Falcons Offensive Line Features Top OT Duo

The Atlanta Falcons have their future secured at both offensive tackle spots after re-signing right tackle Kaleb McGary this offseason.

The immediate future for the Atlanta Falcons offensive line looks bright. Following the 2022 season, where their offense was boosted by the league's second-best rushing attack, largely thanks to the offensive line, the Falcons kept their front five in-tact by re-signing right tackle Kaleb McGary. 

With the former 2019 first-round pick's future tied to the Falcons for the next three years, Pro Football Focus has graded him and left tackle Jake Matthews as one of the top offensive tackle duos in the NFL this coming season. 

PFF released a tweet including a graphic that built off of a recent article where they ranked the top-32 offensive tackles, which included both Matthews and McGary. Using their rankings, they then ranked which teams had the best "duo," which had the Falcons landing at No. 7. 

Duos on @PFF_Gordon's Top-32 offensive tackle rankings 💪 pic.twitter.com/o79eOTlMuB

— PFF (@PFF) May 27, 2023

So where did PFF rank both of the Falcons' starting offensive tackles? 

Both were ranked outside the top-15, as veteran left tackle Jake Matthews landed at No. 18 overall. 

"Matthews is dependable, and while he hasn’t been enough of a mauler in the run game to push beyond that, a lot of teams would love to have a player like him manning the left side of their offensive line," PFF writes. "His PFF pass-blocking grade hasn’t dipped lower than 77.0 since his rookie season back in 2014."

Matthews's dependability was evident this past season; even despite the birth of his child this past November, he kept his streak of consecutive starts alive, which now sits at 144 games.

However, following a career year from McGary, PFF netted him at No. 25 overall, but they feel it is for good reason why he is lower in their rankings. 

With an 86.6 PFF grade in 2022, McGary was the fourth-highest-graded tackle in the NFL," PFF writes. "However, the split between his run blocking (91.6, second) and pass blocking (66.9, 49th) adds some context as to why he isn’t higher on this list. He has improved as a run blocker every season he has been in the league and remains in a run-heavy system with the Falcons, so he should have a solid year in 2023."

PFF added that Falcons fans shouldn't expect "Lane Johnson level" pass blocking from McGary in 2023. ... And this critique of McGary not being as good in pass protection is something that made his future in Atlanta uncertain after the Falcons declined his fifth-year option an offseason ago after he allowed nine sacks, which was second-most in the league. 

Yet, as evidenced by his deal, the Falcons saw enough improvement to reward him with a three-year contract worth $34.5 million. 

Looking beyond offensive tackle, the stars are aligning for the Falcons to have their best chance of returning to the playoffs this coming season. The Falcons have an All-Pro right guard in Chris Lindstrom and a serviceable center, Drew Dalman, with the only question remaining at left guard, where they hope rookie Matthew Bergeron can fill the hole. 

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