The Atlanta Falcons have brought in eight draft picks from the 2024 NFL Draft, they are listed below:
- Washington QB Michael Penix Jr.
- Clemson DT Ruke Orhorhoro
- Washington EDGE Bralen Trice
- Oregon DL Brandon Dorlus
- Notre Dame ILB JD Bertrand
- Alabama RB Jase McClellan
- Illinois WR Casey Washington
- Georgia DT Zion Logue
Can I say that the 2024 Falcons roster got definitively better with this roster? Yes and no. There were obvious holes that the Falcons wanted answers to and they, at the very minimum, took significant dart throws to fix it.
Now it's time to read between the lines and see what Atlanta is trying to say with these picks as they head into the first year of the Raheem Morris era of Falcons football. Whose stock on this team went up? Whose stock went down? We look at all of that here in this Post-NFL Draft exercise.
Stock Down: QB Kirk Cousins
Let's start with the most obvious and noteworthy stock down and that's that of new starting quarterback Kirk Cousins. Cousins is on the record emphasizing his desire for Atlanta to be the last stop of his career and form his long-lasting legacy here in the black and red. For the Falcons to not consult him for the sake of it not leaking to the media, according to Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer, early is worrisome. How does this go over with the locker room? How does this go over with Cousins? He left the Vikings mainly because of the thought of his replacement being taken there.
Do I feel bad for Cousins with all of this happening without his knowledge? Absolutely. But if there is one thing that we have learned, the NFL is a cruel business. While Cousins may be looked at down the road as a smokescreen or the league's most expensive bridge quarterback, it is to note that this plan goes into shambles if he doesn't win immediately. So, it's not as if the Falcons have no confidence in the soon-to-be-36-year-old quarterback coming off an Achilles injury, it's just not enough to commit to him past the two-year marker.
Stock Up: CB Clark Phillips III
Sports Illustrated's Daniel Flick reported that general manager Terry Fontenot "would have liked" to add a cornerback from this draft, but there was no point in reaching for a player they didn't believe in.
Morris would then reinforce his belief in the current guys on that roster, including second-year cornerback Clark Phillips III. Phillips was a fourth-round pick in last year's draft, but it wasn't because of his play, it was because of his height. At 5'9", if Phillips were to play outside, he would easily be one of the shorter players on the field, but you couldn't tell by his play. Phillips came in last year and took his first-year lumps, but only allowed a passer rating of 88.8 when targeted, according to Pro-Football-Reference.
There's no guarantee that the Falcons add another day-one contributor to the roster, meaning that the responsibilities of outside corner would fall solely on the shoulders of Phillips.
Stock Up: IDL Grady Jarrett & David Onyemata
The Atlanta Falcons went trench-heavy in this year's draft, all on the defensive side of the ball. That's a good thing for Grady Jarrett and David Onyemata, who could need all the help they can muster since 13 of the 42 sacks (31%) and 48 of the 148 pressures (32%) are presumably gone with Calais Campbell and Bud Dupree not on the roster.
Getting more depth on this roster will be crucial in keeping Jarrett, who left after an ACL tear in November, and Onyemata fresh along that line.
Stock Up: OLB Arnold Ebiketie
This is your moment AK.
The Falcons made it clear that they were still trying to address the pass rush after they took Penix, but could not find a value worthy enough until pick 74 in Trice. Does this mean they have much confidence in Ebiketie's abilities as a pass rusher? No, but what are your other options?
Ebiketie has to step up this season and show the Falcons fan base why Fontenot traded up to get him in 2022.
Stock Down: Inner Peace
There is no telling what is going on in the minds of Falcons fans after this debacle with Penix and the front office essentially going rogue against conventional team-building strategy. But know this, no Falcons fan is safe this off-season.
This move will be the hallmark of the 2024 NFL Draft. This draft will be forever remembered as the draft that the Falcons took a quarterback eighth overall despite paying a premium to go and get a quarterback in free agency.
Will it work? Only time will tell. But during that time, during those two years when Penix will be working on his footwork and learning how to be a pro, there will be no peace.
Cousins hasn't earned the benefit of the doubt from Falcons fans yet, so despite what head coach Morris may say, when those bad Cousins games come, and they will, there will be no peace in Atlanta. There will only be chaos.
