Atlanta Falcons on the Rise in ESPN's Week 17 NFL Power Rankings

The Atlanta Falcons are 3-2 in their last five games, including consecutive wins over the floundering Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the tanking Arizona Cardinals.

Those five games coincide with Kirk Cousins taking over as starting quarterback in the softest part of the Falcons' schedule. That stretch also included a win over the Saints, who were 2-8 at the time, and a loss to the Jets, the Jets' only win since early November.

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Still, as fictional street racer turned international anti-hero Dominic Toretto once said, "Winning is winning," and the Falcons are moving up in ESPN's Week 17 NFL Power Rankings as other teams are jockeying for position in the first round of April's NFL Draft.

Atlanta is up three spots this week from No. 24 to No. 21, one spot ahead of the Kansas City Chiefs, whose dynasty appears to be in its waning moments.

ESPN's theme this week is each team's rookie of the year, and while there are several candidates for the Falcons, there's still one clear choice: James Pearce Jr.

"Edge rusher Jalon Walker and safety Xavier Watts have been very good as rookies, but Pearce has put together the most impressive numbers," Marc Raimondi wrote on ESPN. "His 8.5 sacks are the most any Falcons player has had since 2019, and the most by a Falcons rookie since the stat became official in 1982. Pearce has at least half a sack in seven straight games, and his sack rate (3%) is 10th best in the NFL. Among rookies, Pearce is the best in sacks, sack rate, and quarterback pressure rate (14%)."

Pearce isn't just leading all rookies with 8.5 sacks; he's run off and hid. Walker is second in the league with 5.5 sacks, but no one else has more than 3.5.

The Falcons used their 2026 first-round pick and swapped a second and a third with the LA Rams to get Pearce at No. 26. That pick is currently slated to be No. 11 pick for the Rams in April, but does anyone think Pearce would last to No. 11 if he re-entered the 2026 NFL Draft?

No way.

Expect that trade to be spoken of ad nauseam when the Falcons take on the Rams at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Monday Night Football. Game announcers who spend the week preparing for the game will probably be complimentary of the trade, while draft analysts will develop amnesia by April, doubling down on their "gross overpay" narrative from last year.

With Michael Penix Jr. facing a lengthy injury rehab, and Cousins slated to have the sixth-highest salary cap hit in the NFL next season, the Falcons have questions at quarterback heading into 2026.

But there should be zero regrets on the trade that brought Pearce and Watts to a Falcons' defense that was in desperate need of both players.