3 Atlanta Falcons impending free agents who need to be brought back

2. Bud Dupree was tied with Calais Campbell for team lead in sacks

This is another one I think would be great for morale and some level of continuity on defense. Bud Dupree may have played his college ball at Kentucky before playing for the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Tennessee Titans, but he hails from just outside of Macon. He chose to come play for his hometown team, and was rewarded for it by tying Calais Campbell for the team lead in sacks with 6.5.

Dupree is on the wrong side of 30 and is about to turn 31 in a few days. However, he is an ideal complementary pass rusher on any team. While it remains to be seen if he will follow Ryan Nielsen to Jacksonville or go back to Pittsburgh to play for Mike Tomlin again now that Arthur Smith is calling offensive plays for the Steelers, I think there is a decent chance Raheem Morris prioritizes Dupree.

Again, Terry Fontenot built this team out of the ashes of what Dan Quinn and Thomas Dimitroff tried to do together. To date, Fontenot has hit on more picks than he has not, including defensive end Arnold Ebikitie, who was just off Campbell and Dupree's pace with six sacks in his second year out of Penn State. The quickest way for Atlanta to sustain excellence on defense is through the pass rush.

If Atlanta can continue to generate pressure in the trenches, the secondary is going to stay elite.