2019 Atlanta Falcons Roster Review: Defensive Ends

There is no secret that entering the 2020 offseason, the Atlanta Falcons will be in search of an upgrade in talent at the defensive end position.

The Falcons trotted out three former first round picks in 2019 and still only ranked 29th in the NFL in sacks with 28 total sacks. Grady Jarrett, who plays defensive tackle, accounted for 7.5 of those sacks and led the team with 26 pressures. Leading the charge for the outside rushers was Vic Beasley, who got hot down the stretch and racked up eight sacks, which was the second highest total in his five-year career. The Falcons had only one player in the top 68 in NFL in pressures (Jarrett, who ranked 40th).

Beasley’s contract is expiring and he will be a free agent this offseason after the Falcons picked up his player option for the 2019 season that counted a smidge of $11 million toward the small amount of cap space available to the Falcons last spring.

It is unlikely Beasley gets another deal of similar value from the Falcons due to their limited cap space as well as Beasley’s uneven performance throughout his career in Atlanta.

The second of the Falcons’ former first round defensive ends Takkarist McKinley provided 3.5 sacks, albeit in 14 games in 2019. Prior to the season McKinley had high expectations for himself. He said via his Twitter account that if he didn’t reach at least 10 sacks in 2019, he’d cut his dreadlocks.

That didn’t happen and as of February has yet to cut his dreadlocks though he did go under the knife on Jan. 14 to repair a shoulder injury that cost him the final two games of the 2019 season.

McKinley had battled the ailing shoulder for much of the season and finally injured it to the point of no return against the San Francisco 49ers on Dec. 15.

The Falcons will likely return McKinley in 2020 with hopes of him being fully healthy for the entire season, as he has shown flashes of excellence in his first three seasons. The Falcons will be counting on him being fully healthy in 2020 as well as having his breakout season as he becomes one of the veteran pieces on a defensive front in the midst of a bit of a makeover.

Veterans Adrian Clayborn and Steven Means are both free agents. Clayborn provided the Falcons with four sacks in 2019. Allen Bailey is the only veteran in the fold outside of McKinley at the start of the offseason and he provided very little by way of pass rush in 2019.

The offseason will see much change in the position group. Outside of familiar faces returning on smaller deals, major free agent additions or a trade for a veteran, the Falcons will move into 2020 leaning on a youth at the position in 2020.

Falcons hold the 16th pick in April’s NFL Draft and will likely heavily consider some of the top defensive ends in this year’s class.