Regardless of who is coaching the Falcons in 2024, there will be pressure on the men in charge to find a franchise quarterback.
After watching Desmond Ridder drown in his own failures this season, Arthur Blank is surely making it known that Terry Fontenot and his head coach will have to get a new guy in the building.
The free agent market is slim pickings with short-term solutions for a long-term problem. With the 8th overall pick, there won’t be many scenarios where the Falcons can stand pat and land their top target either.
A trade is the only avenue I see the Falcons can take. Whether that’s trading for Justin Fields or trading up in the draft, Terry Fontenot has to make a move, but thankfully, it seems there’s a window for him to land one of the top three prospects.
The Bears, Commanders, and Patriots own the first three selections in April’s draft, and all seemingly need quarterbacks, unless the Bears decide to build around Justin Fields, which Peter King believes they’ll do.
“The Bears, at 1, should be able to get a 2022-like ransom for the pick with so many good quarterbacks in the pool. I expect GM Ryan Poles to trade the pick, but it’s too early to say that with certainty.”
Obviously, he’s not putting his name on the line, and he’s just sharing his feelings, but Peter King is about as plugged in as any NFL insider. If he believes Ryan Poles is going to trade the No. 1 overall pick, I tend to buy it.
Now, what does it mean for the Falcons? Well, it opens the possibility of landing their choice out of Caleb Williams, Drake Maye, or Jayden Daniels. Even if one of the Commanders or Patriots moves up to the top spot, it still leaves the door open for the Falcons to land one of the top three quarterback prospects.
I don’t care what the cost is, if the Falcons are serious about turning things around, putting it all out there for the top draft pick is how franchises get out of purgatory.
Multiple first-round picks and a player like A.J. Terrell or Kyle Pitts would absolutely be worth finding a franchise quarterback. Terry Fontenot has money to spend in free agency and a track record of finding talent on the pro personnel side of things. It should be the Falcons top priority to find a quarterback, regardless of the price.
I don’t care about your preference for Drake Maye, Caleb Williams, or Jayden Daniels. I don’t pretend to be a quarterback guru; my choice would be Maye, but the Falcons have to make a serious move for one of them if they want to turn the franchise around.
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Photographer: Matthew Visinsky/Icon Sportswire
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