Falcons are swinging big on Drake London, who’s wired to prove them right

After the Falcons’ fifth OTA practice this summer, Drake London marveled at some of his receiving predecessors who once caught passes from the team’s former quarterback and new president of football, Matt Ryan.

Julio Jones and Roddy White, London said, are “the greats” who starred in the generations of Falcons football before his arrival. Jones and White hold the top two spots in franchise history in catches, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns.

Now, if only in finances, London has surpassed both in annual earnings — and the Falcons are betting he’ll eventually climb to similar heights on their all-time receiving list, too.

London and the Falcons agreed to a four-year, $141 million contract extension Tuesday evening, Athletes First agent Andrew Kessler confirmed to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The deal is worth up to $150 million with incentives and comes with $100 million guaranteed.

With an average annual value of $35.25 million, London is the third highest-paid receiver in NFL history — trailing only reigning NFL Offensive Player of the Year Jaxon Smith-Njigba and back-to-back first-team All-Pro Ja’Marr Chase — and the highest-paid pass catcher in Falcons history.

The receiver market continues to rise, as is the case across the board, and London’s deal will surely be surpassed in the market as others ink new contracts elsewhere. But the Falcons made London, in terms of average annual value, the 10th highest-paid non-quarterback in the league.

This is a significant commitment, and it underscores that the Falcons’ new regime — headlined by Ryan, coach Kevin Stefanski and general manager Ian Cunningham — believes London will be a franchise cornerstone moving forward.

Is it smart? Nobody has a crystal ball, but London warrants this. He turns 25 in July, and through four seasons, he’s already eighth in Falcons history with 309 catches, 10th in receiving yards at 3,961 and 13th with 22 receiving touchdowns.

Perhaps most impressive? London has caught passes from a new quarterback in Week 1 each year, and he’s gone through a midseason change under center thereafter. He’s had no continuity, and no sustained stretch of quality play, at the quarterback position since being drafted No. 8 overall in 2022.

No matter whether that changes this fall, when the Falcons appear poised to start either Michael Penix Jr. or Tua Tagovailoa, the team has its solidified top target.

And London is a bit of a unique one, too. At 6-foot-4 and 215 pounds, he offers versatility to play as a traditional outside receiver but also move inside to the slot, which gives offensive coordinator Tommy Rees plenty of room for creativity. London moonlights as a high-level run-blocker whose physicality and competitiveness is as relentless as the day is long.

That’s the side of London that makes this deal more valuable, too. While he hasn’t made a Pro Bowl or received any All-Pro recognition, his numbers — he’s eclipsed 65 catches and 850 receiving yards in all four years of his career — are worthy of a lofty payday.

So is his leadership and the impact his tough, rugged play style contributes to the Falcons’ culture. London has grown more consistent in using his voice, and the team’s previous regime often touted his character as a microcosm of what they wanted the organization to be about.

From a different perspective, London is everything Cunningham wants this era of Falcons football to embody.

At his introductory news conference in February, Cunningham said the Falcons were adopting the philosophy of “Draft, develop and retain.” London fits the bill. Though this coaching staff and front office didn’t draft nor develop London, the organization did. Cunningham and Stefanski prioritized the retention aspect and successfully completed the mission.

The Falcons have other players who fall into the same category as London and are extension eligible. Running back Bijan Robinson has two more years of team control, while tight end Kyle Pitts is slated to play this fall on the franchise tag.