FLOWERY BRANCH — The Falcons drafted two young pass rushers last month, but they have another one on the way as well.
Edge rusher Bralen Trice, who the team drafted No. 74 overall in the 2024 NFL draft, tore his ACL in his preseason debut last year. He was still sidelined as OTAs began Tuesday, but the hope is that he’ll be ready for training camp.
“He is at the point where he’s out there with our (physical therapist),” coach Raheem Morris said. “I don’t want to misstep my words here; he’s with him most of the time. He’s doing a couple things on the side, doing a lot of the running things. But he’s definitely not at the ‘full’ category yet, if we were doing some of those things. But he’s working his way back.”
Morris said Trice being a full participant in training camp was a “realistic goal.” The Falcons will open camp in mid-July.
Trice was set to receive ample playing time as a rookie reserve, but he faces a murkier outlook in his second season. The Falcons spent first-round draft picks this year on Jalon Walker and James Pearce Jr. to bolster their edge rush.
The expectation should be that both players will be starters, or at least will play significant snaps. The team also signed veteran Leonard Floyd, who essentially replaces free-agent Matthew Judon.
That said, Trice presents an interesting wrinkle when healthy. He was a key player on the 2023 Washington Huskies, which current Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. helped lead to the national championship game.
Trice, 24, was a team captain and led the Huskies with 11.5 tackles for loss. He was the defensive MVP of the Sugar Bowl (two sacks, three tackles for loss and a forced fumble) and was named Washington’s defensive MVP at the team’s postseason awards banquet in consecutive years to finish his career.
While the Falcons’ pass rush isn’t assured to be fixed, it will be younger and more athletic. The top of the depth chart features Walker, Pearce, Floyd, Arnold Ebiketie and Trice.
Outside of Floyd, there’s not much of a track record there, but there certainly is more upside than the Falcons have had in recent years.
No sign of Kirk Cousins
Morris said he hadn’t seen Kirk Cousins, the well-compensated veteran quarterback, on Tuesday when Morris was asked during his media availability. These OTAs are voluntary, of course, and mandatory minicamp isn’t until June 10-11.
Cousins, displaced by Penix, has hoped for a trade that will allow him to compete for a starting job in his age 37 season. The Falcons, however, haven’t been inclined to meet his request, as there isn’t great benefit to moving him at this juncture.
The Steelers have been reported as a potential Cousins landing spot if they don’t sign Aaron Rodgers. Rodgers recently hinted at his possible union with the Steelers, though.
The Falcons also could benefit from waiting to see if a quarterback suffers an injury during camp, and an otherwise unlikely destination for Cousins becomes a realistic one.
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