The Falcons look like a completely different team compared to a few months ago. Coming into the offseason, everyone knew the club would be quarterback-hunting after hiring a head coach.
The Falcons went through a drama-filled hiring cycle, headlined by Bill Belichick. Eventually, a shocking hire was made, with Raheem Morris being named the next head coach of the Falcons.
Focus immediately turned to the bigger issue of the offseason — finally replacing Matt Ryan. After two seasons of terrible quarterback play, the Falcons went out and signed the best available quarterback on the free agent market. They didn’t pinch pennies and risk letting Kirk Cousins slip through their fingers. They gave him $180 million over four years, with more than half of it fully guaranteed. The Falcons weren’t done, though.
They doubled down, drafting Michael Penix Jr. with the 8th overall pick in their own attempt at what the Packers have been able to do with Brett Favre, Aaron Rodgers, and Jordan Love. The offseason solidified the most important position in the sport for a decade-plus.
At that juncture, the Falcons had a quality signal caller and plenty of exciting young pieces on the offensive side of the ball, but there were real concerns about the defense.
Terry Fontenot essentially stuck with the status quo, replacing Bud Dupree and Calais Campbell with three rookies in Ruke Orhorhoro, Bralen Trice, and Brandon Dorlus. The secondary was much more concerning, though.
The Falcons offense is good enough, on paper at least, to compete in the NFC, but the defense wasn’t even close. That is until this week. Trice and DeMarcco Hellams went down with significant injuries, and the Falcons finally replaced them in the form of Justin Simmons and Matthew Judon.
The two veterans solidify two weak points on the defense, and all of a sudden, this Falcons team looks balanced. But are they Super Bowl contenders?
The NFC is wide open. The 49ers, Lions, Packers, Cowboys, and Eagles are who everyone considers contenders in the conference, but the Falcons have forced themselves into the conversation with the additions of Simmons and Judon. If the Falcons add a starting-caliber cornerback to play opposite A.J. Terrell, this is a club that could be considered favorites to come out of their conference.
There are a lot of moving parts. New schemes, new players, first-time coordinators, new head coach, and a lot of expectations. The Falcons have a championship-caliber roster right now, but we won’t know for sure until the team steps on the field.
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Photo: Dustin Bradford/Icon Sportswire
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