third - best throw ( 63 - 2½ ) in the state as a senior ( all classes ) and placed fifth in the shot ( 61 - 6 ) at the 1999 Texas 5A Championships . College career . Blalock attended the University of Texas , where he played for coach Mack Brown ' s Texas Longhorns football team from 2002 to 2006 . As a redshirt freshman in 2003 , Blalock started all 13 games at right tackle and was named first - team Freshman All - America by the Football Writers Association of America and The Sporting News . He also started all 12 games his sophomore year at right tackle and was named first - team All - Big 12 by the Big 12 coaches and the Austin American - Statesman . Blalock again manned the right tackle position in 2004 . He was chosen first - team All - Big 12 Conference by the league ' s coaches and the Austin American - Statesman , adding second - team accolades from The Associated Press , Dallas Morning News , Fort Worth Star - Telegram and San Antonio Express - News . He led an offensive line that cleared the way for Texas to rank second in the nation in rushing ( 299 . 2 ypg ) , seventh in total offense ( 464 . 4 ypg ) and 12th in scoring ( 35 . 3 ppg ) . Texas ' 3 , 590 rushing yards that season was the third - highest total in school history . As a junior in 2005 , he again started all 13 games at right tackle and was named All - America by College Football News and a third - team All - America by The Associated Press . Also named first - team All - Big 12 by The Associated Press , Austin American - Statesman , Big 12 Coaches , Dallas Morning News , Fort Worth Star - Telegram and Kansas City Star . He was part of the NCAA National Championship Football team and contributed to the now legendary victory at The Rose Bowl in January 2006 . As a senior during 2006 Blalock was voted team captain and continued to lead the Texas Longhorns in exemplary leadership and athletic consistency . He was a consensus All - America All - America choice in 2006 . On 24 November 2006 , Blalock became the first Longhorn in school history to start 50 consecutive games . An excellent student , Blalock was a member of the UT Athletics Director ' s Honor Roll in fall 2004 . He was also one of five finalists for the 2002 Watkins Award , which is presented to the nation ' s top African - American high school scholar - athlete . Blalock graduated from the University of Texas at Austin in December 2006 with his degree in youth and community studies and a minor in business . Professional career . He was one of seven Longhorns selected by professional football teams in the 2007 NFL Draft . The others were Michael Griffin ( number 19 overall ) , Aaron Ross ( number 20 overall ) , Tim Crowder ( number 56 overall ) , Brian Robison ( number 102 overall ) , Tarell Brown ( number 147 overall ) , Kasey Studdard ( number 183 overall ) . Lyle Sendlein and Selvin Young were not drafted but signed with NFL teams as free agents . Personal . Blalock resides in Plano , Texas , where he is active in community service projects . He is a cousin of San Francisco 49ers center Jonathan Goodwin .