ESPN nails Falcons draft mission: don’t borrow from the future

GREEN BAY, WISCONSIN - APRIL 24: A general view of the stage during the Atlanta Falcons pick during the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft at Lambeau Field on April 24, 2025 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Terry Fontenot made five draft-day trades in his five seasons in Atlanta, four of them jumping up and one trading back. In those five trades, Fontenot never picked up a single selection, and out of the eight players he acquired making those trades, only James Pearce Jr. (whose future with the team in uncertain), Matthew Bergeron, and Xavier Watts remain with the Falcons.

The approach, in other words, did not bear much fruit. It also cost the Falcons in terms of their ability to build depth, and in 2026, their first round selection for a new regime. It is an approach that new general manager Ian Cunningham seems unlikely to repeat, at least based on his words to this point. What we don’t know, of course, is who he plans to take and whether he’ll look to trade back to pick up more solutions.

Either way, though, this Falcons team seems hyper-conscious of not mortgaging their potentially brighter future for a chance to lift the gloom on the present. That has been reflected in all of their one-year pacts this offseason, and if they’re smart, it will be reflected in their draft.

ESPN’s Benjamin Solak certainly thinks that’s the way to go. In a breakdown of how all 32 teams can nail their draft classes, Solak urged the Falcons to be patient, try to add to their pass rush, and avoid the trade ups that have defined their draft strategy for eons. Here’s a relevant excerpt:

The Falcons are using 2026 as a QB tryout year, so they should be interested in accumulating 2027 draft capital for a potential trade-up package. It’s hard to trade back when you’re already missing your first-round pick, but certainly don’t use any 2027 capital to trade up.