Falcons Have 'Most Homework' at Scouting Combine?
The Atlanta Falcons are facing one of the more variable offseasons in football.
Head coach Arthur Smith has been fired, Raheem Morris has been ushered in, and a new crop of assistant coaches and coordinators will hope to optimize the talent the previous regime couldn’t.
However, it’s harder to make out what the Atlanta offense will look like in 2024 without knowing who will be under center. That, and much more, will be discussed during the NFL Scouting Combine from Feb. 26 to March 4.
Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank and general manager Terry Fontenot.
Clutchpoints
Bleacher Report named the Falcons one of the teams with the most homework to do next week. Of course, the quarterback conversation will take priority, but the opportunity is ripe to revamp Atlanta’s roster. How general manager Terry Fontenot performs this April will have a lasting impact on the team’s short- and long-term future.
“With five of his seven selections inside the top 110 picks, Fontenot is an ideal spot to add immediate contributors to either side of the line of scrimmage,” Ryan Fowler wrote. “While London remains the only notable wideout under contract, the crop of wideouts that will remain on the board come Day 2 represents an overwhelmingly deep talent pool from which Fontenot has the chance to add immediate pop.”
While free agency offers the Falcons a flurry of options to add to the receiving corps, the draft provides cost-controlled options with similar upside. That would only be emphasized by a trade for Chicago Bears quarterback Justin Fields. Assuming the No. 8 pick isn’t dealt, a Fields trade would take quarterback off the board and allow a high-level talent to find their way to the Falcons.
Whether that’s Washington’s Rome Odunze or LSU’s Malik Nabers is yet to be seen, but Atlanta will be encouraged to surround whoever is under center with as much talent as possible.
The class’ depth may move receivers down their list of priorities, though, opening the door for the Falcons to select the draft’s first defensive player. With three quarterbacks, Marvin Harrison Jr., and an offensive lineman safely projected to be gone before Fontenot is on the clock, two teams would need to take either an offensive lineman, quarterback, or pass-catcher to leave Atlanta its pick of the defensive litter.
Whether that’s a high-upside pass rusher like Alabama’s Dallas Turner or UCLA's Laiatu Latu or a corner like Alabama’s Terrion Arnold is yet to be seen. But this is a roster in need of more game-breaking talents.
It’s possible a strong combine boosts one of those defenders further onto Atlanta’s radar as the league continues to get increasingly athletic.
