Is the roster in good shape except for some tinkering, or should the Falcons explore a big trade to finish things out?
The Atlanta Falcons are a handful of months away from starting the 2025 season, and the team’s roster is certainly not close to being in its final form. Besides the very obvious cuts to come to get the team from 90 players to 53, Terry Fontenot’s urge to tinker means we should expect at least a dozen smaller moves between now and September.
But is that all we can expect, and is it all we should expect? The Falcons pushed their chips in a bit over the past couple of seasons, signing Kirk Cousins, drafting Michael Penix, and then making a trade to land two first round pass rushers. If they believe there’s an outstanding weakness on the roster heading into the season, it’s not difficult to imagine them turning to a trade to address it.
The logical candidate for that kind of move continues to be Jalen Ramsey, the current Dolphins and former Rams cornerback who loves Raheem Morris, and who would be an upgrade in a corps that is in solid shape but could use another high end talent. The team could also sniff around for centers being dangled—as unlikely as that seems—or more help up front, where their run defense is probably the biggest concern of the moment. The logic would be upgrading one of the team’s biggest remaining weaknesses, likely sacrificing further draft capital and 2026 cap flexibility in the process.
What I’m interested in gauging is whether you believe that’s something the Falcons should be exploring, or whether their roster is close enough to contention to reject the possibility out of hand. Alternatively, you may believe this team is a borderline contender but that pushing for more than that is likely to be too costly, and may stretch them in a way that impacts their ability to contend in the near future despite having a talented young quarterback in Michael Penix. I’m straddling these two camps myself, thinking the Falcons are capable of pushing for the NFC South as currently constructed and thinking they’re not quite good enough to justify an all-in approach. Perhaps you feel differently.
Sound off and let us know if you think there’s a major move in the offing, and whether you think it’s necessary if so.