Could Falcons Be 'On The Clock' With No. 1 Pick After Season?

The Falcons are projected to be one of the league's worst teams.

Jeremy Brener | Sep 1, 2022

Could Falcons Be 'On The Clock' With No. 1 Pick After Season? /

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Atlanta Falcons

The Atlanta Falcons and the rest of the NFL are a week away from starting the season, yet there's already people projecting how the team will do this year.

Bleacher Report suggests that the Falcons are going to be the league's worst team in 2022 and will finish with a 3-14 record. Here's their reasoning behind that projection ...

The reality of the Atlanta Falcons' situation is clear.

Longtime quarterback Matt Ryan requested a trade, and the Falcons moved him to the Indianapolis Colts. Atlanta replaced him with Marcus Mariota, a stopgap QB who's taking snaps until 2022 third-round pick Desmond Ridder is ready.

The receiving corps is extremely thin, even as first-rounder Drake London is a potential standout next to tight end Kyle Pitts. Calvin Ridley won't be available because of a season-long suspension for betting on NFL games in 2021.

Perhaps the Falcons will steal a few unexpected wins if Mariota outperforms his expectations

and

the defense's top players stay healthy. Anything close to true playoff contention would be surprising, though.

Every other team finished with at least four wins in their league-wide projections, meaning the Falcons would pick first overall in the 2023 NFL Draft next spring.

While there is reason for pessimism with this Atlanta team, there is also reason for optimism. Quarterback Marcus Mariota showed promise during the preseason, and that could continue in the regular season, especially if he builds a strong rapport with tight end Kyle Pitts.

On top of that, A.J. Terrell and Casey Hayward form one of the league's best cornerback duos. The front seven isn't as strong, but a secondary-built defense can prevent big plays from taking place ... and that could keep the Falcons in a lot of games.

This projection proves that the Falcons have extremely low expectations going into the season, which means any positive developments will be accomplishments.

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Published Sep 1, 2022

JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.