Inside the Process: How Falcons GM Preps for the NFL Draft

As 2025 draft day approaches, the Atlanta Falcons sit at No.15 in the first round. The organization only has five selections in the 2025 draft, yet they have an abundance of options.

Whether they move up, slide back, or simply stay put, Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot made it clear Wednesday that he has a calculated plan of attack heading into the next few days.

While he’s not one to show all his cards, Fontenot gave some insight into the preparation that goes into evaluating hundreds of potential prospects ahead of the NFL Draft.

“It may be 800 names that you start with, and you continue to narrow it down. This year, it's interesting because there's more players on the board, draftable players on the board this year than in previous years. With COVID and with all that, there's a lot of prospects,” Fontenot said. “It's really like a process of elimination.”

Since college athletes were granted an additional year of NCAA eligibility in 2020, the number of draft-eligible players has increased over the past few years. In the 2020 NFL draft, just 16 players older than 23 years of age were picked, compared to 56 players in last year's draft.

A deeper draft pool demands even more in-depth analysis, especially for the Falcons because of their lack of draft capital. Atlanta’s five picks are tied for the second fewest among all teams.

Although it may be tempting to immediately snag the best prospect available, Fontenot explained that part of his approach is to always consider the big picture.

“We want to take impact players off the board,” he said. “But you have to look at the entire draft and assess players that you feel like you can get at different parts of the draft. Looking at the strengths of the draft and determining other teams and where runs are going to happen in the draft.”

The extra talent in this year's draft could also give Atlanta the opportunity to seriously evaluate players that may not be selected.

Over the past few years, undrafted players like Nate Landman, Dee Alford and Ryan Neuzil have gone on to be contributors for the Falcons.

“There are going to be a lot of good players left over,” Fontenot said. “So, we really have to attack undrafted free agency in the right way.”

While each team has spent the past few months diligently arranging their draft boards, the draft process still includes plenty of unpredictable factors. Although chaos can’t always be prevented, Fontenot has taken a proactive step in preparing for the draft day mayhem.

The Falcons front office put together a chart displaying the tendencies of each team’s general manager, specifically whether they prefer to trade up or trade down. According to Fontenot, he tends to trade up 75% of the time.

This helps Fontenot determine beforehand whether a pick could be on the move to another team.

Fontenot has not traded up (or down) in the first round throughout his four years as Falcons general manager, but he insists that he’s open to making a move this spring.

“It's one of those situations where, yes, you do feel like there could be some good options, but you don't know until it really starts,” said Fontenot. “We're obviously going to look at it, we're going to make the right decision for the team, but you have to have a willing partner."

While nobody, including Fontenot, knows what the future holds, the Falcons front office has made a concerted effort to handle whatever comes its way over the next few days.

Whether that translates into results remains to be seen.