5 Perfect Free-Agent Fits for the Atlanta Falcons
With a new head coach and a new stadium coming soon, the Atlanta Falcons will want a big signing to energize the fanbase heading into the 2015-16 season.
Atlanta needs to bring in someone to help with the pass rush first and foremost, but it still has holes in other areas of the team.
If the Falcons want to fill as many of these holes as possible before the draft, the following free agents should definitely be considered. If they can somehow get all five of these guys heading into the coming season, a quick turnaround for the Falcons could be right around the corner.
LB Bruce Carter
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Joplo Bartu and Prince Shembo failed as the coverage linebackers for the Falcons in 2014.
With Sean Weatherspoon not under contract and perpetually injured, the Falcons need to find someone who can at least fill his role if he's unable to play the spot in 2015 or beyond.
That's where Dallas' Bruce Carter would come in. He grew up on the North Carolina coast, and the prospect of returning much closer to home won't hurt Atlanta's ability to sign him. He'd also play more of a coverage inside linebacker role in the 3-4 or a weak-outside linebacker role in the 4-3.
No matter who the Falcons coach is, Carter can fit the scheme and has experience playing in it.
Atlanta would be wise to bring him in and have a young—just 26—athletically talented linebacker who is a huge upgrade in coverage from its current group.
CB Byron Maxwell
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With Desmond Trufant and Robert Alford under contract and looking like long-term starters, a cornerback like Byron Maxwell may seem like a bit of overkill.
However, with nickel packages becoming more and more common, the Falcons could use someone who can help match up against the opposition's best receivers.
Maxwell isn't a No. 1 cornerback in a defense, but he also doesn't need to be with Trufant there playing in that role. Maxwell is a great fit for someone who needs to match up against the bigger receivers in the NFC South, and he would allow Alford to man the slot in nickel sets, where his skill set fits best.
Maxwell shouldn't be given a ridiculous contract for the position and should cost somewhere around a four-year, $12 million deal as a starting No. 2 corner.
As someone who grew up in North Charleston, South Carolina, Maxwell should be more than willing to play for a team much closer to home than Seattle is.
TE Julius Thomas
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When Tony Gonzalez retired, the Falcons had a huge drop-off from their tight end position's production. It didn't hurt Matt Ryan's production, but there were times during the 2014 season when a good tight end would have helped in the red zone.
After posting back-to-back seasons with 12 touchdown catches and showing that he's arguably the best receiving option in the game, Julius Thomas is going to be a prime free agent.
However, the Broncos could be willing to put the franchise tag on him.
Assuming that they let him go, Atlanta should break the bank for him and go back to a pick-your-poison-style offense. With Julio Jones, Roddy White, Devin Hester and Harry Douglas at wide receiver and Devonta Freeman at running back to team with Thomas, the Falcons could have the speed to destroy teams everywhere.
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DT/DE Ndamukong Suh
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The Falcons are likely going to have to give Ndamukong Suh a $100-plus million contract in order to acquire his services, should he leave Detroit. However, he'd be a huge upgrade over every single defensive player on the team.
His fit would be at either 3-4 defensive end or 4-3 defensive tackle, or even a role where he plays a bit of both. The Falcons would love to have his dominance on the interior of their defense paired with a young, developing Ra'Shede Hageman and the oversized Paul Soliai.
The biggest question is whether Atlanta can lure him away from Detroit with the warmer weather and a defense that has less talent on it than what he is used to.
The Falcons would also have to worry about whether they could get that edge-rusher to take advantage of the multiple one-on-ones that they would be able to get every game due to Suh's presence.
DE/OLB Jason Pierre-Paul
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When it comes to the Atlanta Falcons' biggest needs, edge-defending pass-rusher is right at the top of the list. Jason Pierre-Paul is the best one in the entire class. His 6'6", 270-pound frame may be huge, but he can move like a linebacker and would be fun to see as a 3-4 outside linebacker.
His 42 sacks over his first five seasons just scratch the surface of what his potential could be in a scheme that the Falcons could employ.
If they moved him all over the place instead of putting him in just one single, solitary role, they could maximize his pass-rushing talents the way they did with John Abraham from 2008-2012.
The presence of Pierre-Paul would completely change the Falcons defense as a whole. He'd be a piece that they haven't had for two seasons and would be able to help their defense return to at least average.
If the Falcons could somehow get both Pierre-Paul and Suh as well as spend their No. 8 pick on a true edge-rusher, then they could really have a good defense in 2015.
All stats used are from Pro Football Focus' Premium Stats (subscription required), ESPN.com, CFBStats or NFL.com. All combine and pro day info is courtesy of NFLDraftScout.com. All contract information is courtesy of Spotrac and Rotoworld.
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