You can feel the energy in Atlanta and the regular season hasn’t even begun yet.
The Atlanta Falcons have been a big topic of conversation throughout this offseason. Whether it’s making impactful signings or making a controversial draft pick, everyone is talking about the Falcons. Atlanta has seen a complete 180° in terms of team morale and energy after the multitude of major moves they have made throughout the spring and summer.
In January, after the Falcons’ final regular season game concluded, Arthur Smith was relieved of his head coaching duties, which really seemed to kickstart this rocket ship of excitement throughout the fanbase. Raheem Morris was hired as the new head coach near the end of January and since then, players are flocking to the Falcons to be able to play under Morris.
It all started when Atlanta signed veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins to a four-year deal in March during the free agency period. For the team to go out and strike big with signing a major free agent, it sent a message throughout the league that this team is done being at the ‘bottom of the barrel’ so to speak. After Cousins had signed, it began to start a trend with a few other major players doing the same – although it may have taken a while.
A week ago, general manager Terry Fontenot went out and traded a third-round pick for standout pass-rusher Matthew Judon as well as signing All-Pro safety Justin Simmons to a one-year deal. These moves were made after rookie Bralen Trice and second-year safety DeMarcco Hellams suffered significant injuries, with the former being ruled out for the season. Both defensive moves sparked major excitement throughout the fanbase, with many initially being concerned about the state of the defense without a stud pass-rusher.
Coach Morris recently spoke on the additions of Judon and Simmons in a press conference earlier this week and said:
“People want to come here, you know? A lot of that’s because of Kirk Cousins being able to come in giving us a quarterback, the team that we have, Bijan Robinson, some of those guys that are playing here, Kyle Pitts… all those guys, they’re definitely factors of people wanting to come here and play. It’s a lot of fun when you get people wanting to come and trying to find ways to fit in what we’re doing, and that’s always a good thing.”
As Morris said, being able to have a competent and reliable quarterback, a plethora of magnificent young talent and a clear cut plan for what this team is going to be moving forward, is a really great magnet to attract other free agents – and it did just that.
After practice on Monday, Simmons had his first press conference at the podium as a Falcon and he was asked why he personally chose to come to Atlanta:
“I was in Denver for eight seasons and in those eight seasons I had five head coaches, six if you count an interim head coach, so a lot of turnover, a lot of heartbreak, a lot of potential in some seasons and so when I was there [at dinner] with those guys – A.J. Terrell, Jessie Bates, Grady Jarrett – I could see the appreciation of what’s in front of them and what can be and how hungry they are to chase after that. These guys here are hungry.”
The star safety mentioned that he asked the Falcons players how much they want it and how much it means to them to start winning. “Grady [Jarrett] pretty much set the tone right from the jump,” Simmons said. “he set the tone and said this is pretty much the most important thing to him right now and the team, and getting back to where Atlanta is used to being.” Simmons also went on to note that he has never been to the playoffs and that he has been on great defenses in the past and Simmons said he has “no doubt” that this Falcons defense will be one of them in 2024.
Speaking of Jarrett, the star defensive tackle joined Kay Adams on her “Up & Adams” show and gave his thoughts on where this Falcons team stands going into this upcoming season:
“Oh man, I’m super excited. Offensive side of the ball, defensive side of the ball, I mean we’re setting the league on fire right now. It doesn’t matter unless we go out there and translate it to some wins but I’m super excited, I mean this is one of the most stacked rosters I’ve been a part of and it just makes you want to go even harder.”
Adams went on to ask Jarrett if he personally believes this is the best overall team he has been a part of since being drafted by Atlanta in 2015.
“I mean, I think the proof is in the pudding, on paper. But we’ve gotta go out there and do the job on Sundays,” Jarrett said. “I think the schedule lines up nice for us, we’re finally back playing in some primetime so that’s gonna help everybody and let the nation see what we’ve got.”
To see Jarrett talk so positively about this team and to see how much he is glowing and truly smiling, it’s something special. Jarrett simply embodies everything that is the Atlanta Falcons. He has been the heart and soul of this team throughout his ten-year career thus far. Jarrett has seen multiple changes with the team, including some differences on his side of the ball, from having solid defenses to having not-so-impressive defenses, to put it politely. So, no one deserves this moment more than Jarrett, as he is the most loyal and most beloved athlete in Atlanta right now.
With the team looking very promising throughout the summer in training camp, it also feels like the team is building a great sense of camaraderie and a great team culture together. So much so, that earlier this week, after training camp had wrapped up for the day, coach Morris had surprised the team and took them out to spend the afternoon at a waterpark, which Cousins said was “absolutely tremendous” and something he’d always hoped would happen.
It feels like ages since fans have been able to see a Falcons team bond and have this much fun and it is very refreshing to watch. It’s very clear that the morale in the locker room is at an all-time high and there’s no reason for it not to be, because this team carries a lot of potential to do well this season.
The regular season home opener for Atlanta is still a few days away, but the excitement and energy is most certainly there. You can tell how much the players want to win and want to succeed. Coach Morris brings the passion and energy that this team definitely needs, and it’s clearly rubbing off onto the players. Just like Jarrett said, on paper this team looks phenomenal, they just have to translate that onto the field and produce wins.
Simmons described it best…this Falcons team is hungry. So, how much will they eat this season?
