If you’ve been here for any length of time, you know I like to check in on the franchise record books every year. While the Falcons haven’t been better than mediocre in a decade, they’ve had some players who have worked their asses off to do special things, which has made watching this mess more tolerable and has put them on a crash course with making history in Atlanta.
The Falcons have turned over a significant chunk of their roster in recent years, with record holders and record chasers like Grady
Jarrett and Younghoe Koo headed elsewhere. There are still long-time stalwarts and standout stars who are threatening to topple franchise marks or at least move into rareified air in 2026, and I’ve rounded those players up here.
Bijan Robinson
At this point, good health is all that stands between Robinson and the team’s career rushing records. Already 7th in team history in rushing yards, he’s just 62 yards behind Devonta Freeman and can take 5th place away from Jamal Anderson if he just repeats his 1,400 yard rushing performance from the past two seasons.
In addition, seven rushing touchdowns will see Bijan leap from a tie for 8th with Haskel Stanback at 25 TDs to 4th, behind Anderson. Given that he had 14 rushing touchdowns in 2024, there’s a decent chance he can pick up the three he’d need to get by Jam, too. If that happens, only Gerald Riggs (48 touchdowns) and Michael Turner (60) will be in front of him.
Oh, and Bijan is just under 300 yards away from moving to 2nd in terms of receiving yardage by a running back in Falcons history, a mark he’s almost assured to hit with a healthy season. That would pass Freeman and put him within about 600 yards of William Andrews’ franchise mark.
Drake London
While he’s dealt with some injuries, London has been prolific through his first four seasons in Atlanta. He’s averaging 85 receptions, over 1,000 yards, and six touchdowns per season thus far, a pace that has already vaulted him into the top 10 in franchise history for receptions and yardage. It won’t take very long for him to move closer to the top five in 2026.
London has 3,961 yards and is just 397 yards behind the the four players in front of him on the list for receiving yardage—Tony Gonzalez, Alge Crumpler, Michael Haynes, and Jim Mitchell—and should be standing 6th when the season is over behind Andre Rison, who has 5,633 yards. His 309 receptions are 8th all-time, and he’s 101 receptions away from passing Gonzalez for 5th, which feels within reach. He’s also six touchdowns away from Calvin Ridley, who is 10th.
The upshot here is that London has, in the span of four short years, put himself in the conversation with some of the great receiving options in team history. If he gets the lucrative extension we’re all expecting, he’s going to have a chance to make a real run at the likes of Terance Mathis and Roddy White.
Kyle Pitts
He’s also headed for the top 10 in franchise history in receiving yardage, but Pitts may also find himself as the #1 in one metric. He’s currently sitting at 3,579 yards (13th in team history, 4th among tight ends), but is only 609 yards away from passing Tony Gonzalez, 634 away from Alge Crumpler, and 779 away from Jim Mitchell. If he gets there—and it seems like a good bet in an offense that loves to feature tight ends—Pitts will have more receiving yards than any Falcons tight end in history.
He can move to second in receptions, but he’s 126 away from passing Tony Gonzalez for the top spot, which isn’t going to happen in 2026. Pitts is also 20 touchdowns behind Gonzo, so we can forget that for a little while at his current pace.
Jessie Bates
Sitting at 13 interceptions at the moment, Bates can tie for a top 10 spot if he nabs four in 2026, tying him with corners DeAngelo Hall and Tom Hayes. Four forced fumbles, a mark he hit in 2024, would put him at 5th in Falcons history in that particular stat. Given Bates’ ability to be a turnover machine when he’s rolling, I’m not going to put either mark past him.
Jake Matthews
It’s fairly straightforward for Matthews: If he plays 14 games, he’ll leap from 6th in games played for the Falcons to 4th, passing Todd McClure and Jessie Tuggle along the way. A full 17 game season will put him at 213 games played for Atlanta, just nine behind Matt Ryan, and would move him into 11th place in NFL history for consecutive games started, ahead of center Jim Otto and quarterback Eli Manning. Longevity and durability like that is fairly exceptional.
