Did Falcons Made Enough 'Consequential' Improvements?

The Atlanta Falcons are going through OTAs after a successful offseason by most people's standards. Yet, one analyst doesn't think the Falcons did enough.

If you were to survey the temperature of the Atlanta Falcons fanbase regarding their thoughts on the offseason, it seems that most fans are happy with the outcome. 

For the first time under general manager Terry Fontenot and head coach Arthur Smith, the Falcons had a significant amount of cap space to use. The more than $60 million in space saw them make heavy additions to the defense, including safety Jessie Bates III and defensive tackles Calais Campbell, and David Onyemata, to name a few. 

While help upfront on the defensive line was a big need for the Falcons this offseason after they finished near the bottom of the league in sacks, ESPN recently wrote that these additions weren't "consequential" enough.

"Will Atlanta be better on defense in 2022? Yes. There's also a chance that the only players from this group on the 2024 team will be Onyemata and Bates, though, and that the Falcons will be back in the same position a year from now," ESPN writes. "If they were the Chiefs, going out and getting Campbell and Dupree to play situational roles would make sense. ... I was hoping they would make more consequential moves to add players who will be around for years to come."

So what exactly did ESPN want to see from the Falcons this offseason? Was it sign younger players, who maybe didn't have the experience or talent of a Campbell? Or does ESPN feel like the Falcons should've used a premium pick on defense? 

The logical explanation is the latter for what ESPN was looking for from the Falcons. His critique of the Falcons isn't that Campbell, Onyemata, and Bud Dupree don't have the talent necessary to improve the team's defensive line. Rather, ESPN is more concerned about the longevity of the signings. 

You can also gather that from a past article that ESPN wrote, where he expressed his hesitancy to draft a running back in the top 10, as the Falcons did at No. 8 overall in Bijan Robinson. Of course, it also doesn't help the Falcons that Georgia's Jalen Carter was still on the board when Atlanta made its pick. Despite the off-field character concerns, it is hard to deny that Carter was one of the most talented prospects in the draft.

Drafting Carter would've certainly been a "consequential" move in the eyes of ESPN. Yet, with Carter's off-the-field issues, it is hard to fault the Falcons for passing on him if they weren't confident in their ability to nurture him. After all, while the selection of Robinson wasn't a need-based pick, it gives quarterback Desmond Ridder another weapon to rely on.

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