The first wave of free agency happened last week, but the Falcons still have moves that need to be made.
Atlanta swung big out of the gates, agreeing to deals with Kirk Cousins and Darnell Mooney. Over the next week or so, Terry Fontenot would acquire several more players, some depth pieces while others are expected to be role players — Rondale Moore, Ray-Ray McCloud, Charlie Woerner, Storm Norton, and KhaDarel Hodge.
However, the Falcons would be foolish to go into the draft with its current roster because the cornerback and edge positions need to be addressed. A.J. Terrell, Clark Phillips, Dee Alford, and Mike Hughes shouldn’t be enough in Raheem Morris’ eyes.
The edge group is in a worse state. Depending on some combination of Arnold Ebiketie, Lorenzo Carter, DeAngelo Malone, and Ta’Quon Graham is a recipe for disaster.
So, we know the Falcons have needs, but they don’t have the funds as of right now. As it currently stands, the Falcons have around $4 million in cap space. They can create a lot more, though.
- Restructure Jake Matthews contract: (Saved: $9,526,667)
- Restructure Grady Jarrett contract: (Saved: $7,020,000)
- Restructure Chris Lindstrom contract: (Saved: $9,100,000)
- Restructure Jessie Bates contract: (Saved: $7,916,667)
- Release Lorenzo Carter: (Saved: $3,750,000)
- Release Mike Hughes: (Saved: $3,095,000)
- Total Savings: $40,408334
This doesn’t include the potential savings of an A.J. Terrell contract extension, which could lessen his 2024 cap hit as well.
The Falcons have plenty of options and a healthy future salary cap sheet to restructure some of their long-term pieces in order to maximize their window with Kirk Cousins.
What’s most likely is the Falcons will restructure the contracts of Lindstrom and Bates first because they’re younger and under contract for more years than Matthews and Jarrett, but Terry Fontenot will only do it out of necessity if an acquisition requires it.
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Photographer: Zach Bolinger/Icon Sportswire
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