Falcons mock draft mailbag: Lots of edges and corners, plus Mike Green momentum

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Bad news, everybody: Mock draft season is almost over. The silver lining is that the NFL Draft is almost here, but the problem with that is it’s the end of possibility. This week, all your dreams as an Atlanta Falcons fan (or Cincinnati Bengals fan or Las Vegas Raiders fan, etc.) can still come true and every player you covet can still be on your roster by May. That’s part of the reason the mock draft aficionados among us love the exercise so much.

And it’s why we solicited your thoughts for a mock draft mailbag about what the Falcons should do when the draft begins on April 24. So, let’s take a look at some of your submissions.

Kevin B. on Bluesky

1.29. Shavon Revel Jr., cornerback, East Carolina
2.46. Landon Jackson, edge, Arkansas
2.61. Maxwell Hairston, cornerback, Kentucky
3.86. Ashton Gillotte, edge, Louisville
4.118. Jaylen Reed, safety, Penn State
7.218. Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins, defensive tackle, Georgia
7.242. Ja’Corey Brooks, wide receiver, Louisville

I’m starting with Kevin because he took my favorite approach in this exercise: Trade down and take multiple swings. He turned Atlanta’s No. 15 pick into Nos. 29, 61 and 86 and added the Denver Broncos’ 2026 second-round pick through trades. That allowed him to double up on both of Atlanta’s most pressing positional needs: edge rusher and cornerback.

Taking Revel in the first round might be a reach. The Athletic’s Dane Brugler ranks him the seventh-best cornerback and 62nd-best overall prospect in this draft, but getting Hairston with an extra second-round pick acquired via trade is a steal. Hairston is Brugler’s fourth-ranked corner and 35th-ranked player overall.

At edge rusher, Kevin ended up with two players ranked among Brugler’s top 100 prospects: Jackson (No. 47 overall) and Gillotte (No. 78 overall). Jackson is worth a closer look. The Arkansas edge rusher had the second-longest wingspan at the combine (83 5/8 inches). At 6 feet 6, 264 pounds, he might be a better fit as a 4-3 defensive end than a 3-4 edge rusher, which might turn off the Falcons, but there are traits to like. He had a 40 1/2-inch vertical jump at the combine and broad-jumped nearly 11 feet. He also had 6 1/2 sacks in each of his final two collegiate seasons.

“Jackson has a different type of pass-rushing skill set because he isn’t a super-fluid athlete, but his raw power, strength in his hands and consistent effort make him effective,” Brugler wrote in “The Beast.”

As a bonus, Kevin got Reed in the fourth round. The Falcons need safety depth (if not another starter at the position), and the biggest knock on Reed seems to be that he’s overly aggressive. If an Atlanta coaching staff deep in defensive back knowledge can coach up Reed, he might be starter material as a rookie.

John B.

1.22. Nick Emmanwori, safety, South Carolina
2.58. Jordan Burch, edge, Oregon
3.86. Kyle Kennard, edge, South Carolina
3.89. Xavier Watts, safety, Notre Dame
4.118. Seth McLaughlin, center, Ohio State
6.181. Riley Leonard, quarterback, Notre Dame
7.218. Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins, edge, Georgia

John took the same approach as Kevin. The only reason I don’t like this one quite as much is he doubled up on safety instead of cornerback. That’s also a need for Atlanta, but cornerback is the higher-value position.

@JandrooAlex on X

1.15. Mike Green, edge, Marshall
2.46. Josh Conerly Jr., offensive tackle, Oregon
4.118. Chris Paul Jr., linebacker, Ole Miss
7.218. Nazir Stackhouse, defensive tackle, Georgia
7.242. Robert Longerbeam, cornerback, Rutgers

@Mattastrophe on X

1.15. Mike Green, edge, Marshall
2.46. Tre Harris, wide receiver, Ole Miss
4.118. Jalen Travis, offensive tackle, Iowa State
7.218. Maxen Hook, safety, Toledo
7.242. Nazir Stackhouse, defensive tackle, Georgia

Joseph W.

1.15. Mike Green, edge, Marshall
2.46. Maxwell Hairston, cornerback, Kentucky
4.118. Gunnar Helm, tight end, Texas
7.218. Jake Majors, center, Texas
7.242. Smael Mondon Jr., linebacker, Georgia

If there’s anything like a trend as the draft gets closer, it’s that Marshall edge rusher Mike Green is starting to get linked to the Falcons. Three of our submissions in this exercise started with Green, and his name is popping up next to the Falcons in a lot of mock drafts.

The fit makes sense. The 6-3, 251-pounder is Brugler’s fourth-ranked edge rusher and 10th-ranked player overall and would fit perfectly as a 3-4 outside linebacker. Green led the FBS with 17 sacks last season and was a first-team All-American.

“Green is a twitchy athlete with the burst and body control to win one-on-one as a pass rusher and set a violent edge in the run game,” Brugler wrote in “The Beast.” “As long as his character checks out, he is one of the top pass-rush prospects in the draft class, with the disruptive ability to be an NFL starter.”

Four of “my guys” in this draft class. Prospects I’m guessing I’ll be higher on than most (based on the tape):

Armand Membou, OT/G, Missouri
Mike Green, Edge, Marshall
Carson Schwesinger, LB, UCLA
Jacob Parrish, CB, Kansas St. pic.twitter.com/dJowALkh5x

— Dane Brugler (@dpbrugler) January 7, 2025

Green has faced two sexual assault allegations, although neither resulted in charges, and Green denied any wrongdoing in either incident during his news conference at the NFL combine. Green, who started his college career at Virginia, ran a 4.25 short shuttle at his pro day, which Falcons coach Raheem Morris attended, and he has the bend to get around the edge and the power to win in straight-line rushes and the run game.

Falcons fans also seem more and more united behind the idea of taking an inside linebacker. Alex and Joseph each have one, and I’m going to give Joseph the edge from a value perspective because he got Mondon in the seventh round, whereas Alex took Paul in the fourth, and Brugler has Mondon ranked two spots ahead of Paul on his inside linebacker board.

Sun K.

1.15. Shemar Stewart, edge, Texas A&M
2.59. Nohl Williams, cornerback, California
3.91. Joshua Farmer, defensive tackle, Florida State
4.118. Chase Lundt, offensive tackle, UConn

(Sun traded Atlanta’s No. 46 pick and both seventh-round picks to the Baltimore Ravens for the Nos. 59 and 91 picks.)

I guess it’s time to talk about Stewart. There’s probably not a more polarizing prospect in this draft. If you’re a Falcons fan considering him, I’d highly recommend listening to this episode of “The Athletic Football Show,” in which Brugler and Fran Duffy from the ALLCITY Network debate Stewart’s standing (among other things).

Brugler has Stewart as his third-ranked edge rusher and ninth-best overall prospect based on his athletic traits. The Texas A&M defensive lineman is 6-5, 267 pounds with 34 1/2-inch arms, and he vertical-jumped 40 inches at the combine. Meanwhile, Duffy has Stewart ranked as his 61st overall prospect because of his lack of production (4 1/2 career sacks in three collegiate seasons and poor run-stop statistics).

This is where I come down on Stewart: When was the last time a boom-or-bust prospect worked out well for Atlanta? Stewart is the ultimate boom-or-bust prospect, and the Falcons shouldn’t be playing with fire right now.

Scott C.

1.15. Jihaad Campbell, linebacker, Alabama
2.46. Princely Umanmielen, edge, Ole Miss
4.118. Nohl Williams, cornerback, California
7.218. Willie Lampkin, center, North Carolina
7.242. Nazir Stackhouse, defensive tackle, Georgia

Is Campbell an inside linebacker or an edge rusher? That’s the central debate surrounding his draft value. Scott seems to think he can play edge. There are reasons to believe that even though almost all of Campbell’s experience at Alabama was at inside linebacker. At 6-3, 235 pounds, Campbell is “an explosive, physical athlete with the developing instincts to impact the game as a run defender, cover man and blitzer from various angles and depths (some teams like him best as a full-time edge rusher),” Brugler wrote in “The Beast.”

Brugler, though, ranks Campbell as his top inside linebacker. The Falcons have a need at that position, but that doesn’t make Campbell worth the risk in the first round. Somebody, though, could end up looking very smart by taking Campbell early.

Brian H.

1.15. Shedeur Sanders, quarterback, Colorado
2.46. Jaxson Dart, quarterback, Ole Miss
4.118. Jalen Milroe, quarterback, Alabama
7.218. Kyle McCord, quarterback, Syracuse
7.242. Proposed trade for QB Stetson Bennett

I’m just including this one because it made me chuckle.

Stephenson L.

Two questions: (1.) If the Falcons either trade or cut Kirk Cousins (after the season), are they responsible for the last two years of his contract ($80 million)? (2.) How is it possible that the Falcons (or any team in the NFL) could lose one of their draft picks who are placed on their practice squad? I’m thinking of Zion Logue from last year.

I know this isn’t a mock draft, but it felt wrong not to address a Cousins question in every mailbag. If Cousins lasts in Atlanta through the 2025 season, he almost certainly will be a post-June 1 cut after the season. In that scenario, the Falcons would accrue only $22.5 million in dead money, and no one is going to offer anything in a trade next offseason. As for losing practice squad players, any team can acquire them as long as they immediately add them to their active roster. That’s why you see some guys who never play stay on the 53-man roster.

(Photo of Mike Green: Peter Casey / Imagn Images)

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