Aggressive Falcons turn Gervon Dexter trade into expensive, long-term investment

The Falcons acquired Dexter from the Bears on cutdown day last month, sending Chicago cornerback Clark Phillips and a 2027 fifth-round pick in the swap. An extension near the $20M-per-year mark certainly points to the Falcons placing a higher value on Dexter than the trade package would suggest, and more than a year after the team cut Grady Jarrett (leading him to Chicago), Dexter will step in as its new D-line cornerstone.

This extension was not necessarily part of the late-August trade, per NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport, though Cunningham’s familiarity with the 326-pound defender did point to a long-term pact being something to monitor here. This continues an aggressive year from the Falcons on the extension front.

The team gave Robinson a then-record deal last month, and London resides as the NFL’s third-highest-paid wide receiver after his summer payday. The Ryan-Pitts connection produced a franchise tag and extension, making the former No. 4 overall pick the NFL’s third-highest-paid tight end, while Bergeron is now out-earning All-Pro Falcons guard Chris Lindstrom via his $24M-per-year payday.

Based on Dexter’s status through three games, this is a highly unusual extension. The new Falcons interior D-lineman has not started a game yet. Though, Atlanta will not be paying Dexter nearly $20MM per season to work as a rotational piece. Dexter’s new contract places him a few tiers beyond any other Falcon D-lineman presently, and he has shown promise in Jeff Ulbrich’s scheme early in his tenure.

Dexter, 25 next week, ranks eighth in pressure rate (20.5%) among players with at least 50 snaps this season. Despite working off the bench to start his Falcons tenure, Dexter has logged a 53% snap rate. Pro Football Focus ranks Dexter 11th among interior D-linemen through three games and slots him fifth in pass rush at the position. The interior rusher has three QB hits and a half-sack thus far as a Falcon, and he had been a productive Bears D-tackle prior to the trade.

Dexter delivered a six-sack 2025 season and tallied five in 2024. PFF ranked Dexter’s 2024 season favorably, placing him 27th among interior defensive linemen that year. A former teammate of Pitts at Florida, Dexter joins Darnell Wright — handed a right tackle-record deal this summer — as 2023 Bears draftees to sign extensions this year.

This extension certainly will bring more attention to a cutdown-day trade involving a Day 3 return. The Bears have Jarrett signed to a three-year deal, and while Dayo Odeyingbo is known to shift inside at points, the NFC North team does not have a surefire long-term option at DT presently. The Bears clearly had no plans to pay Dexter, though, and it is worth wondering if Cunningham was higher on him than Poles.

The Falcons had already made a trade at this position, sending 2024 second-round pick Ruke Orhorhoro to the Jaguars for fellow 2024 second-rounder Maason Smith. The latter is still on a rookie deal, aligning him with the rest of the Falcons’ defensive line save for Dexter. With the team suddenly having a lot invested in Dexter, he will surely move into the starting lineup soon.