In my opinion as a Falcons fan, this draft is going to be an interesting one. We traded our franchise cornerstone for a third-round pick. Calvin Ridley is suspended for the season without pay. Do you want me to keep going? The Falcons staff can say what they want but the roster is in dire need of help. So, what should the Atlanta Falcons do with the number eight overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft? Take the best overall player on the board, or trade the pick?
The Atlanta Falcons Have Traded the Eighth overall pick.
Listen, as an Atlanta Falcons fan it has been a rough few NFL seasons. We haven’t been to the playoffs since 2017 when we lost to the eventual Super Bowl champion Philadephia Eagles. The thought of trading this pick is kind of appealing. A.J. Terrell is developing into one of the top corners in the NFL. However, other than him we don’t have any stars on defense in the ATL. Yeah, you’ve got Grady Jarrett and Deion Jones but that’s not been enough. In their time together they’ve only combined for thirty-five total sacks.
Also, don’t get me started on offense. Kyle Pitts is a star in the making outside of him though there isn’t much to be excited about on offense. Now, this isn’t exactly the loaded offensive draft, but it is defensive-wise. There are talks of three edge rushers going in the top five. Why not trade pick eight if the guy we want isn’t there and stockpile some picks? I know there’s more to it than just trading away the pick. However, this team needs to shop around to possibly find that team especially if the player we have our eye on goes sooner than expected. Don’t reach for a player especially when you can trade back and maybe grab an a few extra picks this year and next depending on the deal.
The Pick is In!
This top ten could go anyway honestly. Most of your “draft experts” have something different from Hutchinson going first to Travon Walker shocking the world and heading to Jacksonville. So, that goes to show you no one even has an idea of what’s going to happen besides the team executives. However, if things go right could we grab one of the safer top ten players and improve our team? Yeah, absolutely but then the debate is who do the Atlanta Falcons target?
Most of your die heart fans are probably screaming defense! The defense has only been ranked in the top ten in yards allowed twice since 1992. We have always been a subpar defensive team. It’s time to start changing that in the ATL. We’ve got a rising star in Terrell so why not get him a running mate on the other side of the field? Or even safety to cover the center of the field? Depending on how the top seven picks go we could have our choice of the top two corners in this year’s class. Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner popped off at the combine, and Derek Stingley out of LSU could add to that DBU heritage. Maybe the top safety Kyle Hamilton falls? Or do you get a choice of the top five edge rushers?
Either way defense in my opinion is the top need for this team. Especially in a defensive-heavy draft class like this one. Go get someone who gives you double-digit sacks each year, or another defensive back to shut down the passing game. If you do that it instantly makes the likes of Deion Jones, Grady Jarrett, and Terrell even better.
Conclusion
The Atlanta Falcon’s arguably could be in contention for the title of worst team in the league next year tallent wise. Unless Marcus Mariota just comes out in Arthur Smith’s system and lights up the NFL then the offense is most likely going too struggle due too lack of weapons. Our defense could improve depending on how this draft goes either way it’s going too be an interesting draft for us here in the ATL.
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