The Falcons needed a grown-up answer fast, and they found one in Za’Darius Smith.
Atlanta announced Tuesday that it signed the veteran edge rusher to a one-year deal, bringing in a player who is set to make $6 million, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. The move also reconnects Smith with Falcons head coach Kevin Stefanski, who coached him with the Cleveland Browns during the 2023 and 2024 seasons.
The timing matters. Atlanta’s pass rush took a hit with Jalon Walker out for the year after tearing his ACL in practice, and James Pearce Jr. unavailable for the first eight games after a suspension for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy following a February domestic violence arrest. Those are two major losses for a unit that suddenly had a lot less room for error.
That room got even tighter when you look at what Walker and Pearce brought last season. Pearce led the Falcons with 10.5 sacks, while Walker added 5.5 as Atlanta piled up a franchise-record 57 sacks.
For a defense that had spent years struggling to consistently get after quarterbacks, that was a massive jump. Now the Falcons are trying to protect that progress without two of their top edge threats.
Smith gives them a veteran track record they can trust. His numbers last season weren’t eye-popping - he had 1.5 sacks in five games with the Philadelphia Eagles - but the résumé is still substantial.
He has 70.5 career sacks, three seasons with double-digit sack totals, and he put up nine sacks combined between Cleveland and the Detroit Lions in 2024. His peak came in Green Bay in 2019, when he finished with a career-high 13.5 sacks and earned second-team All-Pro honors.
He’ll join a remade group of Falcons edge rushers that also includes Samson Ebukam, Azeez Ojulari and Cameron Thomas, each of whom signed one-year contracts this offseason. Atlanta is also still hoping Bralen Trice can finally get on the field after back-to-back torn ACLs kept him from appearing in a regular-season game over his first two NFL seasons.
There’s more than one hole to fill here, and Smith alone won’t erase the damage from losing Walker and Pearce. But for a defense trying to keep its pass rush from slipping, adding a 33-year-old with 70.5 career sacks is a strong answer at the exact moment Atlanta needed one.
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Falcons Just Changed The Edge Rush Market In A Big Way
The Falcons have already made one notable move on the edge, swooping in for ZaDarius Smith after the Browns had been in the mix. For Atlanta, its the kind of addition that changes the feel of a pass-rush conversation quickly, especially at a time when veteran help on the edge is still a hot topic around the league and teams are weighing how much to invest in immediate production versus longer-term planning.
Clevelands search now shifts into the next tier of options, with Joey Bosa and Haason Reddick among the names to watch as the market settles. The Browns are also being viewed through a 2026 lens, which makes every decision on the edge feel a little more complicated, and it leaves Atlantas win in this sweepstakes looking even more important as the rest of the picture continues to come into focus. [Read more 🡒]
Maason Smith Is Making Atlantas Most Debated Trade Look Smart
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For a team trying to sort out its front, that matters. Orhororo never really delivered the kind of impact Atlanta hoped for, while Smith has at least given the Falcons reason to believe the trade could pay off on the field rather than just on paper. There is still a long way to go before anyone declares a winner, but the direction of the deal is starting to look more favorable for Atlanta. [Read more 🡒]
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