The Falcons, on paper at least, have all the makings of an elite offense.
The line returns all five starters, four of whom are still ascending talents. Continuity is an underrated aspect of successful units, and the Falcons offensive line is expected to be one of the best in football.
Additionally, the skill group is headlined by three top 10 draft picks. Kyle Pitts is back and healthy, and Drake London finally gets to catch balls from a competent quarterback. Bijan Robinson is also expected to assume a Christian McCaffrey role, along with Tyler Allgeier and Darnell Mooney assuming supplementary roles.
Much of that was in place last year, though. The biggest difference is going to be Kirk Cousins, who presents the biggest upgrade at the quarterback position of the NFL offseason. With Zac Robinson garnering hype as the next great offensive mind, I’ve already proclaimed the Falcons to be a top 10 offense in the league.
However, the defense has more questions than answers. Who is going to step up in the trenches next to Grady Jarrett and David Onyemata? Who is going to start in the secondary with A.J. Terrell and Jessie Bates?
The fact is the Falcons have a lot of important roles up for grabs, but there aren’t exactly inspiring options to fill them. When asked about the lack of notable names on that side of the ball, Raheem Morris went into salesman mode with Ryan Clark.
“We got dudes that I’ve got a lot of belief in…if you give a guy a role, and he owns it, and he takes that thing and he runs with it, then people start to know him and they become household names, and that’s what we want. I’m gonna breathe this belief into my guys, I promise… pic.twitter.com/uPyOmsOsPk
— Bryce Lewis (@Bryce_Lewis86) July 30, 2024
Jimmy Lake and Raheem Morris have their work cut out for them in 2024.
The Falcons are looking for a few defensive linemen to break out from the group of Arnold Ebiketie, Bralen Trice, Zach Harrison, DeAngelo Malone, Brandon Dorlus, Ruke Orhorhoro, Ta’Quon Graham, and others. The good news is that there are a lot of bodies, but that isn’t the case with the secondary.
Richie Grant and DeMarcco Hellams are competing for the starting job next to Bates, and the cornerback room is even bleaker. Mike Hughes looks like he’s got the head start over Clark Phillips to start on the boundary with Dee Alford manning the slot. Behind them is Antonio Hamilton and Kevin King. That’s it.
Raheem Morris can put lipstick on a pig, but it doesn’t fool me. He can breathe confidence into Mike Hughes, who has proven to be nothing more than a quality backup, and a couple of unproven safeties, one of whom was supplanted as a starter by his rookie seventh-round pick teammate, but let’s just call a spade a spade.
Granted, Morris is sticking up for his guys, taking on the responsibility of the defense, and exuding a level of confidence that even pessimistic fans can believe in. However, the Falcons defense doesn’t have the talent right now to carry the load if the offense falters. It doesn’t need to, though; it just needs to be average.
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Jordon Kelly/Icon Sportswire
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