Atlanta didn’t swerve this time, and their defense should benefit.
In years past, the obvious pick was not the one the Atlanta Falcons would make, for better or for worse. When it was Michael Penix, Bijan Robinson, or AJ Terrell, the team’s tendency to zig when others might zag proved to be wise. When it was Kyle Pitts or Takk McKinley, perhaps not so much.
The expectation that the Falcons would avoid the obvious selection is so ingrained in this fanbase that a healthy percentage of reactions after the 14th pick tried to guess who the team would take instead of Jalon Walker. Few expected Walker to make it to the 15th pick, his pass rushing potential made him an obvious fit for this team, and his versatility, athleticism, and much-lauded leadership all ticked boxes for Raheem Morris and this defense. Perhaps he was not the best player on everyone’s board at this point, but he was probably in the top three for virtually anyone you would have polled in the run-up to the pick, so inevitably everyone wondered who the Falcons would select instead.
The Falcons did take Walker, of course, making the obvious pick (and making Georgia fans truly happy for the first time in history) after years of refusing to do so. There is no guarantee Walker will be that guy in Atlanta, given that there are questions about his upside as a pure edge rusher and whether he deserves the dreaded tweener label in the pros, but this was the savvy pick for a reason. Walker was an extremely productive player who can fill multiple roles for a defense itching to be creative, playing for a program that churns out tremendous players, and fills this team’s need for pass rush help, quality athletes, and just good defenders in ways that are immediately obvious to anyone who has seen him play. The team milked the clock looking for a trade down opportunity that clearly didn’t pass muster, but if they were going to stay at 15, Walker was one of a small handful of picks that few would quibble with.
The fact that the board worked out so well for the Falcons made me wish they could have gotten a trade down done—they still need more bites at the apple—but Walker is an ideal consolation prize. Between Walker, Kaden Elliss, and Divine Deablo, this team has off-ball linebackers who can a genuine problem getting after the passer, but Walker also has the ferocity and ability to be a disruptive force off the edge alongside Arnold Ebiketie and Leonard Floyd. The question isn’t so much where he’ll settle in as whether the Falcons really need him to, especially in 2025 when they have enough solid options to move him around a bit. If he’s special at EDGE, Walker will stick there, but otherwise the Falcons will look to have him give offenses fits in multiple ways.
The fact that he can very evidently do so makes this the obvious pick, a good pick on paper, and potentially a special one if Walker can grow into rushing the passer further in the NFL and unlock his ideal role in the league. The Falcons have gotten some truly special talents by making unexpected selections—Bijan chief among them—but it’s a welcome sight to see them make the expected pick and fill a need at the same time. Let’s hope Walker can be everything the Falcons envision him to be.