Falcons Jessie Bates Puts League on Notice for Key Improvement on Defense

The Atlanta Falcons have yet to reach their peak in certain aspects of their game on defense

Falcons safety Jessie Bates believes the best is yet to come | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

The Atlanta Falcons finished the 2024 season 31st in the NFL in sacks. They spent the 2025 offseason revamping the pass rush, bringing in veteran Leonard Floyd as well as two first-round rookies in Jalon Walker and James Pearce Jr. 

So far, Atlanta’s pass rush has shown improvement; the Falcons currently have 15 sacks through six games, which is tied for the 14th most in the NFL. 10 of the teams above the Falcons in sacks have played one more game.

“This year it’s changed,” Safety Jessie Bates said in regards to the pass rush. “You know this year, there’s a lot of pressure… I thought our guys are doing a really good job of rushing together.”

In the eyes of the veteran defender, the pass rush is just getting started, and their best football is still ahead of them.

“It’s been pretty cool to see,” Bates said during Thursday’s presser. “Yeah, it’s [the pass rush] on the rise. I don’t think they’ve even reached their full potential yet, but it’s been good to see the improvement for sure.” 

The Falcons have not finished in the top half of the league in sacks since 2017, which coincidentally was also the last time the team made the playoffs. In 2017, Atlanta finished 13th in the league with 39 sacks. Through six games in 2025, the Falcons are on pace for 42.5 sacks. 

The difference this season is that Atlanta has a deeper pass-rushing rotation than it has had in previous years, paired with great veteran leadership

“Yeah, it's been good just to see the rotation of our D-line, and, you know, with the leadership of Flo [Leonard Floyd] out there and just telling the guys like ‘Hey, if I don’t get it, you’re going to get it’ … and it's like they just continue to get better.”

Bates makes sure to hammer in that point: the pass rush is continuing to get better. It’s a young group, with two rookies heading the front along with two second-year players in Brandon Dorlus and Ruke Orhorhoro. The players are still adjusting to life in the NFL, and the team is still top 15 in the league, a welcome sight for Falcons fans. 

If the young group continues to grow at its current pace, which Jessie Bates believes it can, Atlanta’s pass rush, which has been a weakness for the entirety of the 2020s, could turn into one of the team’s biggest strengths.