Falcons DT Gervon Dexter’s Mindset Changed, He Now Plays for More Than Himself

The Atlanta Falcons recently extended the defensive tackle with a multi-year deal

One change has rewarded Dexter with a contract | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Gervon Dexter Sr. is with the Atlanta Falcons for the long haul.

“I’m happy to be here for an extended period of time,” the defensive tackle told reporters on Thursday.

Dexter has only played three games for the Falcons, but has made an immediate impact. Thus far, he leads all NFL interior defensive linemen with a 20.5 quarterback pressure rate and has 15 total pressures. He’s recorded seven tackles and 0.5 sacks.

Now, Dexter is reaping the rewards for it.

On Wednesday evening, the fourth-year NFL player signed a four-year contract extension worth $78 million, $46.5 million guaranteed, to remain in Atlanta.

“It’s well deserved. He earned it,” said Falcons head coach Kevin Stefanski. “I think very highly of the player. I think very highly of the person.”

On Aug. 30, the Falcons acquired Dexter in a trade with the Chicago Bears, sending cornerback Clark Phillips III and a 2027 NFL Draft fifth-round pick in return. 

It reunited the 6-foot-6, 326-pounder with Falcons general manager Ian Cunningham. 

Cunningham was previously Chicago’s assistant general manager and played a role in drafting the Lake Wales, Florida native out of the University of Florida with a second-round pick in 2023.

Thirty-one days after the Dexter-to-Falcons trade, Cunningham offered the interior defensive lineman to make Atlanta his home for the foreseeable future.

“He’s seen me every step of the way,” Dexter said of Cunningham. “For him to be able to create generational wealth for my family, it’s cool.”

Among the congratulatory messages Dexter received was one from Grady Jarrett, the Falcons’ legendary defensive lineman and his former teammate in Chicago.

Dexter, 25,  is locked in with a youthful and highly productive Falcons interior defensive line featuring Brandon Dorlus, 25, and Maason Smith, 23. 

“We’ve got a younger group, especially in the interior,” Dexter said. “So just to grow with those guys to be able to help them and them help me, it was important.”

Collectively, the Falcons rank first in the NFL for run defense, allowing just 47.7 rushing yards per game. Pass rush-wise, the defensive front has the Falcons in the top three in quarterback pressure at 41.6%, and despite blitzing less than 20% of the time, the second-lowest mark in the league.

Being a piece of the puzzle in Atlanta’s early-season accomplishments on the stat sheets is something shaped by fatherhood, Dexter says. 

“I used to think it was ‘for me, for me, for me.’ Now it’s like ‘for them, ‘for them.’ That’s how I am,” said Dexter, a father of two, one daughter, one son. 

“That created for me to be like that on the field. Growing up, playing football, you want the sack. Now it’s like ‘How can I help this guy get a sack? How can I do this for the team?’ That’s probably the main reason for the way I am now.”

Dexter will take the field again on Oct. 5 when the Falcons (1-2) visit NFC South rival, the New Orleans Saints (1-2) at the Caesars Superdome for Monday Night Football.

Kickoff is at 8:15 p.m. on ESPN.

An Atlanta win and a Carolina Panthers loss to the Detroit Lions would move the Falcons to the No. 1 spot in the NFC South division.

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