The Atlanta Falcons kick off training camp Thursday, with players arriving Wednesday. This is a time of anticipation for fans who have been waiting nearly eight months to see any sort of real NFL action again, and an opportunity for many a would-be Falcon, would-be star, and maybe especially would-be practice squad player to prove themselves.
This Falcons team is settled in many key spots—every offensive starter, your top two cornerbacks, all-world starting safety, the invaluable punter—but much is up for grabs on defense and even on special teams. Here’s a look at eight of the battles ahead, in rough but not strictly descending order of importance.
Safety
Bates is, as I alluded to above, an all-world player. He has a case as one of the best handful of safeties in the NFL and is a gamechanger with his ability to create havoc all over the field, especially when quarterbacks dare to test the deep middle when he’s lurking there. For Bates to operate at the height of his powers, though, it helps if he’s got a capable safety working with him, and a scheme that puts him in a position to create maximum chaos.
Last year, Justin Simmons was an uneasy fit in the Jimmy Lake defense and had one of the most forgettable seasons of his distinguished career. In 2025, the Falcons are rolling out promising rookie ballhawk Xavier Watts, veteran (and familiar face for Raheem Morris) Jordan Fuller, and excellent special teamer and would-be starter DeMarcco Hellams. Fuller and Watts are likely at the front of the line in this competition, with Hellams’ return from injury and special teams utility relegating him to a backup role, but this feels like an open battle even if the Falcons would likely love it if Watts won out.
Regardless of who wins, the Falcons need better safety play next to Bates to ensure he can be the game-changing talent he truly is on a consistent basis.
Nickel cornerback
Dee Alford felt like a potential long-term solution for the Falcons at nickel heading into last year, but a fairly disastrous year in Lake’s defense featuring many missed tackles and errors means he’s just in the mix for this job in 2025. The Falcons drafted ballhawk Billy Bowman—you’re sensing a theme here—and ported him over from safety for this competition, and everyone from former UDFA Natrone Brooks to Clark Phillips to current UDFA Cobee Bryant will get some sort of crack at this.
Ultimately, it’ll come down to whether Alford looks like he’s a strong bounceback candidate under a new defensive coordinator or Bowman is impressive, but the Falcons need considerable improvement from the position regardless.
Kicker
If you were to compile a shortlist of reasons the Falcons lost their grasp on a playoff spot last year, you’d throw in Kirk Cousins declining suddenly, Raheem Morris and his mysterious time management, Jimmy Lake’s defense consistently struggling until Morris got more involved, and of course the kicker debacle. Hurt and inconsistent until he was shelved, Younghoe Koo went from one of the game’s more reliable options to an actively liability, and Riley Patterson wasn’t anywhere near great as his replacement.
As is the case with the nickel, it’s a question of whether the incumbent looks like a good bet to bounce back or not, because the Falcons went out and signed German kicker Lenny Krieg after an impressive season in Europe and a compelling series of workouts where he showcased a great leg. The Falcons can move on from either player without a massive problem, though the three year investment in Krieg suggests Koo will have to be very good this summer to keep the job.
Inside linebacker next to Kaden Elliss
We all know that Elliss offers a lot as a run defender and pass rusher, so ideally the player next to him can complement those strengths and add more ability in coverage than Elliss can give. This competition will likely pit new, speedy signing Divine Deablo against tantalizing-but-frequently-injured incumbent Troy Andersen.
Deablo hasn’t proven to be a great option yet in his career, but the Falcons went out and paid him starter money because they clearly think they can unlock a new level the Raiders weren’t able to. We know that Andersen can be terrific—and is very reliable in coverage—when healthy, but he’ll have to be past his injury and look quite good in late July and August to steal this away from Deablo. There’s also the possibility that rookie Jalon Walker will pull down some snaps as an off-ball option, complicating the picture here a bit.
Outside linebacker pecking order
We know almost everyone here is going to get playing time—sorry, not you, DeAngelo Malone—so it becomes a question of how the Falcons divvy up those snaps. That’s not the worst question to have when you have a productive veteran in Leonard Floyd, a still-promising pass rusher coming off a strong second half in Arnold Ebiketie, and intriguing first round talents in Jalon Walker and James Pearce. That’s not even mentioning Bralen Trice, last year’s third round pick and a well-regarded, well-rounded defender who should warrant snaps if healthy.
The chief intrigue here is whether Pearce will have an immediate large role as the highest-upside pass rusher in the bunch, and whether Ebiketie will be supplanted by all the new additions. We’ll find out soon enough.
Defensive line rotation
As is the case with the outside linebacker group, there’s a question of who takes the lead here. It’s just a little less of a question with David Onyemata still on the roster and set to get significant snaps, as well as second-year defender Ruke Orhorhoro lining up to have a major role.
The Falcons will need to figure out just how much those two ostensible starters will play and how to find snaps for pass rushers like Brandon Dorlus and Morgan Fox alongside veterans like Ta’Quon Graham and Kentavius Street who are better against the run. Camp and preseason will sort that right out.
Punt returner/second kick returner
Jamal Agnew is the favorite to take on punt returner duties and join Ray-Ray McCloud on kick returns, essentially filling the dual role Avery Williams held a year ago. The question is whether Agnew, who has never played a full season and has missed 15 games over the past three seasons, will remain healthy and seize that opportunity in front of him.
If not, the Falcons will mix in Dee Alford, Mike Hughes, Clark Phillips, and some of their abundance of receivers and running backs. Even if Agnew wins the job, a quality summer as a returner and some experience could do wonders for a player hoping to make the roster, given that Agnew is far from a lock to play 17 games.
QB3
This one could’ve gone to several positions, but the backdrop for the quarterback position makes QB3 a little more important than it would usually be. If the Falcons find a trade partner for Kirk Cousins and pull the trigger, their QB3 option will become Michael Penix’s backup, and Penix will likely have injury questions hanging over his head his entire career owing to the rash of them he suffered back in college. If Penix is healthy and Cousins remains on the roster, Emory Jones or Easton Stick won’t have much to do, but the specter of Cousins getting traded in particular means the Falcons should have a quality fallback plan.
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