The Atlanta Falcons face a critical offseason after a failed 2024 campaign, falling short of the playoffs despite looking like legitimate NFC South contenders entering the year.
Aside from figuring out Kirk Cousins' albatross of a contract, the 2025 NFL Draft is the biggest question for the organization. After selecting Michael Penix Jr., Bijan Robinson, Drake London, and Kyle Pitts in the first round of four consecutive drafts, this feels like a time for the front office to finally invest in the defense or offensive line.
It's not yet clear what Atlanta intends to do with the No. 15 selection, but one new report indicates that the Falcons are keeping all options available, including pulling off a trade.
Everything we heard during NFL combine week: Latest on the free agent QB market, trade candidates...
— Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerESPN) March 2, 2025
From @DanGrazianoESPN and me https://t.co/6uck24d6fM
Falcons Reportedly Open to Trading First-Round NFL Draft Pick
According to Jeremy Fowler and Dan Graziano of ESPN, the Falcons are considering trading their first-round selection to accumulate more draft capital in an effort to rebuild the defense.
"Two NFC South teams that I expect to be fairly aggressive in pursuing defensive upgrades in the draft and free agency are the Falcons and Panthers," Graziano writes. "The Falcons are likely to use most, if not all, of their early-round picks on defensive players and has some interest in trading their No. 15 pick to collect more draft capital, depending on how the first half of Round 1 shakes out."
Atlanta has only five picks in the upcoming draft, with one of them being a projected seventh-round selection from losing Taylor Heinicke. That pick could become a sixth-rounder but either way, the Falcons are lagging behind the competition regarding capital. With how many holes this roster has, entering the 2025 draft with only five picks would be a massive mistake.
This is considered to be a strong defensive draft. Should the Falcons successfully pull off a trade, they could move back and regain picks that could be used to keep filling out the roster. The more shots you have on goal the better, and Atlanta just doesn't have the ammo to trust hitting a moving target at this stage.
There has yet to be any reported interest from other teams in acquiring the Falcons' pick, yet it still behooves Atlanta to try. As we inch closer to the draft, expect more news regarding a theoretical deal.