Looking back at the 2025 season, no Atlanta Falcons player was as consistently frustrating as receiver Darnell Mooney. The veteran pass catcher was coming off a great 2024, totaling 992 receiving yards and five touchdowns on the year. The expectations were that the pass catcher would match or surpass this total with Michael Penix Jr. taking over at quarterback and better able to throw to all parts of the field. Instead, Mooney regressed in every category, not even managing to match half of his 2024 total with only 443 receiving yards and a lone touchdown.
This adds up to make Mooney by far the most overpaid Atlanta starter looking back on the season. The playmaker was an $8 million cap hit and was providing far below average production for a second receiver. Mooney's catch rate furthers this fact, only managing to haul in a career low 44.4 percent of his targets after making 60.4 percent of plays the season before.
It paints a bleak picture for a receiver who was being relied on to be the second option for Penix. Even when Kirk Cousins was forced into the starting lineup due to injury, the underwhelming numbers remained, and Mooney clearly lacked the explosive ability to find the space he had a season before. With this in mind, there is no debating that the receiver was incredibly overpaid and a clear target to move on from in the 2026 offseason.
Falcons' Darnell Mooney Remains Incredibly Overpaid After Dismal 2025
For the Falcons, a post June 1 release of Mooney would result in a dead cap hit of $6.5 million and save Atlanta $11.9 million in cap space. It is worth noting as well that before the contract expires, it would garner a $4.5 million dead cap hit in the 2027 season as well. These are numbers the Falcons are likely going to be willing to pay based on the receiver's performance.
What was frustrating about Mooney goes beyond just the numbers, with the tape showing just how much the pass catcher struggled to find space. Mooney is undersized and needs to utilize his speed to open up room for the quarterback to make plays. Instead, it seemed that coverage was no issue, keeping up with the receiver and continually shutting down what was supposed to be Atlanta's second most consistent pass-catching option.
For Mooney, this was by far the receiver's worst season and likely is going to result in the veteran being forced to find a new landing spot. This is especially the case with the Falcons bringing in a new coaching staff and GM who will want a chance to bring in their own pieces around Atlanta's established core.
Mooney has quickly gone from a part of that core to an overpaid afterthought whose future appears decided. Atlanta simply has no choice but to save what money it can and part ways with a failing player that offered zero consistency in the 2025 season.