Ian Cunningham has made the Falcons’ defensive direction impossible to miss.
After Atlanta acquired former Chicago Bears defensive tackle Gervon Dexter Sr. and claimed former Seattle Seahawks edge Jared Ivey off waivers, the team’s GM said the front office is chasing a very specific type of player. At his Wednesday press conference, Cunningham said the Falcons want “big, powerful, rugged, explosive, violent players.” The way Atlanta has attacked the defensive line all offseason fits that description.
The biggest clue has been the size. Cunningham’s moves have pushed the unit toward heavier bodies and longer frames, with the average defensive tackle in 2025 listed at 6-foot-3 1/2 and in the 290s, compared with 6-foot-5 and 305 pounds in 2026. That jump says plenty about the plan.
One of the clearest examples came in the trade that sent 2024 35th overall pick Ruke Orhorhoro, listed at 6-foot-4 and 294 pounds, to bring back 2024 48th overall pick Maason Smith, who measures 6-5 and 306. Browns coach Stefanski said, “I just think with this trade, (it was) good for them, good for us," Stefanski said.
"It just felt like Maason's ability to work inside was something that we were looking for. Obviously, we think highly of Ruke, but maybe the usage of both players is a little different."
The same kind of thinking showed up in the Clark Phillips III-Gervon Dexter Sr. trade, another move that pointed Atlanta toward more mass up front.
Cunningham has also kept pouring resources into the offensive line and the trenches overall. Matthew Bergeron, who weighs 315 pounds, got a four-year, $96 million deal with $60 million guaranteed, making him the highest-paid guard in NFL history for about a week before Titans guard Peter Skoronski passed him. That’s a massive commitment to a player who still isn’t even the biggest name on his own line.
The right tackle spot followed the same blueprint. Atlanta used the 231st overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft on Ethan Onianwa out of Ohio State, a 6-foot-7, 331-pound blocker. The pick came after veteran right tackle Kaleb McGary announced his retirement, and it filled an immediate need for depth.
Then the Falcons went back to the waiver wire and added another giant in Cameron Williams, who was claimed from the Philadelphia Eagles. The former Texas tackle is 6-foot-6 and 317 pounds, and the front office clearly liked his length and run-blocking base. The move signaled that Atlanta plans to keep hunting for big, high-upside linemen who can set the edge and wear teams down late.
Jared Ivey brings that same size-first mindset on defense. The North Gwinnett High School product from Suwanee, Georgia, landed with Atlanta as a waiver pickup from a loaded Super Bowl-winning Seattle roster, not because he lacks ability.
He gives the Falcons a physical edge-setting presence in the run game, and he also offers pass-rush upside after recording seven sacks in 11 games for Ole Miss in 2024. Defensive line coach Nate Ollie will be the one tasked with turning that potential into production.
Atlanta also spent a sixth-round pick on defensive tackle Anterio Thompson out of Washington. At 6-foot-4 and 310 pounds, he fits the same mold, but his athletic testing made him stand out even more.
Thompson posted a 9.36 Relative Athletic Score, and scouting reports praised his “killer bull rush” and “explosive power” off the ball. He is dealing with a non-football injury to open his rookie season, but the Falcons still kept him on the active list, a clear sign of how much Nate Ollie values his upside.
The message from Cunningham is loud and consistent: Atlanta wants bigger bodies, more violence at the point of attack, and enough physical force to change how this roster plays. Week 1 against the Pittsburgh Steelers is next, and the work on the roster is still going.
In Other News...
Falcons Just Passed On A Veteran Edge Option They May Need
Azeez Ojularis brief run in Atlanta ended before it ever really got started, with the veteran edge rusher failing to make the Falcons 53-man roster or their practice squad after signing with the team in March. Ojulari, who has put together 22 sacks and 113 tackles across five NFL seasons, quickly found a new landing spot by joining the Raiders practice squad.
For a Falcons defense still sorting through its depth on the edge, the decision stands out because the team clearly continued to stock up elsewhere, adding several players to bring its practice squad to 16. Atlanta has options to evaluate, but passing on a player with Ojularis experience leaves a familiar question hanging over the roster: whether the pass rush is complete enough as the season approaches. [Read more 🡒]
Falcons Still Have One Unsettling QB Question Before Week 1
The Falcons are heading into the final stretch of camp with the most important question on the roster still unresolved: who opens Week 1 at quarterback. Tua Tagovailoa and Michael Penix Jr. are competing for the job, and the decision appears tied to Penixs readiness more than anything else. Along the way, head coach Kevin Stefanski has publicly praised Penixs progress, but he has stopped short of naming a starter, leaving the team in a holding pattern as the opener draws closer.
Ian Rapoports read on the situation added another layer of uncertainty, suggesting Tagovailoa could get the first crack if Penix is not ready, though possibly with a short leash. A decision could come soon, but there is no guarantee it will, which is not exactly the kind of clarity a team wants with Week 1 approaching. For Atlanta, the bigger concern now is less about who wins the job than how much patience the staff will have if the first answer does not settle the issue for long. [Read more 🡒]
Falcons Already Face An Uncomfortable Jawaan Taylor Problem
Jawaan Taylor arrived in Atlanta on a one-year deal as a notable add to the Falcons offensive line, bringing with him the kind of experience the team hoped would steady a group in need of help. The move also came with plenty of baggage, since Taylor has long carried a reputation for penalties, and his transition has included time lost to injury while he works his way into a new system under offensive line coach Bill Callahan.
The early signs of that adjustment have not made the Falcons any more comfortable. Taylor has continued to battle false starts in preseason action, and for a player whose penalty history already followed him from Kansas City, that is exactly the sort of issue Atlanta was hoping to avoid. The Falcons do not need a long learning curve up front, and how quickly Taylor settles in could become an important subplot as the season approaches. [Read more 🡒]