Local product could be the answer to Falcons question that Matthew Judon didn't solve

Long gone are the days of the Atlanta Falcons overlooking Georgia Bulldogs starring in their backyard. I understand the logic of not being beholden to college football stars in the same state as the Falcons, but Georgia has been a perennial College Football Playoff contender under Kirby Smart for the better part of a decade now. There are three UGA players Atlanta can target in the first round.

While safety Malaki Starks could be a great fit in Atlanta's secondary, his draft positioning is all over the place in the first round. He could be a top-16 pick, or he could be a top-24 pick. All things equal, Atlanta should prioritize pass rusher first. Although Mykel Williams is more of the prototypical pass rusher, he may be off the board long before the Falcons pick at No. 15. What about the other Dawg?

Yes, for so many reasons, the Falcons should prioritize drafting someone line Butkus winner Jalon Walker with the No. 15 pick. Walker is the player ESPN's Jordan Reid has going to Atlanta in his latest NFL mock draft. For the record, Williams is off the board to the Carolina Panthers at No. 8 and Starks goes a few picks before the Falcons to the Miami Dolphins picking at No. 13. Walker comes to Atlanta.

For as much as Dirty Bird Nation wanted Matthew Judon to work out, I would move on for Walker now.

Atlanta Falcons could replace Matthew Judon with Jalon Walker in 2025

What the Falcons need more than anything out of their first-round pick this year is an impact player. Over Terry Fontenot's first four drafts as the Falcons' general manager, he has landed one impact player after another on offense. Kyle Pitts comes and goes at tight end, but Drake London is a star receiver, Bijan Robinson is a top-tier running back and Michael Penix Jr. is a franchise quarterback.

For the most part, the Falcons have hit on all of their first-round draft picks up until Takkarist McKinley in 2017. Chris Lindstrom, Kaleb McGary and A.J. Terrell are key pieces to this time. Even Calvin Ridley was great before he derailed his own career. While I do not think the Falcons can go wrong with any of the Georgia stars entering the draft, Walker is the one that I keep going back to for so many reasons.

He is an incredibly instinctive player, one who has an innate ability to wreck an offense's entire game plan. The Falcons could have had a guy like that back in 2017, but McKinley was the pick over T.J. Watt. We already knew his older brother J.J. was a superstar in this league; what was Thomas Dimitroff thinking? Walker won the Butkus like Roquan Smith and Nakobe Dean at UGA before him.

I find this to be a low-risk, high-reward type of draft pick. Yes, there is always the Georgia component to keep in mind, but the often overlapping fanbases and NFL Draft pundits agree. Walker should be the Falcons' guy. At the end of the day, as long as the Falcons go with a breakout defensive player inside of the top-16 or so, I will be thrilled with the selection. Then again, I was shocked about Penix...

Fontenot has shown he can nail first-round picks, but his whiffs on second-rounders is a big concern.