The Atlanta Falcons made one of the NFL’s more aggressive moves on roster cutdown day, and it apparently caught more than a few people off guard.
Atlanta traded for defensive tackle Gervon Dexter Sr. from the Chicago Bears on Aug. 30, sending cornerback Clark Phillips III and a 2027 fifth-round pick to Chicago. The trade is pending Dexter completing a physical, however.
For the Falcons, the move adds an established interior defender to a front that needed help entering the regular season.
The move also landed on a list of the biggest surprises from the NFL’s final roster cuts.
Bleacher Report’s Moe Moton called Chicago’s decision to move Dexter “arguably the most surprising move” of deadline day, pointing to both Dexter’s production and the Bears’ existing need for more pass-rush help.
Falcons Trade for Gervon Dexter Draws Surprising Reaction
The surprise wasn’t about Atlanta wanting Dexter. It was about Chicago being willing to let him go.
Dexter finished second on the Bears in both sacks and pressure rate last season behind Montez Sweat, according to Moton. Chicago, meanwhile, finished outside the NFL’s top 20 in both categories.
“Still, it’s a surprise to see the Bears part ways with one of their most productive defensive linemen a year before they had to make a decision on his contract,” Moton wrote.
Dexter arrives in Atlanta with 13.5 career sacks, including 11 over the last two seasons.
The 6-foot-6, 326-pound defender has started 32 games during that span and appeared in 49 overall since Chicago selected him No. 53 overall in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Dexter has also recorded 115 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, four fumble recoveries and three pass deflections.
Atlanta gave up Phillips, a 2023 fourth-round pick who appeared in 28 games and made seven starts during his three seasons with the Falcons.
Dexter is entering the final year of his rookie contract, which could help explain why Chicago was willing to move him before the season.
Gervon Dexter Gives Falcons Needed Help Up Front
The timing makes the addition particularly useful for Atlanta.
The Falcons entered the end of training camp with questions along the interior of their defensive line. Da’Shawn Hand missed most of camp with a leg injury, leaving limited proven options alongside Brandon Dorlus.
Dexter gives Atlanta a different type of presence.
ESPN’s Ben Solak noted Dexter posted a 10.5% pressure rate last season, which ranked 11th among defensive tackles and comfortably above the 7.4% league average at the position.
Solak gave Atlanta an A-minus for the deal and wrote that the Falcons “needed defensive tackle help worse than perhaps any other team in the league.”
That doesn’t mean Dexter is a finished product. Solak noted he isn’t primarily a quick penetrator and instead does more of his damage by pushing the pocket.
That role could still fit alongside Dorlus and eventually James Pearce Jr., who will miss the first eight games because of suspension.
Atlanta also added Maason Smith and Hand to the interior this offseason, while Za’Darius Smith returned to bolster the edge.
The Falcons didn’t get Dexter for free. Phillips gave Atlanta secondary depth, and the fifth-round pick gives Chicago another future asset.
But if Dexter continues the upward trajectory he showed over the past two seasons, Atlanta may have found a legitimate starter at a position of need.
The bigger mystery is why Chicago was willing to move him at all.
That is what made the deal one of roster cutdown day’s biggest surprises — and what could make the Falcons the beneficiary of it.