With Falcons QB Room Questions, Matt Ryan and Ian Cunningham Scouted 2027’s Best

The Atlanta Falcons front office is on the search for the franchise’s next generation of talent.

On Saturday, Sept. 12, the eve of Atlanta’s season opener, President of Football Matt Ryan and general manager Ian Cunningham were among NFL scouts in attendance for the Oregon Ducks at the Oklahoma State Cowboys Week 2 NCAA football game at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater.

At the top of many Falcons fans’ minds are potential 2027 NFL Draft first-round quarterbacks at Oregon and Oklahoma.

The Ducks have 6-foot-3, 220-pound pocket passer Dante Moore, a senior. The All-Big 10 talent became the starter last year, passing for 3,565 yards, 30 touchdowns against 10 interceptions, and running twice for scores. Per ESPN’s Pete Thamel, NFL executives and scouts believe Moore is the top quarterback for the upcoming draft next April.

Matt Ryan and Ian Cunningham will get this franchise right.

Just give them some time, let them cook 🙏 pic.twitter.com/QAPIpoNmIe
— Matt (@ImTempy) September 12, 2026

He went 14-for-29 for 191 yards and passed two touchdowns as No. 6 Oregon was stunned by Oklahoma 39-31 on Saturday.

Opposing Moore was Drew Mestemaker, another pocket passer. Mestemaker, 6-foot-3, 215 pounds, is making his name after transferring from North Texas to follow head coach Eric Morris to Oklahoma State.

Just a year ago, the projected first-rounder led college football in passing yards with 4,379 and added 34 touchdowns against nine interceptions. Mestemaker added five rushing touchdowns. At the season’s end, Mestemaker was awarded the 2025 Burlsworth Trophy, meaning he was the top player in college football who started their career as a walk-on, and won the American Conference Offensive Player of the Year.

In a winning effort, Mestemaker completed 26 of 43 passing attempts for 317 yards, threw two touchdowns, and tossed two interceptions. The redshirt sophomore also ran for 109 rushing yards on six carries and a touchdown.

Evaluating two standout quarterbacks in one setting could give Atlanta some draft options if they decided to move on from Tua Tagovailoa and Michael Penix Jr., a 2024 first-round pick who was remains in contention to lead the offense during the 2026 NFL season.

Questions persist about the Falcons’ quarterback situation as Cooper Rush will start in Week 1 against the Pittsburgh Steelers after Tagovailoa suffered an oblique injury mid-game week, and Penix continues to recover after a torn left ACL injury last November.

Rush himself has back spasms entering the season opener, prompting even more questions at an already embattled position.

While the quarterbacks got the headlines for the Ducks and Cowboys, there are more stars on the field for Ryan and Cunningham to assess.

Oregon has two more projected first-rounders in defensive lineman A’Mauri Washington and tight end Jamari Johnson, per the NFL Mock Draft Database. Oklahoma State’s players show as mid-round targets, such as wide receiver Wyatt Young and running back Caleb Hawkins.

Under first-year head coach Kevin Stefanski, Atlanta’s path to deciding what draft pick it’ll have in 2027 starts on the road against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, Sept. 13.

The higher the record, the lower the pick. The worse the Falcons’ record is- which likely means the quarterback situation is still unsettled- the more the Falcons will be in a prime spot to pick their next signal-caller.

Atlanta picked in the top 10 seven times in the last 15 years, with Penix being the most recent two years ago.

Falcons-Steelers kickoff the 2026 NFL season at 1 p.m. FOX will televise Sunday’s game.

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