AJC colleague D. Orlando Ledbetter throws water on the idea that the Falcons will be making any big splashes when NFL free agency officially opens on Tuesday. This is probably good news for Falcons supporters because it suggests Arthur Blank is not leaning on his football people to generate headlines and instead will allow them to do a genuine rebuild of the roster through the draft and by finding value in free agency.
Signing expensive free agents, who tend not to play out their contracts, can simply push the pain of salary-cap hits down the road with the possibility of nothing to show for it. That might make sense for teams who are on the cusp of contending for a Super Bowl--the Falcons already have been down that path--but it's probably not a good plan for the Falcons now.
It's easy to be cynical about GM Thomas Dimitroff saying the Falcons are tempering expectations for free agency. But the team's focus on acquiring "mid-line" free agents who fit new coach Dan Quinn's system sounds like a solid approach under the circumstances. The challenge for Quinn is that he's going to have to replace a lot of players.
Some of them may appear easy to replace but Quinn and Co. still have to make the right decisions when adding new players. The process begins now after the Falcons parted ways with several players they drafted out of college.
Going into last season, the Falcons had 30 of their own draft picks on their roster, tied for second-most in the NFL. They figure to rank much lower this season as Quinn purges the roster of homegrown players.
Since last summer the Falcons have released draft picks Harry Douglas (third round, 2008), Justin Blalock (second, 2007), and Jonathan Massaquoi (fifth, 2012). Sean Weatherspoon (first round, 2010) appears headed to Arizona after Quinn tried to re-sign him. Falcons draft picks who are set to become free agents are Kroy Biermann (fifth round, 2008), Mike Johnson (third,2010), Jacquizz Rodgers (fifth, 2011) and Corey Peters (third, 2010). They enter a market with more money available.
That's three draft picks already gone, another (Weatherspoon) who looks gone and four more who could leave. Also remember the Falcons are likely to lose a draft pick this year for piping in artificial noise to the Dome. Even if, say, four new draft picks end up making the roster this season, the Falcons would be down to 26 homegrown players on the roster headed into the summer if Biermann, Johnson, Rodgers and Peters all bolt.
In some ways, this Falcons’ roster purge is part of the normal turnover that happens with a change in the front office. It’s not clear what that change means for the Falcons, who retained their top two football executives and gave Quinn final say on the roster while reporting directly to Blank. But already it seems the Falcons will turn to the draft, and not free agency, to rebuild the roster and that's likely the right approach.
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