The NFL offseason has begun, and Yahoo Sports is previewing the coming months for all 32 teams, from free agency to the draft and more.
AFC East: Bills | Dolphins | Patriots | Jets
AFC North: Ravens | Bengals | Browns | Steelers
AFC South: Texans | Colts | Jaguars | Titans
AFC West: Broncos | Chiefs | Raiders | Chargers
National League East: Cowboys | Giants | Eagles | Commander
NFC North: Bears | Lions | Packers | Vikings
National League South: Falcons | Panthers | Saints | Buccaneers
NFC West: Cardinals | Rams | 49ers | Seahawks
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2025 season record: 8-9 (7.5 wins), third in NFC South, missed playoffs, 19th in DVOA
Overview
The Falcons won their final regular-season game to sit atop the NFC South with three ties. But Atlanta’s victory puts Carolina into the playoffs, and the Falcons officially secure third place in the division and fire head coach Raheem Morris and general manager Terry Fontenot.
Atlanta’s problem over the past two seasons has been a clear miscalculation of where the team should be and how to build the roster around it. Signing Kirk Cousins and then drafting Michael Penix Jr. could leave the Falcons 0-for-2 at quarterback. Penix has a lengthy injury history, tearing his ACL last November. Trading a 2026 first-round pick for James Pearce Jr., who was considered a possible top-five pick for Defensive Rookie of the Year, was short-sighted at the time and looks even worse now. On top of that, there’s something weird going on with the Falcons. Wide receivers coach Ike Hilliard was fired midseason as a scapegoat for the offense’s struggles. Darnell Mooney suffered a broken collarbone in training camp that wasn’t disclosed until November.
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Four straight wins wasn’t enough to save the season. Neither were individual highlights like Drake London and Bijan Robinson. Even the defense was impressive, but it wasn’t enough to make the Falcons feel like a team with a coherent plan and a path forward.
cap/cut prospects
According to Over The Cap, the Falcons have about $14 million in effective salary cap space through 2026, ranking in the bottom 10 in the league. The Falcons and Kirk Cousins agreed to modify the quarterback’s contract to push his 2027 guaranteed date to the third day of the league year, so his future will be decided before that date. Cousins will likely be waived after June 1, which would only free up about $2 million in cap space in 2026. The release of Darnell Mooney will open up another $8 million.
In order to meet the salary cap requirements, the Falcons have a few options in terms of restructuring, which may include AJ Terrell, Jessie Bates III, Chris Lindstrom and Jake Matthews.
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Pending free agent
Kyle Pitts
RB Tyler Allgaier
LB Kaden Ellis
OL Elijah Wilkinson
DL David Onyemata
Edge Arnold electric bike
Edge Leonard Floyd
Pitts was having a career year, leading the team in targets and yards, although Derek London passed Pitts in the hitting statistic but missed the game. Considering the tight end’s numbers are well below the receiver tag, Pitts will likely earn the franchise tag. But with the salary cap tightening and a new deal looming in London, Pitt may be a luxury the new regime decides not to pay for. It’s a similar situation with Allgaier, who is an effective running back playing alongside Bijan Robinson, but it’s increasingly difficult to get a second-contract back to share the offense with the best running back in the league.
Job requirements
quarterback
cornerback
wide receiver
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If Kirk Cousins isn’t on the roster and Michael Penix Jr. isn’t ready to start the season — or if he is — the Falcons need someone to play quarterback. Penix and Cousins have nearly identical efficiency numbers this season, but a lot of that will depend on Derek London’s availability. London was on almost all of Penix’s dropbacks, while Cousins was the top receiver for more than a third of the time. In London, Cousins had an EPA per game of 0.04, while Penix had an EPA of -0.02. Having a reliable secondary receiver will help whoever the quarterback is, as well as London in 2026. Groupings of stars and others also appear among the secondary receivers. The Falcons have young safety emerging, and rookie Billy Bowman was interesting on the field before getting injured, but having an outside corner opposite AJ Terrell will improve the defense.
2026 NFL Draft Picks
second round
third round
fourth round
Round six
seventh round
Good draft coordination
Kelley Jones, CB, Mississippi State
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Jones is long, good at catching the ball, and is a willing tackler, traits that showed up well at CB2 opposite AJ Terrell. The best news is that he will likely be available when the Falcons make their No. 1 pick the next day.
What could drive fantasy growth in 2026?
Find out the quarterback position
Atlanta made two big bets on quarterbacks in the 2024 offseason, and as we enter 2026, I don’t think you can label either of them a favorite. Maybe Michael Penix Jr. is that guy. However, I bet the new front office and coaching staff won’t have this as their answer, considering the soon-to-be 26-year-old quarterback remains unproven and is coming off his third ACL reconstruction. I’m not quite sure what the path forward is for this team, given their lack of first-round picks in the upcoming draft, but I doubt Penix or Kirk Cousins will open the season as the starting quarterback. — Matt Harmon
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Betting on gold nuggets
The Falcons narrowly missed the playoffs, finishing 8-9 in the weak NFC South, but bettors who backed Atlanta in games the Falcons should have won were not rewarded. Atlanta is the favorite with a 2-7 ATS record. — Ben Fox
