Atlanta Falcons: Massive UDFA haul opens up depth options
After the Atlanta Falcons exited the 2020 NFL Draft with six selections, they have added even more depth in undrafted free agency.
After failing to reach the postseason for the second year in a row, the Atlanta Falcons have the goal of ending that streak during the 2020 campaign. Atlanta started the regular season last year by losing seven of its first eight games while falling in the league standings at the midway point in the year.
The Falcons put together a strong second half of the schedule to finish tied with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for second in the NFC South standings with an overall record of 7-9 but ultimately missed the playoffs once again.
Leading up to the 2020 season, Atlanta looks to shore up some needs and holes among the roster in order to hit the ground running in the regular season and avoiding an outcome it saw last season. The Falcons have already seen some turnover on their roster this offseason, losing Austin Hooper and Vic Beasley, among others, in free agency and cutting DeVonta Freeman.
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Atlanta has brought in talent such as defensive end Dante Fowler Jr. and running back Todd Gurley, but it still would like to bring in additional help on the depth chart.
The first avenue in the Falcons attempting to do that while bringing in some talent on both sides of the ball for this year and beyond came in the 2020 NFL Draft on April 23-25. Atlanta, however, only had six selections in the draft and didn’t end up acquiring any additional picks during the seven-round draft process.
The acquisition of players didn’t stop there however for the Falcons, with the post-draft undrafted free agency process following shortly after the conclusion of the draft. To this point, that has been the place where Atlanta has been the most active in signing young prospects.
Along with the six draft picks, the Falcons have signed an eye-popping total of 20 undrafted free agents since the draft took place to come to a total of 26 new faces in the last few weeks. After focusing heavily on defense in the draft, Atlanta’s additions via undrafted free agency leaned more-so towards the offensive side of the ball.
The Falcons signed 11 players on offense that could help fill some holes in 2020, including Georgia State tackle Hunter Atkinson, Memphis tackle Scottie Dill, Buffalo tackle Evin Ksiezarczyk, Rice guard Justin Gooseberry, Arkansas center Austin Capps, South Dakota State fullback Mikey Daniel, Albany wide receiver Juwan Green, Tulane wide receiver Jalen McCleskey, Tennessee State wide receiver Chris Rowland, Vanderbilt tight end Jared Pinkney and Utah State tight end Caleb Repp.
The remaining nine players filled out the defense, including signees such as Colorado cornerback Delrick Abrams, Hawaii cornerback Rojesterman Farris, Wyoming cornerback Tyler Hall, San Jose State defensive tackle Sallosi Latu, Nebraska-Kearney defensive tackle Hinwa Allieu, Ferris State defensive end Austin Edwards, Oregon defensive end Bryson Young, Ball State linebacker Ray Wilborn and Baylor linebacker Jordan Williams.
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It’s yet to be seen if or how the new undrafted free agents and the newest offseason additions will help the Falcons this season. But Atlanta came into the offseason with the goal of adding some young talent on both sides of the ball, and along with the draft, it certainly used the undrafted free agency pool to do just that.