The Atlanta Falcons were put in a frustrating position when right tackle Kaleb McGary decided to walk away. McGary's retirement was an obvious surprise and forced the franchise to quickly pivot, signing former Kansas City Chiefs tackle Jawaan Taylor. The veteran was one of the few starting options that remained in free agency and offers Atlanta a semblance of stability while also setting the team up for unavoidable frustrations.
For those who haven't watched Taylor's tenure with the Chiefs, the tackle committed 46 penalties during his three seasons with the team. This was despite missing a handful of games and being a source of constant frustration for the Kansas City coaching staff. In the 2024 season alone, Taylor had nine pre-snap penalties and an additional seven called for holding.
While it is understandable that the Falcons brought in Taylor, there should be a healthy level of concern that an offense with a history of struggling with self-imposed mistakes just added a tackle with a long track record of them.
Taylor is an average pass protector, allowing 20 pressures in the 2025 season while playing 517 pass protection snaps. This points to the fact that the Falcons have added an average option at the position who has given every reason to believe he will be a source of frustration when it comes to penalty yardage and his level of play, compared to what has a chance to be an elite offensive line.
Falcons Clearly Set Themselves up for Frustration Signing Mistake-Prone Jawaan Taylor
Taylor does offer the franchise predictable stability in a blindside protector capable of buying his QB additional time. While the penalties will be frustrating, there is value in signing Taylor compared to finding answers in the draft or elevating one of your current backup pieces.
Storm Norton is the current swing tackle and doesn't have a resume that suggests he can step in and play the position at a high level. It should also be noted that the Falcons lack their own first-round pick in this year's draft due to a previous trade for James Pearce Jr. in the 2025 draft.
This left the franchise with little choice but to dip into free agency, where only question marks or players with clear issues remain. For Taylor, it is an unquestionable downgrade to go from protecting Patrick Mahomes in Andy Reid's offense to playing for a franchise that hasn't made the playoffs since 2017. All around, it is an underwhelming move that serves as a reminder of where the Falcons sit as a franchise and headlines what has been an average offseason for Atlanta.