oticed as a potential talent while playing pickup basketball at Kansas State. An assistant football coach watched him play and sai

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. -- Ryan Schraeder had no guarantees when the Atlanta Falcons signed him as an undrafted free agent in 2013.The 6-foot-7, 300-pound right tackle knew hed have to impress the coaching staff almost immediately.When youre undrafted, you come out and have to prove yourself even more to stand out from the guys that were drafted and on the team, he said. For them to see some talent in me and follow through with it, its cool.Schraeders perseverance paid off Monday when the Falcons signed him to a five-year contract extension. A person familiar with the deal says its for $33 million with $12.5 million guaranteed. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because financial terms of the deal were not publicly announced.He has started 35 straight games, but really began to blossom the last two years in offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahans zone-blocking scheme.A big deal about the outside zone is being able to play in space with guys and keep them on the line of scrimmage and not give up penetration, Schraeder said. Youve got to be an athletic guy. Youve got to be big. Youve got to be able to move. Its not an easy offense, but when you have the skill set, you can be successful with it.Schraeders journey to the NFL was somewhat unexpected.He played only baseball and basketball at Maize High School in Wichita, Kansas and was just 5-foot-7 at the start of his senior year. He grew nine inches by the end of the year, but was still skinny. Scholarships werent offered in either sport and he spent the following summer delivering products for a local Wichita meat distributor.His growth spurt wasnt all that surprising. Men on Schraeders fathers side of the family were as tall as 6-6. His mother had a sister who was 6-0.After his body began to fill out, Schraeder was noticed as a potential talent while playing pickup basketball at Kansas State. An assistant football coach watched him play and said he should reconsider the sport.Schraeder returned home and spent one season at Butler Community College, then two at Valdosta State. He earned first-team all-America honors for three straight seasons, but still wasnt considered a top NFL prospect.When the Falcons signed him out of Valdosta State, Schraeders size wasnt that impressive. Lots of offensive tackles are 6-7, 300, but Schraeder stuck around mostly because of his athleticism and smarts.The development hes done over the last three years really set the stage for him to be here for extended time, Falcons head coach Dan Quinn said. Congrats to him. Were so pumped hes going to be part of it for a long time.Schraeders new contract is the third big investment Atlanta has made on the offensive line in the last three years. Left tackle Jake Matthews was the NFLs No. 6 overall draft pick in 2014. The Falcons made Alex Mack the leagues highest paid center in March.Hopefully well all be here together for a long time and win a lot of games, Matthews said. Thats the plan.The Falcons (6-4) host Arizona (4-5-1) on Sunday.Game notes LCB Desmond Trufant (shoulder, pectoral) and RB Tevin Coleman (hamstring) did some work on the field in practice. Quinn wont officially update their injury status until Wednesday. 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