With the third week of NFL free agency underway, several former Atlanta Falcons players on last year’s squad haven’t signed a new team for the 2025 season.
However, the Falcons have added linebacker Divine Deablo, defensive end Leonard Floyd, cornerback Mike Ford, safety Jordan Fuller, and defensive end Morgan Fox.
In addition to those free-agent signings, the Falcons have re-signed countless players from last year’s team, including cornerback Mike Hughes, wide receiver Khadarel Hodge, and defensive lineman Kentavious Street.
Meanwhile, the unsigned former Falcons still have time to find a new opportunity before the start of this upcoming season. It might not happen immediately as free agency has slowed down and the 2025 NFL Draft is on the horizon.
Nonetheless, we’ll highlight five ex-Falcons sitting in free agency and what they’ve done in the previous season either in Atlanta or wherever else they played in 2024.
1. Matt Judon, Defensive End
Judon is one of the top remaining defensive ends entering the third week of free agency. The Falcons acquired Judon in a trade from the New England Patriots during the preseason.
Atlanta thought they were getting a game-changing pass rusher that would ignite their defensive line. Instead, the Falcons got a veteran defensive lineman, who was slightly better than his 2023 numbers with the Patriots.
The 32-year-old Judon had 41 combined tackles, 12 QB pressures, nine quarterback hits, seven tackles for loss, 5.5 sacks, five pass deflections, and an interception (which was returned for a defensive touchdown).
If you look at Judon’s 2023 stats with the Patriots, he racked up 11 quarterback pressures and four sacks. The veteran defender was ranked second on the Falcons in sacks, behind Arnold Ebiketie (6).
Additionally, the Falcons’ defense ranked dead last in sacks (28), which is not great considering they were ranked 21st in 2023 (42). Granted, it was under a different coaching staff. However, you never want to see an entire unit go backward the next season.
According to PFF, Judon’s run defense (53.6) and pass rush grades (53.9) were horrible. That said, the veteran pass rusher might be waiting for some time on the open market based on his performance in 2024.