Atlanta is trying to build on an underperforming 2024 group, not blow it up, for better or for worse.
When Raheem Morris took over the Atlanta Falcons last year, he made comparatively few changes to the defense. Perhaps that was out of a desire to use premium draft capital on offense—the team took Michael Penix in the first round—or to use free agent dollars on solving the intractable problem of quarterback by also signing Kirk Cousins. Regardless of the rationale, the team made comparatively few impact changes besides signing Justin Simmons and Matthew Judon after injuries struck, sticking with low-key additions and future contributors on defense.
We saw how that went. The defense regressed mightily, Jimmy Lake was fired, and Judon and Simmons disappointed. There is little question the Falcons have to add talent to the defense in free agency and the draft this year to coax major improvement out of that side of the ball, but the question concerned whether they would favor the maximal overhaul their limited resources would allow or refinements of an approach given that it takes more than one year to build a defense.
Free agency hasn’t even opened yet, but I suspect we have our answer, and the answer is the one most of us expected. With Jeff Ulbrich on board as the new defensive coordinator, the Falcons are going to tweak their approach and add talent, but the approach is to lean heavily on who they have on board and count on improvement. The players they’re adding are scheme fits, coveted players for Ulbrich, and familiar faces including Ulbrich, and they’re expecting a far better result.
Will that work out? We’re months away from being able to comment on that and weeks away from knowing how deep the re-molding will go, but we do know a few things already:
- The team said they were drafting Ruke Orhorhoro and Brandon Dorlus with an eye on the future and got little from either in year one; with Grady Jarrett our and David Onyemata possibly on the chopping block, the future is right now. The Falcons will add more talent, but Orhorhoro in particular is going to be relied upon to be a major force up front.
- Judon was added to give a lackluster EDGE group some juice, juice that he didn’t really provide. The Falcons are now turning to a more familiar face in Leonard Floyd to fill that same role, counting on Floyd’s known performance in a Raheem Morris defense and steady track record to allow him to have more success than Judon enjoyed last year.
- The Falcons basically didn’t touch their inside linebacker group a year ago and paid for it, with JD Bertrand looking like a capable reserve but not much more, Troy Andersen getting injured, and Nate Landman’s lack of speed hurting him and this Falcons defense mightily. The Divine Deablo signing gives them speed in spades and some intriguing upside for a staff that prides itself on molding young players; he has no direct ties to this staff but is a signing who directly addresses the weaknesses Landman brought to the table last year at the expense of run defense.
- The secondary needs a lot more help, but re-signing Hughes after a pretty good 2024 is hardly a surprising move. The Falcons will likely target a significant upgrade at nickel this year after Dee Alford’s rough season, but Hughes was steady and the team likes his coverage and physicality quite a bit. He gives them a proven starter and, if they add more talent, a top-shelf reserve at worst. Mike Ford is a break-in-case-of-emergency option at cornerback, as well, and has been decent enough on those rare occasions he’s been asked to fill-in.
There will be more moves to come as the Falcons clear out more space, but you see the pillars of what the Falcons are hoping to do in 2025 already. They’re leaning on improvement and good health from young players (Ruke Orhorhoro, Brandon Dorlus, Arnold Ebiketie, A.J. Terrell, Bralen Trice, DeMarcco Hellams, to name several) and bolstering weaknesses with scheme fits and familiar faces. Morris and Ulbrich are sending the clear message that Lake’s stewardship of the defense and a handful of underperforming players were a bigger problem than scheme and the broader roster, cutting that path while acknowledging that most of their draft and free agent capital this offseason still needs to go toward building it up. The defense will be expected to
It won’t be difficult to find modest improvement after the defense cratered so hard in 2024, but at the moment, there are still many ifs and buts to be found on that side of the ball. The hope is that this opening salvo of signings is just a glimpse of the improvements the Falcons intend to make, and that the plan won’t be to rely too heavily on steps forward from players who have not yet shown they can be great. The Falcons still believe that they have a foundation and a philosophy that will work with the right pieces, and it’s one of the many bets they’re set to place in a pivotal 2025.