Drake London Puts NFL On Notice, Adding More Hype to Falcons Rookie

The Atlanta Falcons hope to have found more help for Drake London at wide receiver in the offseason. London thinks they have.

Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Drake London can't help but hype rookie wide receiver Zachariah Branch. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

FLOWERY BRANCH, GA - Outside of Drake London, the Atlanta Falcons got very little production from their wide receiver room in 2025. Atlanta thought wide receiver was a strength heading into the season after a productive 2024 from Darnell Mooney and Ray-Ray McCloud.

However, Mooney broke his collarbone on the first day of training camp last year, and McCloud was dismissed from the team in September. That left a collection of former practice squad players to pick up the slack, and for the most part, that strategy failed.

New general manager Ian Cunningham made it a priority in the offseason to get more depth and explosiveness at wide receiver. He signed Jahan Dotson and Olamide Zaccheaus during free agency, and he selected Zachariah Branch in the third round of the 2026 NFL Draft.

Branch has a chance to be the Falcons’ most important rookie with the combination of his speed and shiftiness as a slot receiver and his badly needed contributions as a punt and/or kick returner.

He shined during OTAs and minicamp, and he’s picked up right where he left off during the first two days of training camp. The pads haven’t come on yet, but it’s difficult not to get excited for what Branch can bring to the offense.

London, for one, isn’t holding back on his appraisal of what Branch can do for the Falcons in 2026. He knew Branch when he was at USC and knows what Branch is capable of.

“It's extremely exciting, just watching him out there is really, really cool,” said London when asked about Branch. “In the recruiting process, he was coming to SC, so I got to meet him through that. Just seeing who he is, and the young man that he is. How he goes about his day-to-day business is really, really cool, and I'm just excited for him.

“Yeah, the world's gonna see.”

Branch routes at the Branch 🔁 pic.twitter.com/uWIXvAnAMS

— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) July 31, 2026

Branch isn’t the only rookie on offense catching London’s eye. Undrafted free agent Jack Strand has been thrust into the spotlight with Michael Penix Jr. being held out of 11v11s and Tua Tagovailoa missing the first two days of training camp with reported back tightness.

Strand has taken the majority of the reps in 11v11 and is building on a strong showing at OTAs and minicamp.

"That dude's a tank, bro," London said with a grin. "He's a big person, but he's a quiet guy. He's about his business, and it's dope to just see him out there, try to grasp everything and then just play ball at the end of the day, and he's doing a great job."

London has had four different Week 1 starting quarterbacks in his four years as an Atlanta Falcon, but he’s not concerned about who’s throwing him the ball.

"I mean, it doesn't impact me at all. If they throw the ball in my vicinity, my job is to catch it, and literally that's the description of the job," London said with a laugh.

London is doing something right. Despite the constant quarterback carousel, the Falcons rewarded him with a lucrative contract extension in June. Now, Atlanta hopes he has some teammates who can add another dimension to the Falcons’ aerial attack.

According to London, the NFL world is about to find out. 

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