'All We Dreamed About': Bud Dupree Ready to Lead in Falcons Homecoming

After an unsuccessful injury-riddled stint with the Tennessee Titans, Bud Dupree is eyeing a return to form with the Atlanta Falcons - all in a homecoming that he "dreamed about" as a kid from nearby Macon.

Since becoming the Atlanta Falcons general manager in Jan. 2021, Terry Fontenot has stressed culture in team building, along with putting an emphasis on bringing in players from the state of Georgia.

Enter outside linebacker Bud Dupree.

A native of Macon, Ga., just an hour and a half south of Atlanta, Dupree grew up a Falcons fan before evolving into a first-team all-state player at Wilkinson County High School and first-team All-SEC selection for the University of Kentucky.

Dupree parlayed his success into being a first-round pick by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2015, and now, some eight years later, just signed his third professional contract.

The 30-year-old Dupree called it a "blessing" to still be playing, especially back home. But don't get it twisted - he's not in Atlanta for a feel-good homecoming story. The goal is to win and, perhaps more specifically, be a locker room leader as Fontenot aims to keep building the culture.

"Being a Georgia kid, playing for the Falcons, having younger guys look up to you, that's all we dreamed about, that's all we really wanted to do," Dupree said. "Now, the proof in the pudding for me is to go out here and lead these guys.

"Show them that just because you get established in the league, you have to work harder and harder to keep your name relevant."

The Falcons finished last season with more players 26 years old or younger than anybody else in the league; this is a young, ascending team now searching for veteran leaders who can make positive impacts as much off the field as on it.

That's where Dupree fits, along with 36-year-old Calais Campbell. Atlanta ranks last in the NFL in sacks over the past two years by some 23 ... to the team in second-to-last. Adding proven contributors who are also committed leaders is vital in improving that number.

Granted, Dupree has only three and four sacks over the last two years, respectively, but he said he feels the best he has since tearing his ACL in the later stages of the 2020 season, when he was on pace to record his second consecutive double-digit sack campaign.

The ACL injury affected Dupree mentally and spiritually, in his words, and he battled a hip flexor and torn pectoral this past season - but is now ready to move on.

Dupree, who stands 6-4, 269 pounds, signed with the Falcons over a reunion with the Steelers because of the opportunity to test the market again next offseason; he's just two years removed from a five-year, $82.5 million contract but received only a one-year, $3 million deal from Atlanta.

In essence, Dupree's stock is currently rather low ... but with motivation coming from both his return home and opportunity to prove he's healthy, the ingredients are there for a bounce back 2023 that could prove to benefit Atlanta's defense as much as Dupree himself.

"I've got chips on my shoulder because I've been hurt these last couple years," said Dupree. "So, I'm going to play as hard as I can, as violent as I can just to be able to get back into that mix for myself personally but also to keep this team alive."

Dupree said the Falcons were "heroes" to him as a kid, and local support is so strong that his phone had never - not even when he was drafted - blown up as much as it did after his signing became official.

He's expecting to draw plenty of friends and family based on requests that have already been made, likening it to a high school student section.

That's certainly exciting for Dupree ... but so is the opportunity to help take his former "heroes" to the next level as an integral locker room leader.

"It's dope, it's real dope," Dupree said. "You've just got to go out and lead. If you're a veteran, you've got to be able to lead, and I do a great job of that, not only by example but also physically and verbally."

Dupree's press conference oozed enthusiasm; he's not simply a veteran seeking to secure a check and move on. Instead, his focus is on returning to his previously stout form, all the while giving as much knowledge as he can to his running mates.

After all, that's what Dupree "dreamed about" as a kid ... and now has a chance to realize that dream on a rising team that will only go as far as its veteran leaders can take it.

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You can follow Daniel Flick on Twitter @DFlickDraft

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