The Falcons made a lot of noise in the 2023 draft when they made Bijan Robinson the highest-drafted running back since Saquon Barkley went 2nd overall to the Giants.
It was met with scrutiny. Firstly, the running back position isn’t considered a premium position. Secondly, Jalen Carter was available and was probably the most talented physical talent on the board.
Regardless, if the Falcons had a do-over, I imagine Bijan Robinson would still be extremely high on their board, but that’s not how one pundit sees it. In a CBS Sports re-draft of the 2023 cycle, Chris Trapasso has Atlanta landing a star rookie defender in Kobie Turner, who originally went in the third round to the Rams.
“Turner led all rookie defensive tackles in sacks and was a ferocious interior rusher down the stretch, exactly what the Falcons defense needs,” Trapasso said.
The Los Angeles defensive tackle finished third in the Defensive Rookie of the Year voting and was a part of a Rams draft class that featured the runner-up to C.J. Stroud in the Offensive Rookie of the Year race.
Turner is an absolute stud, but if you saw the rest of the draft, you’d be left scratching your head. Firstly, Will Anderson, who actually won the Defensive Rookie of the Year award, went to the Bears at the 9th pick.
If those two were on the board, it wouldn’t be a question. Anderson totaled seven sacks, 45 tackles, 10 for loss, 22 quarterback hits, and a whopping 64 pressures, which is a 17.3% pressure rate en route to a Pro Bowl, becoming the seventh defensive rookie drafted in the top three to make the Pro Bowl since 1970.
What’s even crazier about this re-draft is that Bijan Robinson didn’t even go in the first round, but even more bewildering, Bryce Young fell out of the first round as well.
I don’t care if Tom Brady was leading that Panthers team, he would’ve struggled. Young had no help offensively and the staff was at odds over his development as well as week-to-week gameplans. It was a terrible situation.
In no world should the Falcons pass on Bryce Young in a 2023 re-draft. If that’s how it shook out, Arthur Smith probably wouldn’t have lost his job.
—
You must log in to post a comment.