Falcons Projected to Roll the Dice on Young Edge Rusher

In a perfect, the Atlanta Falcons will find a way to trade for Myles Garrett or sign Josh Sweat this offseason. But in reality, either of those acquisitions will be difficult to make because of Atlanta's limited cap space and draft capital.

The Falcons are expected to draft an edge rusher at No. 15 overall in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft. But if they wish to add a veteran as well, the team is likely going to need to find one in the bargain bin.

ESPN's Aaron Schatz had a suggested for the Falcons on Feb. 28 -- Las Vegas Raiders edge rusher Malcolm Koonce.

"The Falcons ranked 27th in pass rush win rate (34.1%) this past season and three of their top four edge rushers are free agents, so Atlanta's biggest need is pretty obvious. There may be hesitation to go back to a veteran after Matthew Judon was a bit of a disappointment -- 5.5 sacks and 17 pressures -- this past season. So instead of Haason Reddick or Khalil Mack, let's suggest Koonce, the Raiders' 2021 third-round pick who turns 27 in June," wrote Schatz.

"Koonce lost the entire 2024 season to a knee injury, but he had 8.0 sacks and 29 pressures in 2023. His 17.5% pass rush win rate ranked 22nd among qualifying edge rushers, just below teammate Maxx Crosby. Koonce could team with Arnold Ebiketie to give the Falcons a younger and stronger pass rush off the edge."

There's a lot of risk with the Falcons targeting Koonce, who the Raiders drafted at No. 79 overall in 2021. Although most players return to their original production after recovering from major injuries, there's no guarantee Koonce will do that.

The specifics of Koonce's injury were never disclosed. But it was a non-contact injury in practice, so in all likelihood, he suffered at least a torn ACL.

Whatever it was, as Atlanta Braves fans know, Koonce is more at risk the rest of his career of suffering the same injury in the other knee.

Furthermore, do the Falcons really want one of their top free agent signings this offseason to be a player coming off a season-ending injury just a year after Kirk Cousins was in the same situation?

Koonce posted eight sacks with nine tackles for loss and 17 quarterback hits in 17 games for the Raiders in 2023. If he produces like that in 2025, then the roll of the dice on him will be worth it.

But he's far from a sure thing.

Then again, the Falcons have nothing but "unsure" options to improve their edge rushing depth this offseason.