Getty Ed Reed during his enshrinement in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
The Atlanta Falcons can secure a safety who is similar to Hall of Famer Ed Reed in the first round of the 2022 NFL draft. That’s according to the latest mock draft from a respected analyst.
Atlanta is tipped to target secondary help with the 10th-overall pick, despite more pressing needs along the offensive line and in the pass-rush department. Not to mention the looming issue of finding a replacement, or at least a successor, for 36-year-old quarterback Matt Ryan.
However, it would be worth eschewing those needs if the prospect identified in this mock draft proves to be half as good as Reed, a Super Bowl winner and perennial All-Pro with the Baltimore Ravens.
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Falcons Need More Impact at Safety
Instant impact is the motivation for selecting Notre Dame’s Kyle Hamilton, per Ryan Wilson of CBS Sports: “The Falcons could be in market for a quarterback but with two already taken, and with Hamilton still on the board, they’ll bolster their secondary. Hamilton is a 6-4, 220-pound version of Ed Reed — a sideline-to-sideline ball hawk — and that makes him a Day 1 impact player.”
All of that sounds good, because the Falcons are short of playmaking skill at safety, even if they don’t lack for options at the position. Among those options is veteran Duron Harmon, a pending free agent the Falcons may wish to bring back in 2022.
Harmon’s a veteran who knows the schemes of defensive coordinator Dean Pees well. The 30-year-old has enjoyed a solid first season in Atlanta, breaking up four passes and intercepting two others, including snatching a pass from Josh Allen during Week 17’s 29-15 defeat to the Buffalo Bills:
Huge INTERCEPTION in the end zone!
📺: FOX | @dharm32
Harmon’s a natural quarterback for Pees’ secondary, but he’s lacked an ideal partner this season. Part of the problem has been the season-ending pectoral injury suffered by Erik Harris in Week 14 against the Carolina Panthers.
A combination of Jaylinn Hawkins, Richie Grant and practice squad retread Shawn Williams have been filling in since. Williams, who previously spent eight seasons with the Cincinnati Bengals, played 75 snaps against the Bills, according to Pro Football Reference.
There’s definitely room for a player like Hamilton, who is ranked third atop the Pro Football Focus draft big board. He’s capable of being a ball hawk in coverage and a heavy hitter in space.
The latter is something NFL.com draft analyst Lance Zierlein highlighted:
Kyle Hamilton is a train.
Putting Hamilton next to a returning Harmon or pairing him with an emerging Grant next season, would quickly turn safety into a position of strength. Adding Hamilton to a secondary already featuring standout cornerback A.J. Terrell would also give the Falcons one of the best defensive backfields in the league.
Hamilton could have the same impact as Reed, who made the Ravens’ defense consistently ferocious for 11 years before a disappointing final season with both the New York Jets and Houston Texans in 2013.
Falcons May Not Be Able to Ignore Bigger Needs
Need vs. best player available is the most hotly contested debate about the draft process. It’s really a combination of both. In other words, taking the best player who fits your particular needs.
In that case, the Falcons may not be able to ignore the talented prospects who could fill the most glaring holes on their roster. Wilson’s draft has Ole Miss quarterback Matt Corral going to the Panthers sixth overall, before the Washington Football Team selects Pittsburgh passer Kenny Pickett with the ninth pick.
If neither one of those scenarios come to fruition, the Falcons would likely be tempted to take Ryan’s logical replacement. Ryan will count for $48,622,500 against the cap in 2022 and $43,612,500 in 2023, per Spotrac.com.
Those numbers mean it would make sense to draft a quarterback who could at least sit behind Ryan for a year before taking the reins and saving the team a bundle. A new QB isn’t the only enticing alternative to a safety, though.
A weak offensive line hasn’t helped Ryan, who “has been sacked 37 times this season and has been pressured 87 times, the most in the league,” according to Fox Sports.
Some help in the trenches would surely be welcomed by those in the Falcons’ QB room. Prospects like Iowa center Tyler Linderbaum and Mississippi State tackle Charles Cross, both off the board before the Falcons pick in Wilson’s mock draft, may be too tempting to pass up if either is still available next April.
It’s a similar story along the defensive front, where the Falcons must boost a pass rush that’s mustered a league-low 17 sacks through 16 games. Dynamic edge-rushers like Kayvon Thibodeaux of Oregon and Purdue’s George Karlaftis would fix this shortcoming if they fall the Falcons’ way.
Creating a stronger pass rush has to be the Falcons’ priority in the NFC South, where Tom Brady still plays quarterback.