Head coach Raheem Morris and the Atlanta Falcons are currently preparing for the upcoming 2024 NFL season, which is set to begin in just under a month. The Falcons surprised many this offseason when, after signing free agent quarterback Kirk Cousins to a lucrative contract, they also used their first-round draft pick to recruit another quarterback, Washington’s Michael Penix Jr., potentially giving Morris two quarterbacks on his roster who feel like they should be starting.
One of the most common criticisms of this decision was that the Falcons seemed to contradict their “win now” push to sign Cousins by drafting another quarterback instead of strengthening other weak spots on the roster — most notably the defensive line. Although the Falcons used later draft picks to do so, they got bad news about one of those draft picks on Sunday.
“The Falcons placed rookie edge Bralen Trice on the injured list, ending his season,” reported ESPN’s Field Yates on X, formerly Twitter. “A huge letdown for their third-round pick.”
Trice happened to be a teammate of Michael Penix Jr. at the University of Washington and helped lead the Huskies to the national championship last season before being selected 74th overall in the draft by the Falcons last April.
A fascinating situation
As mentioned above, the Falcons entered what many perceived as a “win now” mood when they signed Cousins as a free agent, but then immediately contradicted that mood by not using their first-round pick to address the areas of weakness on their roster, primarily the defensive line and defensive backfield.
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While Atlanta’s defense has indeed taken a step forward in 2023, it’s fair to question how much of that is due to the shockingly weak quarterback roster the team faced last season. Judging by the team’s 2024 schedule, it’s unlikely they can get away with the severe lack of pass rush they showed in 2023 — and which has been a real problem for the organization since the days of Matt Ryan.
It’s almost certain that Cousins will significantly improve the quarterback production the Falcons achieved last year through Desmond Ridder, but if the defense can’t hold up its end of the bargain, Atlanta could be in danger of missing the playoffs for the seventh consecutive year.
