Falcons trade down in latest CBS Sports mock draft

The Falcons are trading down in this recent mock draft.

Not only have the recent mock drafts been coming out more than often, but they’ve been getting crazier by the day.

For weeks we’ve seen the same picks for the same teams, but this time around we have some trades happening for the Atlanta Falcons. Trades are what shake up the landscape of the draft. With the new NFL league year taking off March 18th, a week from today, free agency has the potential to impact draft boards as well. For now, here's another March mock selection for the Falcons.

In this recent mock draft, CBS Sports has the Falcons trading down (not up) to the No. 22 pick for LSU CB Kristian Fulton. Here’s their reasoning for the trade and the pick:

“The Falcons move down to add a third-round pick, then pass on a defensive lineman after surveying the options to select cornerback help.”

The Falcons already have two second-round picks, so adding another third-round pick makes things even sweeter. With a team that doesn’t have a lot of projected cap space for the new year, piling up draft picks may be the right thing to do. This gives them the opportunity to fill most of their needs early in the draft as well.

Recent mock drafts have either had the Falcons taking a defensive linemen or cornerback in the first round, and this time they picked the latter. Either way it goes, the Falcons need to address both positions in the early rounds with three of the first 55 selections. 

Fulton was one of the best 10 cornerbacks in college football in 2019 according to PFF, tallying 14 pass break ups and 38 tackles in his senior season. He excelled in zone and man at LSU, which makes him an intriguing prospect in the draft. He may not be the fastest sprinter of the group, but his technique is on point.

The Falcons had some low points in the secondary last season, and adding some more talent should not be out of the question. If the Falcons are able to trade down for Fulton in the event that all of the first-round pass rushers they prefer are off the board, they could go ahead and pull the trigger.