The Falcons opened training camp this week with a revised roster and a glowing outlook on the future.
After consecutive 7-10 seasons under Arthur Smith, the Falcons appear poised to make a move out of the NFC South basement and possibly into contention for the NFC playoffs.
“We’ve invested heavily on (the defense),” Smith said. “You invest some early capital in some of those offensive players and then some of those mid-veterans. We’ve got some guys like Calais (Campbell) and Bud (Dupree) that are in different parts of their career. It’s important as you’re trying to have a complete team and where we’re at.”
Campbell was placed on the designated non-football injury list Tuesday.
The Falcons also signed tight end MyCole Pruitt and waived running back Caleb Huntley with a failed physical designation.
Several variables must come together for the Falcons to achieve their goals.
Here’s a look at five storylines that will help to shape the Falcons in 2023:
1. Is Desmond Ridder ready to take over at QB? The team’s new regime played a season with Matt Ryan before electing to move on from the quarterback with the most wins in franchise history.
After a flurry of moves that included trading Ryan, signing Marcus Mariota, drafting Ridder and later benching Mariota, the franchise has settled on Ridder as QB1 and will enter the season with a third-round pick in the 2022 draft under center.
Ridder was 2-2 as a starter last season, showing enough in the four-game sample for the Falcons to move forward with his NFL development. Offensive coordinator Dave Ragone, who was a third-round pick in 2003, will be in charge of Ridder’s development.
Ridder developed a connection with fellow rookie Drake London last season, completing 25 passes for 233 yards. He’ll have more options in the passing game with the return of Kyle Pitts and the addition of rookie running back Bijan Robinson, who had 60 catches in three seasons at Texas.
2. Where’s Pitts in his road to recovery? The 2022 season already wasn’t a good one for Pitts under Mariota, and it ended early once he sustained a season-ending MCL knee sprain against the Bears.
Pitts’ 2021 season with Ryan at QB – 68 receptions, 1,026 yards and a touchdown.
The 2022 season with Mariota at QB – 28 receptions, 356 yards and two touchdowns.
Now, the third-year player is preparing for his third different quarterback – and returning from a major injury. All early signs point to Pitts regaining the form that earned him a spot in the Pro Bowl in 2021.
3. How will the new-look defense develop? The team brought in major pieces for that unit, and the moves have been pleasing to veteran tackle Grady Jarrett, who has started 96 consecutive games since the 2017 season.
“It’s been a heck of a transformation,” Jarrett said. “It’s been something that I’ve been super excited about having veterans come in, guys who are ready to roll.”
On paper, the moves appear outstanding. And the team is banking on those moves translating into success on the field.
Linemen David Onyemata and Campbell were signed along with linebackers Lorenzo Carter and Dupree. Eddie Goldman was reinstated from the retirement list, and Jessie Bates joined the defense after signing a huge free-agent contract.
Oh, and then there’s new defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen. The pieces appear to be in place heading into the season.
“Grady’s a real guy,” Smith said. “There’s nothing phony about Grady Jarrett. I think people respect authentic people. The reason we wanted Grady back and why we invested the way we did – I think I’ve gone on record before – I don’t want to have recency bias. In my history, he’s been one of the top leaders I’ve been around.”
4. What will be Bates’ impact? A former Cincinnati Bengal, who signed a $64 million deal with the Falcons, Bates “has a knack for getting the ball,” secondary coach Steve Jackson said.
“That’s an intangible thing. Every player is different,” Jackson said. “Guys like that are called point-of-attack players, and that’s something that you can’t teach.”
Bates started 79 games over five seasons with the Bengals. He was named second-team All-Pro after the 2020 season and has 479 career tackles and 14 career interceptions.
“He’s a ball-skill guy. He’s always around the ball,” Jackson said.
5. Can Goldman help after missing a year? He signed with the Falcons in July 2022 but retired 13 days later. A 6-foot-3, 325-pounder, Goodman was reinstated from the reserve/retired list in March and will add some bulk to the defensive line.
Goldman has played 81 NFL games (starting 73) since he was drafted in 2015. He could provide some quality depth to the interior of the defense if he can return to form.
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