Another day, another Falcons fan begging for the club to add a proven pass rusher.
Atlanta came into the offseason with a clear need for a pass rusher, among other things. They attacked the quarterback position head-on but neglected the other.
Instead of replacing Calais Campbell and Bud Dupree with proven pass rushers, the Falcons thought three rookies — Ruke Orhorhoro, Bralen Trice, and Brandon Dorlus — would do the trick. Now, they’ll rely on two of them following news of Trice’s season-ending injury.
The Falcons would be wise to dip into the free agent market, or perhaps they could fix the issue once and for all by trading for and extending Haason Reddick, who has just requested his second trade of the offseason.
BREAKING: #Jets All-Pro pass rusher Haason Reddick, who is holding out, has informed the team he wants to be traded, per multiple sources. pic.twitter.com/A7zPUhIFFd
— Jordan Schultz (@Schultz_Report) August 12, 2024
First, he wanted a new deal from the Eagles and requested a trade. He was dealt to the Jets for a 2026 third-round pick that could turn into a second-round pick if Reddick plays at least 67.5% of the snaps or has 10+ sacks in 2024.
Now, he’s requested a trade from the Jets. Your favorite Falcons pundits will lie and tell you the club doesn’t have the money to make this trade along with a subsequent contract offer. They’re either purposely lying or misinformed.
As the roster currently stands, the Falcons have around $5 million in cap space, not even close enough to offer Reddick the kind of contract he seeks. However, money could easily be moved around in order to create such an offer.
For instance, the Falcons could extend A.J. Terrell and open up quite a bit of cap space. Hell, they could backload this imaginary contract for Reddick to be under the salary cap. They could restructure their major deals as well, like Grady Jarrett, Chris Lindstrom, or Jessie Bates III.
The point is the Falcons could make it work if they wanted to. Borrowing money from future years is a risky proposition. It’s what got the team in cap hell at the end of Matt Ryan’s tenure, but done so responsibly can be worth the risk.
$25-ish million per season is the going rate for a guy who hasn’t recorded fewer than 11 sacks since 2019, including 27 over the last two seasons. Haason Reddick is worth that kind of risk. The Falcons haven’t had a double-digit sack artist since John Abraham.
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Photographer: Kyle Ross/Icon Sportswire
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