NFL Draft 2019: Atlanta Falcons full mock draft

By Joe Romano | Apr 4, 2019

CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA - DECEMBER 23: Matt Ryan #2 and teammate Julio Jones #11 of the Atlanta Falcons wait to take the field against the Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium on December 23, 2018 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /

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TALLAHASSEE, FL – NOVEMBER 18: Florida State Seminoles defensive end Brian Burns (99) comes off the edge during the game between the Delaware State Hornets and the Florida State Seminoles at Doak Campbell Stadium in Tallahassee, FL on November 18th, 2017. (Photo by Logan Stanford/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

Round 1 – Pick 15

Brian Burns, EDGE, Florida State

A sneaky issue in Atlanta has been the play of former first round pick Vic Beasley. After a strong rookie season Beasley has regressed in each subsequent year. Now it looks like the Falcons are preparing to move on from the former Clemson defensive end. He will be a free agent after this season and the Falcons should use the 15th pick to find his replacement. Even if it is not super impactful in the first season, you can never have too many pass rushers.

As a pass rusher Brian Burns may be the best in the draft. He’s getting top ten love from some outlets but in reality will likely sit in nicely in the middle of the first round. A combination of length, first step quickness, a refined pass rush plan and excellent counters give Burns a neck up on the rest of the prospects not named Bosa in this draft. Bulking up for the combine did not cost him the athleticism.

Atlanta has a type for a lot of their positions on defense. For defensive end that is a quick twitch athlete capable of bending the edge and winning versus tackles one-on-one. They found that with Beasley for a season before his regression. Two years ago they found that again with Tak McKinley. Burns would join that group and eventually be the starter opposite McKinley. Those two would form a dynamic athletic duo off the edge to hunt quarterbacks every week.

Some will scream that this pick needs to be a defensive tackle. Christian Wilkins was on the board here but the value of Burns was too good to pass up. Wilkins is an impact defensive tackle but that position as a whole is deeper in this class than the edge position. Burns is a steal outside of the top ten and will be a double digit sack player quickly into his career.

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