Atlanta Falcons Pro Football Hall of Fame watch
The Pro Football Hall of Fame class of 2023 will be inducted on Aug. 5. Here are players from the 2023 Falcons who could join the immortals in Canton someday:
Guaranteed Hall of Famer
Calais Campbell, DE: He made six Pro Bowls in a seven-year span from 2014-20, made first-team All-Pro in 2017 and was one of four defensive ends selected for the Pro Football Hall of Fame All-2010s team along with Cameron Jordan, Julius Peppers and J.J. Watt. He has 99 sacks, in the range of Hall of Famers such as Charles Haley (100.5 career sacks), Andre Tippett (100) and Warren Sapp (96.5).
Fringe HOFers
Younghoe Koo, K: Kickers don't get much Hall of Fame consideration, but an exception could be made for Koo if he keeps up his incredible pace. Through his first five seasons, Koo is the second-most accurate kicker in NFL history (89.1 percent), trailing only Baltimore's Justin Tucker (90.5 percent).
Koo is best known for his uncanny ability to make successful onside kicks. Atlanta had three successful kicks in a Thursday night game against the Saints in 2019, with one called back due to a penalty.
An illegal formation penalty wiped out another successful onside kick two weeks later at San Francisco, but Koo had one that wasn't called back against the Seahawks in 2020.
Jake Matthews, LT: Per data from Pro Football Focus, Matthews has only allowed 36 sacks in 5,619 pressure opportunities. He's been a consistent presence on the Falcons offensive line for nine seasons and has started 144 consecutive games dating to Week 3 of the 2014 season. Being named to only one Pro Bowl—and no All-Pro teams—hurts Matthews' Hall of Fame chances, but he's durable enough to warrant attention for those honors in the seasons to come.
Cordarrelle Patterson, RB: We're way past due for Devin Hester—one of the best kick and punt returners in NFL history—to be in the Hall of Fame. Patterson merits consideration, too. While he's only recently found success as a running back, Patterson has always been a threat on special teams.
He's one of three players in NFL history to record a 109-yard touchdown, which he did on the opening kickoff against Green Bay on "Monday Night Football" during his rookie season in Minnesota. Last year, he set an NFL record with his ninth kick return for a touchdown with a 103-yard score against the Bears. Per NFL Football Operations, his seven touchdowns longer than 100 yards are three more than any other player has in NFL history.
Young players who could develop into Hall of Famers
Kyle Pitts, tight end: One of two tight ends in NFL history to record 1,000 yards receiving as a rookie, Pitts had an extremely promising start to his pro career. The sophomore slump hit him hard, however, as he never got on the same page as Atlanta's primary starting QB in 2022, Marcus Mariota.
The jury is out on whether Desmond Ridder, the projected starter in 2023, is enough of an improvement, but Pitts showed during his rookie season that he was well worth being selected No. 4 overall in 2022. He's already in rarefied air because of his nearly unprecedented rookie season and has the talent to make his career even more special.
Bijan Robinson, running back: It's way too early to suggest a player who hasn't played a down in the NFL is a potential Hall of Famer, but June is the month of optimism in the league, so why not lean into that?
Atlanta clearly thinks the world of Robinson by selecting him in the 2023 Draft with the eighth overall pick rather than filling a bigger need. If he has the kind of success he had at Texas, a trip to Canton will be in order by the end of the 2030s. In 31 games with the Longhorns, Robinson had 599 offensive touches for 4,215 (seven yards per touch) and 41 touchdowns.
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