In a wild turn of events, D. Orlando Ledbetter of The Atlanta Journal Constitution is reporting the Falcons will only interview defensive players at this week’s NFL Combine. None of the Falcons offensive assistants will even be in attendance this week.
#Falcons to have defensive draft: None of the Falcons assistant offensive coaches will attend the combine. The Falcons are using all 45 of their interview meetings on defensive players.
— D. Orlando Ledbetter (@DOrlandoAJC) February 25, 2025
I’m not even really sure where to start with this. For the last five years, all Terry Fontenot has referred to regarding his draft strategy is the BPA (Best Player Available) approach. It’s a popular strategy for some of the best organizations across the league, but it does have its flaws and obviously hasn’t netted the best results for the Falcons, who have been one of the worst evaluators of talent since Terry Fontenot was named general manager.
However, this is a complete 180, and one that is laughable if true. I often joke about the Falcons using all of their resources to finally fix the side of the ball that’s hamstrung the organization for nearly two decades. It’s well past time to make it the focal point of the offseason. But to not even diligently evaluate the other side of the ball? That’s not the sign of a serious organization, especially one that features essentially a rookie quarterback who will be making his fourth career start in Week 1.
The Falcons offense features a lot more strengths than the defense, but it’s far from flawless moving forward, particularly across the offensive line. Starting center Drew Dalman is a free agent and could price himself out of Atlanta. The Falcons should be evaluating replacements in the draft, and they should also be thinking about the future at both tackle positions. Kaleb McGary only has one year left on his contract, and Jake Matthews is entering his 12th NFL season. At least one of them, if not both, might have to be replaced in the near future.
The Falcons are right to make defense the top priority, but it doesn’t have to come at the expense of completely overlooking the other side of the ball. This is a nonsensical approach to the draft, just another example of the men leading the charge being in way over their heads.
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Photo: Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire
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