The Falcons have had one of the more eventful offseasons in recent memory. A bomb dropped when the league announced Calvin Ridley‘s suspension, which wasn’t even the most shocking news.
The entire league has been a circus this offseason for what it’s worth. Blockbuster trade after blockbuster trade, Atlanta being a part of one of them. Matt Ryan will be in a different uniform for the first time his entire career, a product of the Falcons pursuing Deshaun Watson.
With an obvious need for a franchise quarterback, the Falcons will be tied to every prospect until they take one. This crop of quarterbacks is underwhelming to most scouts and draft pundits, but I would be shocked if Terry Fontenot didn’t come away with at least one.
Given the Falcons’ position in the draft and the weak class, quarterback at #8 wouldn’t be my first choice; however, I’ve seen plenty of respected draft analysts have Malik Willis and Kenny Pickett going in the top 10. So when I see the latest mock drafts from the biggest names in the game having the Falcons passing on a quarterback with their first-round pick for the electrifying wide receiver, it catches my eye.
Daniel Jeremiah, NFL.com
WR Garrett Wilson, Ohio State
“The Matt Ryan era is over, so this could be a landing spot for a quarterback. However, Marcus Mariota is a serviceable option. And in the wake of Calvin Ridley’s suspension and Russell Gage‘s relocation to Tampa, the Falcons have a desperate need for a wide receiver.”
Mel Kiper, ESPN
WR Garrett Wilson, Ohio State
“So long, Matt Ryan. That means the Falcons will go with a quarterback here, right? Not necessarily. They have one of the league’s worst rosters and could try to get by with Marcus Mariota for a season before going all-in for a passer in the 2023 draft. There’s no guarantee they love Malik Willis or Kenny Pickett enough to take one of them with a top-10 pick. And based on where they are in my rankings — Nos. 19 and 20 — I wouldn’t, either. This is a team that is a long ways from competing, so it shouldn’t force the pick. Atlanta could go with the best prospect available and fill a need position with Wilson, a field-stretcher who had 113 catches and 18 touchdowns for the Buckeyes over the past two seasons. He ran a speedy 4.38-second 40-yard dash at the combine. With Calvin Ridley suspended for the season, the Falcons don’t have any starting-caliber receivers on their roster to catch Mariota’s passes.”
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