The Atlanta Falcons have talked about building the trenches and did quite a bit of that work in free agency, but their first draft picks did not address those needs. Instead, they went for players who could be viewed as the best players available at a pair of needs further away from the line of scrimmage.
Let’s back up and look at the why and who they got, and please use this as your open thread for today’s festivities.
The team drafted a blend of best player available and need
Avieon Terrell was anywhere from CB2 to CB8 for many analysts, settling in around
CB3 and 21st overall among all prospects per Arif Hasan’s invaluable consensus big board. He ended up going later than that—Mansoor Delane, Chris Johnson, Colton Hood, and Treydan Stukes (announced as a safety) went ahead of him—and I think he had a credible case for best non-Jermod McCoy corner on the board. McCoy, of course, has plummeted due to what have to be concerns with his medicals. The Falcons had a lot of trouble with CB2 opposite A.J. Terrell last year, can use the inside-outside versatility Avieon brings to the table, and now have two really good cover corners atop the depth chart. It’s an understandable move, and one that fit with both team needs and the strength of the prospect.
Zachariah Branch, meanwhile, was frequently linked to Atlanta and also fills a need. You have Olamide Zaccheaus on a one-year deal to work out of the slot, but he’s best as a savvy and speedy reserve who can fill in at multiple spots; Branch can flat out fly, does tremendous work after the catch, and was particularly lethal on the screens that Kevin Stefanski deployed in Cleveland to (mostly) great effect. Branch was ranked between the 10th-15th best receiver by many analysts, landed at 64th on Hasan’s big board and was the 12th one selected; you may have preferred Chris Bell or Ted Hurst, but the Falcons had a need for an explosive playmaker and young receiver and Branch clearly fits a role the team wanted to square away.
The upshot here is that you can certainly see both players being the best available on the board for Atlanta’s specific needs and also among the best players available generally. For me, at least, it’s difficult to argue they should have pivoted to other positions, even if I did have players I liked a great deal at those spots.
Today should be about big swings
Now that we’ve looked back, it’s a good time to look ahead. The Falcons are not going to get Day 1 starters today, in all likelihood, though a linebacker like Kyle Louis is good enough to compete for a job if the team manages to snap him up. What they should do, outside of a faller like that getting to them this afternoon, is try to pick up players who could play significant roles as future starters or key depth pieces, and do so up front if at all possible.
That means players like Isaiah World, who Tre’Shon Diaz mentioned in his best available prospects list, become really intriguing to me. World has talent but needs time and refinement to realize his considerable upside, something the Falcons can give him with Jawaan Taylor and Storm Norton here to play significant snaps day one and with the legendary Bill Callahan on the staff. It means giving a shot to Gracen Halton, an attacking defensive tackle who can immediately contribute as a pass rusher but needs Nate Ollie’s coaching to become a more complete player. And it could mean someone like Mason Reiger, who needs time in the weight room and further refinement for his pass rushing kit to unlock 6-8 sack potential at the next level off the edge.
The Falcons have been undone at times in recent years by a lack of compelling depth up front, but the age of their tackles, the retirement of Kaleb McGary, and their heavy rotation up front put more pressure on the team to have long-term answers along both lines and off the edge. Using today’s picks to add talent with upside who can contribute a bit in 2026 if called upon and a lot more in 2027 and beyond would be a wise use of the capital that remains.
