As the 224th player picked in the NFL Draft on April 29, safety DeMarcco Hellams was one step up from undrafted rookie and no lock to make the Atlanta Falcons’ regular-season roster.

After Hellams’ preseason performance, though, it looked like there was no way the Falcons could let go of the former Alabama defensive back.

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In three preseason games, Hellams made 18 tackles on defense and two on special teams, intercepted two passes and broke up another while playing 145 defensive snaps and 22 special-teams plays.

But after Atlanta reduced its preseason roster to the regular-season limit of 53 players last week, Falcons coach Arthur Smith said there was more to Hellams making the team than his performance in preseason games.

“He played well in the preseason, but it’s not just about that sometimes,” Smith said. “You take that — it’s a good evaluation. But then there’s a lot of other things that can go on in the preseason, and sometimes, it’s who you’re going against. Sometimes, it’s you can tell some teams are being as generic as they can be. It’s part of evaluation.

“But it’s also what he’s done on the practice field and the day-to-day. The way he’s trending — hopefully, he keeps it up — he’s going to be hard to keep off the field. Hopefully, that continues to stay at the right trend there, so he earned it.”

Hellams’ path to the field might start on special teams, where he got extensive experience during his 54 games with Alabama.

Atlanta drafted Hellams even though the Falcons signed safety Jessie Bates III to a four-year, $64.02 million contract in free agency this offseason and returned their 2022 starting safeties, Richie Grant and Jaylinn Hawkins.

Hellams will have the opportunity to make his NFL debut when the Falcons kick of their regular-season schedule against the Carolina Panthers at noon CDT Sunday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.