Getty Hayden Hurst #81 of the Atlanta Falcons.
The Falcons are set to pick at No. 4 overall this upcoming NFL draft, putting them in a perfect spot to trade up or down.
NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah sees the Falcons moving around maybe even twice since they have so many needs to fill and the more draft picks they can acquire, then the merrier.
“In terms of trading back, yeah, I would think they’ll have opportunities to trade back if teams want to come up for quarterbacks, and then you start looking at best available player,” Jeremiah said via AtlantaFalcons.com. “The interesting thing is you’ve got all these wide receivers that are so highly rated, but that doesn’t really make sense right now for where Atlanta is. I’d probably keep an eye on somebody like Micah Parsons to just be an impact defensive player or you could get one of those two corners we’ve talked about who would be big-time talented guys to add to a young secondary who’s got some good pieces. Those would probably be the areas that I would look if they were to slide back a little bit.”
2021’s Top NFL Draft Prospects
Trading around would not be surprising for the Falcons since they already plan to have Matt Ryan as their starting quarterback in 2021.
According to CBS Sports, the players listed below are the top 10 NFL draft prospects in this year’s class:
- Trevor Lawrence, Clemson QB
- Penei Sewell, Oregon OL
- Ja’Marr Chase, LSU WR
- Zach Wilson, BYU QB
- Micah Parson, Penn State LB
- Justin Fields, OSU QB
- Jaylen Waddle, Alabama WR
- Kwity Paye, Michigan DL
- Kyle Pitts, Florida TE
- DeVonta Smith, Alabama WR
The Falcons could use a game-changer on their offensive line with Sewell or possibly look to drafting a wideout to pair up with Calvin Ridley since Julio Jones’ hamstring injury kept him sidelined most of last season. Some mock drafts have even linked the Falcons to drafting Pitts to pair with Hayden Hurst.
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More Potential Options for the Falcons
The Falcons currently hold six picks in the draft and Jeremiah thinks doubling up on a trade wouldn’t be a bad move to add more draft capital which is much-need when re-building a fresh roster.
“When you look at the way the board shakes out, if you wanted to try and find an edge rusher, which is a need, you could make a strong case they could trade back twice,” Jeremiah said. “You know, trade back once for the teams coming up for the quarterbacks, and you might have somebody coming up for an offensive lineman. You could probably trade back and get into the teens and then you could find your way to Kwity Paye from Michigan, Jaelan Phillips from Miami, one of those types of players. Maybe even stay right there, get the edge rusher Ojulari from Georgia. To me, there might be a double trade down opportunity for them.”
There are officially 50 days until the draft and we don’t have a clear view of who the Falcons might look to at No. 4, but expected it to be a complete game-changer.
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