With the draft less than a week away, the Falcons are in wait-and-see mode. Atlanta is in a true best-player-available situation, which means there literally isn’t a single person, even Terry Fontenot, who knows what name will be called when the Falcons are on the clock. Depending on how the first seven picks shake out, the team could land any number of prospects — Kyle Hamilton, Derek Stingley, Sauce Gardner, Evan Neal, Jermaine Johnson, etc.
With obvious needs at pass rusher and pass catcher, many have mocked the Falcons to land one of Garrett Wilson, Drake London, and Treylon Burks. Which makes sense, because Atlanta boasts one of the worst receiving corps in football. However, Fontenot’s entire offseason strategy has been to fortify the roster just enough to remain completely flexible during the draft, which could even let the Falcons add to a position of strength. So don’t be surprised if the player Atlanta selects is someone the national draft pundits haven’t mentioned.
NFL Network’s DeAngelo Hall believes the Falcons should draft Wilson, but again, this is purely speculative. Wilson might not even be in the top ten on the Falcons’ big board. Sure, he may up being the pick, but not even the front office knows who it’ll be yet. Here’s a breakdown from Jake’s Big Board, which has the Buckeyes product as the fourth-best wideout:
Wilson is a guy who can make you pay if you play soft coverage at any level of the field. If he gets the ball in his hand, he’s a threat to score anywhere on the field. It’s absurd to even have Wilson fourth on this list, but it really just speaks to the talent this draft at receiver. He’s still a first-round talent — this group is just that deep.
Photographer: Steven King/Icon Sportswire
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