The Falcons made more impactful acquisitions in the last week on the defensive side of the ball than they did the entire offseason. Justin Simmons and Matthew Judon fill arguably the team’s two biggest needs, and it came less than a month before the start of the season.
It’s been a whirlwind for Falcons fans, who have become accustomed to being the punching bag. The sought-after veterans never come to Atlanta. They go to Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Los Angeles. In a weekend, the Falcons acquired the best pass rusher since John Abraham and an All-Pro safety.
The only issue I had with it was it seemingly took DeMarrco Hellams and Bralen Trice going down with significant injuries to force the Falcons to make the moves. A seventh-round pick and a rookie third-rounder going down with significant injuries prompted the Falcons to trade for a four-time Pro Bowler and a four-time All-Pro?
That’s crazy. Those acquisitions should’ve been “in addition to” what the Falcons had in the cupboard, not “instead of” what was already in Atlanta. Well, it seems that was the case.
Following Monday’s practice, Terry Fontenot spoke with Kay Adams and clarified that the Falcons had discussed adding both Simmons and Judon much earlier in the offseason.
https://twitter.com/UpAndAdamsShow/status/1825609674399625681
I’m going to reluctantly give the Falcons the benefit of the doubt, against my better judgment, and believe them when they say they were always looking to add those kinds of players. Maybe, it was just a coincidence that Hellams and Trice went down, and within a week, the Falcons added Judon and Simmons. Or maybe, the injuries just sped up the process.
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Photographer: Ken Murray/Icon Sportswire
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