Cover 9@9: Why is Rashaan Evans still out on the street?

“Him, like a lot of other players,” Fontenot said. “There are guys that we’d love to have back. It just depends. Some guys you have to be patient with. Some guys are going to end up somewhere else. They might make more money somewhere else.”

So far, the Falcons have lost cornerback Isaiah Oliver (49ers), defensive lineman Abdullah Anderson (Commanders), cornerback/special teamer Mike Ford (Browns) and offensive lineman Chuma Edoga (Cowboys).

“We’ve already had a couple guys that have gotten opportunities somewhere else,” Fontenot said. “For us, it’s bigger than ball. We have to set the parameters and know what we are going to do with players, but when guys get a deal somewhere else, whether if it’s for money or a better opportunity, we’re going to be happy for them. Rashaan, like a lot of other guys, they have to go through this process and figure out what’s best for them and they have to do that.”

Here’s a look at former Falcons who still out there on the free agency streets along with Evans.

Olamide Zaccheaus: The dependable player was the second-leading receiver with 40 catches for 533 yards and three touchdowns.

Erik Harris: Veteran leader in secondary no longer needed with the signing of free agent Jessie Bates.

Damiere Byrd: Provided a deep threat early in the season.

Anthony Firkser: Played in 11 games and made one start as a quality reserve.

Elijah Wilkinson: Started nine games on offensive line.

Vincent Taylor: He spent the season on injured reserve. Was expected to be the starter at nose tackle.

Beau Brinkley: With McCullough re-signed, it wouldn’t make sense to have two long snappers on the 90-man roster.

KhaDarel Hodge: He played 259 special-teams snaps and was a dependable reserve at wide receiver. He led the team with nine special-teams tackles.

Nick Kwiatkoski: A quality reserve who played in nine games.

MyCole Pruitt: He came on strong and caught four touchdown passes after tight end Kyle Pitts went down. Quarterback Desmond Ridder was on the same page with Pruitt.

Jaleel Johnson: The defensive lineman provided some depth along the line.

Colby Gossett: Made a start but ended the season as the fifth guard.

Matt Dickerson: He provided some late-season depth along the defensive line.

Rashad Fenton: The Falcons traded a seventh-round pick to the Chiefs for Fenton. He played in two games and made one start.

2. Can Ridder improve the passing attack: The Falcons finished ranked third in the league in rushing. It doesn’t take Vince Lombardi to figure out that quarterback Desmond Ridder will be the focal point of improving the passing attack.

He improved it slightly over what Marcus Mariota did over 13 games and he’ll get back tight end Kyle Pitts.

We asked Falcons coach Arthur Smith what physical traits does Ridder have that suggests he can improve his passing.

“There are always little things that you can work on,” Smith said. “Lower-body mechanics. Being more comfortable when you don’t change systems with guys, too. That helps the learning curve when they come back in, what you’re focusing on and not trying to memorize new formations and everything is foreign to them. So, we expect a significant growth from him.”

3. The four-game sample size: Our buddy over at 92.9 The Game – Mike Bell – insists that the Falcons were wasting time with Mariota last season and should have been playing Ridder.

“We had confidence when we drafted him,” Smith said. “A lot of works goes on behind the scenes and obviously the most important thing to actually play in a real game and do it. All the things that we believe in, the way he can operate. How quickly he can make a decision. You have to make decisions really quick back there when you are playing quarterback in this league.”

After 13 games, they had seen enough of Mariota, who was released last month and later signed with the Eagles to backup Jalen Hurts.

“There wasn’t a one ‘ah-huh’ moment, but there were a lot of pressure situations that we put him in,” Smith said. “How he operated on third downs when we put him the games, that will give you a chance. He made some big-time throws. We are excited about him.”

4. The Lamar Jackson question: During Smith’s session, three reporters asked him about the decision not to pursue Lamar Jackson. He was polite and here was his best response.

Later in the day, Arthur Blank would give the franchise’s full explanation.

“Here’s our state, our stance on all of these hypothetical questions around the league,” Smith said. “I think anytime that you are looking to improve your football team, that part of your job to be aware of what’s going on.

“We look at everything. Some of the rumors are true. Some are not. You guys have covered this league a long time. We take everything into consideration. We are always looking to upgrade our football team at every position. That’s kind of been our stance. I think that would be the standing operation procedures for most teams in this league.”

5. Charities and deep passing: Smith was asked about his favorite charities for a story on philantrophy. He basically said he likes to keep a low profile.

Another reporter wanted to know about why deep passing was at all-time low dating back to 2006. He got excited and give great detailed answers.

6. Note to PFWA President: As senior advisor to PFWA president Calvin Watkins, per our call last night, we have to get the coaches back to 60 minutes at the owners’ meeting. The 30 minutes went too fast and several reporters were not happy that they weren’t able to visit with other coaches from around the conference or from their particular division (NFC South).

In the digital age, we need more access, not less.

Also, we need to get back the weekly calls from the opposing coach and quarterback during the regular season. Teams have made those optional in recent years.

7. Falcons’ Operations Team lands big award: The Falcons’ operations team, comprised of Brandon Ruth and Austin Montague, were recently awarded with the NFL Travel Directors of the Year Award. This award is given annually by the NFL to the team that runs the best travel operation for players, coaches and staff for all away games.

8. Falcons’ free-agency tracker: Here’s an easy way to keep track of the moves:

EXTENDED

– RG Chris Lindstrom, five years, $105 million

– RT Kaleb McGary, three years, $34.5 million (agreed to terms; hasn’t signed yet)

TRADE

– TE Jonnu Smith from Patriots for seventh-round draft pick

NEW FREE AGENTS

– S Jessie Bates III, four years, $64 million

– DT David Onyemata, four years, $35 million ($24.5 million guaranteed, $12 million signing bonus)

– LB Kaden Elliss, three years, $21.5 million ($11 million guaranteed)

– QB Taylor Heinicke, two years, up to $20 million

– CB Mike Hughes, two years

– LB Tae Davis, one year

– WR Mack Hollins, one year, up to $2.5 million

--WR Scotty Miller

--DE Calais Campbell

RETURNING FALCONS

– P Bradley Pinion re-signed, three years, $8.65 million

– FB Keith Smith re-signed, one year, $2.35 million ($625,000 guaranteed)

– OLB Lorenzo Carter, two years, $9 million

– LS Liam McCullough, one year, $705,000

– TE Parker Hesse, one year, $940,000

– CB Cornell Armstrong

– DT Eddie Goldman (unretired list)

SIGNED WITH OTHER TEAMS

– CB Isaiah Oliver (49ers)

- DL Abdullah Anderson (Commanders)

– CB Mike Ford (Browns)

– OL Chuma Edoga (Cowboys)

8. Falcons’ position-by-position analysis: Here’s our position-by-position look at the how the Falcons performed during their 7-10 season in 2022.

Part 1: Running backs

Part 2: Quarterbacks

Part 3: Wide receivers/tight ends

Part 4: Offensive line

Part 5: Defensive line

Part 6: Linebackers

Part 7: Defensive backs

Part 8: Special teams

9. Depth Chart: Smith reference our “unofficial” offseason depth chart several times during his availability.

We like to just let the fans kind of keep track of all of the players and the depth at the respective positions.

Here’s what the Falcons’ depth chart looks like with the most recent deals with defensive end Calais Campbell and wide receiver Scotty Miller on Tuesday and Wednesday.

OFFENSE

QB – Desmond Ridder, Taylor Heinicke, Logan Woodside, Feleipe Franks

RB – Cordarrelle Patterson, Tyler Allgeier, Avery Williams, *Caleb Huntley, B.J. Baylor

FB – Keith Smith, Clint Ratkovich

WR – Drake London, Frank Darby, *Jared Bernhardt, Josh Ali

TE – *Kyle Pitts, Jonnu Smith, Parker Hesse, Feleipe Franks, *John FitzPatrick, Tucker Fisk, John Raine

LT – Jake Matthews, Germain Ifedi

LG – Kyle Hinton, Matt Hennessy, *Jalen Mayfield, *Justin Shaffer

C – Drew Dalman, Ryan Neuzil, Jonotthan Harrison

RG – Chris Lindstrom

RT – Kaleb McGary, Tyler Vrabel

WR – Mack Hollins, Scotty Miller, Ra’Shaun Henry

DEFENSE

OLB – Lorenzo Carter, DeAngelo Malone, Quinton Bell

DE – Grady Jarrett, Timothy Horne, Amani Bledsoe

NT – Eddie Goldman, *Ta’Quon Graham, Jalen Dalton

DE – David Onyemata, Joe Gaziano

OLB – Calais Campbell, Ade Ogundeji, Arnold Ebiketie, David Anenih

ILB – Kaden Elliss, Dorian Etheridge, Tae Davis

ILB – Troy Andersen, Mykal Walker, Nate Landman

CB – A.J. Terrell, Mike Hughes (nickel), Dylan Mabin, Javelin Guidry

FS – Jessie Bates III, Jaylinn Hawkins, Micah Abernathy, Jamal Peters

SS – Richie Grant, *Jovante Moffatt

CB – *Casey Hayward, Cornell Armstrong, Darren Hall, Dee Alford, Matt Hankins, John Reid

SPECIAL TEAMS

K – Younghoe Koo

P/H – Bradley Pinion

LS – Liam McCullough

PR – Avery Williams

KOR – Cordarrelle Patterson or Avery Williams

Note: Players who ended the season on injured reserve have an asterisk.