The Atlanta Falcons sat tight at fifteen in last night’s 2025 NFL Draft when the team selected the consensus second overall edge rusher from this years class, Jalon Walker.
“The Falcons finally drafted an edge rusher in the first round,” wrote SI’s Matt Verderame and Gilberto Manzano. “Walker could have a standout NFL career as a hybrid defender. He’s undersized as a 6′ 1″ and 243-pound edge rusher, but that might be his best position because of how he uses his speed and length to his advantage.”
But the dirty bird’s weren’t done yet, as they had their sights set on another one of the SEC’s premier pass rushers, Tennessee’s James Pearce Jr. James Pearce was predicted to be a top five pick entering last years college football season, but some off the field issues saw the top talent fall on draft night.
“The Falcons doubled up on edge rusher with the athletically gifted Pearce,” the tandem wrote. “If Pearce reaches his potential, he could be the best edge rusher in this class.”
The Los Angeles Rams’ were orignially slated to select at pick 26, that is until the Falcons made them an offer they couldn’t refuse. The Falcons sent away their 46th overall pick on Friday, their last pick on Saturday, and next years first round selection. In exchange, they received James Pearce Jr. along with the Rams 101st pick.
“A non-playoff team parting with its 2026 first-rounder to get into the late first this year is tough to square,” wrote Michael Middelhurst-Schwartz of USAToday. “The Falcons might have the mentality that they’re merely receiving their Day 1 choice a year early, but this is a high-risk, high-reward move.”
Why Did James Pearce Jr. Slide
“The second best pure pass rusher in this class is James Pearce Jr.,” said Todd McShay in a livestream on draft night. “His pass rush win rate was 22.4. Highest pass rush win rate of all of them… He ran the eighth fastest time for an edge rusher in 20 years (forty yard dash).”
So why then was the ‘second best pure pass rusher’ in the draft available at 26? It is because of the off field concerns. The young man was arrested in December of 2023 for not cooperating with the police after he was pulled over for speeding and found to be operating on a suspended license. The charges were later dropped and the talented player moved on, however, more concerns arose in his time with Tennessee.
“That kid is a first-round talent,” a defensive line coach told The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman, “but the stuff you hear (about his maturity) scares me.”
The Falcon’s took a swing on a proven pass rusher hoping head coach Raheem Morris can turn him into an NFL contributor that wants to be coached.
Why Did Jalon Walker Slide
Jalon Walker was situated in many draft analyst’s top ten on their big boards, but the players lack of size drew question marks over his undeniable on field performance.
“I never thought Georgia’s Jalon Walker would last this long,” said Steve Muench on The McShay Show. “Here’s the concern about Jalon Walker and maybe why he fell this far because, is he a hybrid or is he a ‘tweener’? I think he’s a hybrid… You just have to be comfortable with the fact that he’s a smaller, shorter, edge.”
At 6’1 243 pounds, Jalon Walker was the leader of the Georgia Bulldogs’ defense playing a mixture of pass rush and pass defense downs both on and off the line of scrimmage.
Falcons Trade 2026 Pick For Prospect Who’s Been In Trouble With The Law