Falcons Receive Apocalyptic Prediction in ESPN's Future Power Rankings

When it comes to prognostications for the Atlanta Falcons in 2026, for the most part, they're not overly positive. The big reason is simple: there are questions at quarterback.

Various preseason power rankings from the likes of ESPN, NFL Network, and beyond always seem to be nothing more than glorified quarterback rankings. Despite being seen as one of the better destinations in the offseason coaching shuffle because of the roster, ESPN ranked just two teams below the Falcons on overall talent.

Because of questions at quarterback.

So, when ESPN did their future power rankings, trying to predict which teams would be the best from 2027 through 2029, it shouldn't come as a big surprise that it followed the same formula. The teams at the bottom of the rankings were also ranked at the bottom of the quarterback rankings. Of the teams ranked in the bottom 10, only the Raiders had quarterback ranked above 21, and Fernando Mendoza has yet to take an NFL snap.

The Atlanta Falcons ranked 27th overall, and only one team in the NFL, the Pittsburgh Steelers, was deemed to have a worse quarterbacking future than the Falcons.

The Falcons have been in quarterback purgatory for years. It goes beyond trading Matt Ryan. Ryan's contract was being paid like a top-five quarterback long after he stopped playing like one.

In 2021, he had the fourth-highest cap hit in the NFL, despite annual restructures to lower his cap charge, and he finished the season as the 17th-rated passer among quarterbacks with at least five starts.

He was traded the next season.

The team tried to address the quarterback position in 2024 with a $100 million free agent and a No. 8 overall draft pick. Both Kirk Cousins and Michael Penix Jr. have had moments with the team, but the jury is still out on Penix as a franchise quarterback.

The Falcons have defined "mid" over the last five seasons. With three 7-10 finishes and a pair of 8-9 records, they haven't been bad enough to choose one of the premier prospects in the NFL Draft. ESPN's Seth Walder sees this pattern continuing, and it is one reason he made his bold prediction one that will make Falcons fans see red.

"The Falcons will not make the playoffs from 2027 to 2029," Walder wrote on ESPN. "Atlanta needs a quarterback, but the current team isn't bad enough to land a top-two pick. The Falcons could draft one next year, but they might have to give up some serious capital to trade up. And though there are building blocks on this team, I fear the Falcons could be caught in the middle -- even in the NFC South."

Middle. Purgatory.

It's worse than a full tank that the Miami Dolphins are embracing this year.

It goes without saying that Walder believes the Falcons won't make the playoffs in 2026. Add another three seasons, and Atlanta's streak of not making the postseason will hit 12 years. The Falcons have only gone 12 seasons without making the postseason once, and that was after their inception in 1966.

2027 is deemed to be a deep year for quarterbacks in the draft. If the Falcons' season goes downhill quickly, they'll find themselves in the market for a quarterback. If it truly is a deep year, they won't need a top-two pick to find success. Bo Nix is the winningest quarterback of the six taken in the first round in 2024, and he was the sixth picked.

It helps that he went to a team that has a potential Hall of Fame coach leading the charge. Sean Payton is beginning his fifth season with the Broncos. On September 13th, Kevin Stefanski will become the Falcons' fourth head coach in seven seasons.

Stefanski took the Cleveland Browns to the playoffs twice in his six years in charge. Before Stefanski and the Browns reached the postseason in 2020, they had gone 17 seasons without making the playoffs.

While the quarterback may get too much weight in these power rankings, there's no question the Falcons have to get better at the position. Is the solution already on the team, or will it be another year searching for a Matt Ryan replacement?