The Atlanta Falcons are “open to moving” out of the No. 4 pick in this month’s NFL draft, a source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter, as the first three picks in the draft appear to be locked up.
Backs are expected to be taken with the first three picks.
Clemson full-back Trevor Lawrence is expected to be taken at No. 1 by the Jacksonville Jaguars, while the New York Jets indicate they will set up a quarter at No. 2 when they traded Sam Darnold to the Carolina Panthers on Monday. The San Francisco 49ers, meanwhile, have moved from no. 12 to number 3 and declare that they did so for the purpose of setting up a quarter.
Valry general manager Terry Fontenot said in February that he believes the No. 4 spot is a great place to be. ‘
“There are so many different scenarios,” Fontenot said at a news conference. “There will be some very good players at No. 4. We can move up, and we can move down and pick up more.
“There are just a lot of different scenarios to really go through.”
In February, Fontenot said the Hawks always have talks with teams, but that it will be ‘good value’ no matter what he does.
One of the scenarios could be a quarterback – whoever stays behind on the board after the first three picks. The Hawks can also look to an attacking playmaker in Kyle Pitts in Florida or the best linebacker in the Penei Sewell in Oregon. Less likely their reception room would overflow with Ja’Marr Chase, LSU, or Jaylen Waddle of Alabama or DeVonta Smith.
As many as five quarterbacks are expected to be selected in the first round this year: Lawrence, BYU’s Zach Wilson, Mac Jones of Alabama, Trey Lance, North Dakota, and Justin Fields of Ohio.
The Hawks do not have an immediate need for quarterback as Matt Ryan at the helm, though he will turn 36 when the 2021 season begins. One decision Atlanta has already made is to restructure Ryan’s contract and convert $ 21 million from this year’s base salary to a three – season signing bonus, raising his 2022 salary tax number to $ 48,662,500.
Of course, at this time of year, almost every team listens to calls about possible transactions – some serious, others not – as teams try to get the best possible outcome for their franchise.
“It’s not somewhere we want to be with this team very often,” Fontenot said. “But we’re going to take advantage of it and be open to all possibilities.”