Falcons’ Rookie Takeover As Young Defense Dominates Vikings in Sunday Night Football Win

MINNEAPOLIS, MN – Under the brightest lights of the week, the Atlanta Falcons didn’t just beat the Minnesota Vikings, they announced the start of a new era. A fearless youth movement, loaded with rookies and second-year players, overwhelmed J.J. McCarthy and the Vikings in a 22-6 primetime statement.

The kids weren’t just all right. They were dominant.

They held a team that won 13 games in 2024 to just 198 total yards, forced four turnovers, sacked McCarthy six times, and hit him 11 more.

Who led this charge? This youth movement did.

Rookies Xavier Watts, Billy Bowman Jr, James Pearce Jr, and Jalon Walker. Second- and third-year defensive linemen Ruke Orhorhoro, Brandon Dorlus, and Zach Harrison. These seven players combined for 15 tackles, five sacks, a forced fumble, three passes defended, and two interceptions.

These seven players also have an average age of 22.57.

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“It’s something we talked about when we first came in. A rookie takeover is what we call it,” Bowman told Kelly Price after the win on Sunday. “Me and X [Safety Xavier Watts] being in the same room, we push each other every day. Then Jalon Walker and James [Peace Jr] being my roommates during camp and stuff like that. It’s a lot of time that we got to bond together, and you come in as rookies and spend a lot of that rookie time together.”

“We came out here on the biggest stage and were ready to make plays.”

They are finding quick success in the league, and this rookie wave is starting to gain recognition.

.@AtlantaFalcons @Vikings Falcons rookie class all showed up and showed out @jalonwalkr @JamesPearceJr10 @xavierwatts6 @Billy2Bowman the Falcons have a pass rush. spread the news. #BaldysBreakdowns pic.twitter.com/i1XbanGQqd
— Brian Baldinger (@BaldyNFL) September 15, 2025

“We’ve got a whole bunch of dawgs,” Watts echoed. “Me, Billy, JP, J-Walk. Defensively, we’ve just got a whole bunch of dawgs. We’re hungry and just ready to do our thing.”

All of these young teammates push each other to excel on a day-to-day basis, but the friendly competition began before some of them were even teammates.

“We were already pros before we got here because of the colleges we went to helped us to develop and mature,” Bowman said. “Then, just getting here and having the same goal in common, it’s easy when you share the same goals.”

The Falcons’ brass put a whole lot of faith in this youth movement this offseason. They let Grady Jarrett walk in free agency, allowing Dorlus, Orhorohoro, and Harrison to step in to more significant roles. They traded away a future first-round pick to bring in a second first-round pass rusher in Pearce.

Growing pains are to be expected, but Sunday night showed exactly why this front office was so excited about the potential this collection of players brings to the table. There is an upside to this group that this organization has not felt in many, many years.

Sunday night was proof of concept that Atlanta’s young defense isn’t just developing, it’s ready to define games. Replicating that dominance weekly will be the next hurdle, but if this group keeps growing together, the Falcons may have their foundation for the future.