The Atlanta Falcons defeated the Carolina Panthers in Week 1, 24-10. But that doesn’t mean they can’t improve.
One way to do that is to bring in another veteran presence on defense.
The Bleacher Report NFL staff called linebacker one of Atlanta’s three biggest weaknesses after Week 1. With that in mind, the BR staff is imploring the Falcons to target veteran linebacker Kyle Van Noy in free agency.
“While the Falcons did bring in Bud Dupree during free agency to help improve their edge rush, Dupree has proved to be injury-prone and only has seven sacks in the two years since he left Pittsburgh,” wrote the BR NFL staff. “Also, Troy Andersen struggled last season as a rookie, meaning Atlanta can improve at off-ball linebacker, too.
“That’s where Van Noy steps in as he’s built a career out of being a defensive Swiss Army knife. He has 16 sacks over the last three seasons with three different teams to help an as edge-rusher, and he’s athletic enough to drop in coverage as a traditional linebacker.
“With Van Noy and Kaden Ellis on the field at the same time, the Falcons can get creative with their blitz packages as those two share a similar skill set.”
The Falcons pressured rookie signal caller Bryce Young throughout Week 1. But a lot of that pressure came from Atlanta’s defensive line. Defensive tackles Grady Jarrett and David Onyemata combined for 4 of the team’s 7 quarterback hits.
However, Atlanta’s edge rushers didn’t perform poorly. Troy Andersen and Lorenzo Carter combined for 1.5 sacks. Andersen, Carter and Arnold Ebiketie also had 3 quarterback hits together.
The Falcons will likely be better at pressuring quarterbacks throughout this season than they have been in recent years. The potential addition of Van Noy, though, will likely only help.
Van Noy has posted at least 5 sacks in each of the past four seasons. He had a career-high 6.5 sacks with the New England Patriots in 2019. Last year, he had 5 sacks with 8 tackles for loss and 9 quarterback hits. He also had 3 pass defenses and 1 forced fumble with the Los Angeles Chargers.
The biggest concern with possibly signing Van Noy is taking playing time away from Ebiketie, Andersen or DeAngelo Malone. All were Day 2 selections in either 2022, and their development should be top priority.
But if the Falcons prove to be contenders in the NFC South, then it’s not possible to have too many pass rushers.
Defense playing awesome but too much is yards give me up.Need to give Desmond a chance
Appreciate the comment Carlos… I think the gameplan for Bryce Young and the Carolina Panthers worked well, but you’re right, they’re definitely going to have to be less conservative if they want to win week in and week out.
I think he would be a great addition let’s go after who we need ASAP.The defensive line need to get to that BALL too much space and time giving up to the quarterback. let’s apply more person or offense and defense let’s RISE UP