Atlanta Falcons 2022 NFL Draft grade: B
8. Drake London, WR, USC
38. Arnold Ebiketie, EDGE, Penn State
58. Troy Andersen, LB, Montana State
74. Desmond Ridder, QB, Cincinnati
82. DeAngelo Malone, EDGE, Western Kentucky
151. Tyler Allgeier, RB, BYU
190. Justin Shaffer, OL, Georgia
213. John FitzPatrick, TE, Georgia
The Drake London selection may have been slightly surprising to some, but the Falcons’ wide receiver room was an embarrassment before this draft and frankly, I’m surprised that was their only pick at the position.
But I do love it.
London has a massive catch radius and will give Marcus Mariota a pair of huge targets along with Kyle Pitts to spread the ball to.
I shouldn’t speak too quickly, though. It could be Desmond Ridder, a third-round pick by the Falcons in this class, throwing those passes.
I absolutely love the Ridder pick and I think he was way under-drafted at 74 overall. That’s about the spot Kellen Mond went to the Vikings last year and I like Ridder more coming out this year compared to Mond by a pretty wide margin.
The Falcons got a couple of desperately needed pass rushers in Arnold Ebiketie and DeAngelo Malone who should be able to step into prominent roles immediately.
Tyler Allgeier at pick 151 overall is one of my favorite values in this draft. He is an absolute bully at the running back position.
The Falcons capped off a solid class with two prospects in Justin Shaffer and John FitzPatrick who will stay close to home.