The Falcons have gone on a big spending spree in 2023, but they haven’t gone too crazy, and they still have a reasonable amount of money left to spend. With this free agency period slowing down, they only need to leave about $5 million of what they have left to sign their draft class and a little bit left in a slush fund. In the NFL, teams have the option of “rolling over” cap space to the next season. I think picking up Elijah Wilkinson to play left guard again would be a good move, and Atlanta could still have roughly $8 million to $10 million to roll over. According to Over The Cap, that could be huge for them.
The league salary cap for 2024 isn’t set yet, but right now, they project the Falcons to have about $68.5 million to spend in 2024. If they roll over some cap space and make a few cuts, that number could balloon closer to $90 million. There’s also the possibility that the league salary cap comes in higher than projected right now. That’s good news for the Falcons, especially with some of the names available:
2024 NFL Free Agents (not including likely fifth-year options, as of March 24th, 2023):
- QB Lamar Jackson
- RB Derrick Henry
- RB Saquon Barkley
- RB Josh Jacobs
- WR Mike Evans
- WR Michael Pittman Jr.
- WR Tyler Boyd
- TE Cole Kmet
- TE TJ Hockenson
- TE Mike Gesicki
- DL Dexter Lawrence
- DL Chris Jones
- DL Leonard Williams
- DL Quinnen Williams
- DL Jeffery Simmons
- EDGE Danielle Hunter
- EDGE Nick Bosa
- EDGE Chase Young
- EDGE Josh Allen
- EDGE Rashan Gary
- EDGE Brian Burns
- EDGE Montez Sweat
- EDGE Uchenna Nwosu
- LB Devin White
- LB Isaiah Simmons
- CB AJ Terrell
- CB Adoree Jackson
- CB Kenny Moore
- CB Kendall Fuller
- CB Trevon Diggs
- S John Johnson III
- S Micah Hyde
- S Darnell Savage
It’s highly doubtful all of these pass rushers hit the market, but Falcons fans should be salivating. Atlanta may finally be able to pay a big-time marquee pass rusher. With all of this money to spend, Atlanta will be in a fantastic spot next offseason. If Desmond Ridder doesn’t play well, the Falcons could parlay a lot of picks to move up for a Caleb Williams or Drake Maye, but if Ridder does play well, they can set up their quarterback of the future even further. 2023 may not be a playoff year for Atlanta, but they have a chance to become a real threat in 2024.
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Photographer: Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire
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