3 trades Atlanta Falcons can make to go on a deep playoff run next season
By John Buhler
At this juncture, it is easy to see that the Atlanta Falcons are in fact on the uptick in their competitive life cycle. For a team that has been in the midst of its worst stretch since the 1980s, all it takes is for a few bounces to go their way. Atlanta has had good players over the years, but bad to horrible coaching has often led to their undoing. That all could change with Raheem Morris now in charge.
Morris had been on Dan Quinn's staff from 2015 to 2020 in a multitude of roles. In fact, he replaced Quinn as the interim after the 2020 team got off to an 0-5 start. Morris went 4-7 in the Falcons' final 11 games. While he was passed over in favor of former Tennessee Titans offensive coordinator Arthur Smith, owner Arthur Blank seemed to have made a fantastic general manager at that time.
With Terry Fontenot having been retained, now in year four up in Flowery Branch, I would expect for everyone in the building to be pulling in the same direction, together, like the Dirty Birds did before the Super Bowl 51 collapse. Fontenot has done a remarkable job of drafting players, signing key free agents and building this highly-competitive roster. All it may take is a trade or two to really take flight.
Here are three potential trades the Falcons could make to go on a deep playoff run next NFL season.
3. Trade for San Francisco 49ers WR Brandon Aiyuk
Frankly, the Falcons are better served in either taking a wide receiver in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft or testing their luck in NFL free agency. While guys like Ladd McConkey out of Georgia or potentially even future hall-of-fame wide receiver Mike Evans of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers could look really good in red and black (McConkey already does), what about trading for Bradon Aiyuk?
The San Francisco 49ers wide receiver is still under contract, but he is reportedly unhappy with his role in Kyle Shanahan's offense. Things may get sorted out in Santa Clara, but living well is the best revenge. While I highly doubt the 49ers would trade Aiyuk to Shanahan's former team, he would fit in very well in the Atlanta receiving corps. Playing off Drake London and Kyle Pitts would be amazing.
Overall, there are better options out there to get better at wide receiver for Atlanta, especially when the Falcons desperately need an upgrade at quarterback. The only way to really screw this up is to run it back at quarterback in 2024 and then use the No. 8 pick on someone like Rome Odunze out of Washington. Odunze is a fantastic prospect, but for the money, Atlanta must go in another direction.
Aiyuk playing opposite of London should allow any quarterback playing for the Falcons to succeed.