Three Atlanta Falcons Land on ESPN’s 2025 Top 100 Players List

This time around, just a handful of Atlanta Falcons players cracked the top 100 list from EPSN

The Falcons have top 100 reps, but not too many | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

The NFL’s regular season is nearly here, and with real football games beginning in less than two weeks, ESPN attempted to put together a comprehensive list of the top 100 players in the league. The Atlanta Falcons managed just three players on that list.

The Worldwide Leader pooled 10 NFL analysts and insiders to rank players in terms of their expected 2025 production. Voters were asked to "rank players based on expected performance for the 2025 season." 

The Philadelphia Eagles led the league with 10 players. They were followed by the Detroit Lions with eight, then the San Francisco 49ers and Baltimore Ravens, each with six. 

Of the three Falcons who made the final 100, it’s not particularly surprising: safety Jessie Bates III, right guard Chris Lindstrom, and running back Bijan Robinson. The trio is unsurprising, but there seems to be a clear lack of faith in the overall talent of the franchise. 

Bates was the lowest-rated Falcon of the three, coming in at No. 62. He is the fifth of eight safeties included, with Kerby Joseph (Lions, No. 60), Xavier McKinney (Packers, No. 54), Brian Branch (Lions, No. 51), and Kyle Hamilton (Ravens, No. 15) coming in front of him. ESPN notes that Bates is the only player in the NFL last season to record four interceptions and four forced fumbles, and his 24 interceptions since his rookie season in 2018 are the fifth most in the NFL.

“Bates was the only defender with four interceptions and four forced fumbles last season. What he might lack in speed, he makes up for in preparation. His team contributions extend off the field, as well. Bates has stepped up even more as a leader this summer in the absence of former Falcons stalwart Grady Jarrett, who was released in the offseason.” 

They project him to finish the 2025 campaign with 99 tackles, 3 interceptions, and 10 passes defended – all three would be career lows for Bates in his time in Atlanta. He is up five spots from his spot in 2024. 

Lindstrom is the second Falcon to come up on ESPN’s list, coming in at No. 53. He is the highest rated of the seven guards in the top-100, making a massive jump from No. 94 last season. 

ESPN notes that the 28-year-old guard was one of 13 guards to play all 17 games and grade out above-average in pass block win rate (PBWR) and run block win rate (RBWR). Given the injuries to his right tackle, a performance like that will be ever more important this season. 

“Lindstrom was seventh in the league last season among right guards in run block win rate (71.9%) and eighth at the position in pass block win rate (92.4%). The three-time Pro Bowl guard should be better as a pass blocker in 2025 with more mobile Michael Penix Jr. at quarterback.” 

Robinson is unsurprisingly the highest-rated Falcon on this list, coming in at No. 37. He is the fourth of seven running backs, with Jahmyr Gibbs (No. 33, Lions), Derrick Henry (No. 29, Ravens), and Saquon Barkley (No. 17, Eagles) coming in front of him. ESPN notes that in 2024, Robinson became the second Falcons player to record at least 1,400 rushing yards and 400 receiving yards in a season, joining William Andrews (1983).

The running back is projected to finish with 303 carries for 1,422 yards and 12 touchdowns this season, plus 62 receptions for 490 yards. Those totals would effectively be a replication of his 2024 season, which notched him his first Pro Bowl appearance. Robinson pulled his ranking up 34 spots from where he was last season.  

Robinson broke out in Year 2 with the third-most rushing yards (1,456) and touchdowns (14) in the league. One thing he worked on in the offseason was developing more explosive runs. Robinson's longest rush last season was 37 yards, the second shortest among backs in the top 10 of total rushing yards. He ran for 20 or more yards only five times. Look for Robinson to get loose a lot more in 2025.

The most notable Falcons player who is missing from this ranking is wide receiver Drake London. The team’s number one option broke out in 2024, finishing with 1,271 yards (fourth most in the NFL) and nine touchdowns. Instead, ESPN has Ladd McConkey (No. 94, Chargers), Tee Higgins (No. 86, Bengals), and fellow 2022 draftee Garrett Wilson (No. 82, Jets) coming in at the back of their 15 wide receivers included in their top 100.