Chris Lindstrom and Matthew Bergeron have given the Falcons something rare: a guard pairing that can stack up with just about anybody in the league. Sports Illustrated’s Matthew Verderame put the Atlanta duo at No. 4 on his list of the NFL’s top offensive guard tandems, and it’s easy to see why.
Lindstrom has already built a reputation as one of the league’s best interior linemen. He’s been named a second-team All-Pro and made the Pro Bowl four times, all while playing for a Falcons team that has not had a winning season or reached the playoffs during his run.
Verderame called him “a tower of power for the Falcons since being drafted in 2019, only missing one game since his rookie campaign.” He also noted that Lindstrom’s 88.4 grade from Pro Football Focus ranked second among guards, and his 91.7 run-blocking mark led the position.
That kind of praise from PFF is nothing new. The outlet included Lindstrom on its All-Decade team last week, placing him alongside a group that includes several future Hall of Famers. Back in 2022, Lindstrom posted a 95.0 grade, which made him not only the top-graded guard in football, but the highest-graded player in the NFL at any position.
Bergeron’s rise has been quieter, but it has been real. Atlanta grabbed him at No. 38 overall in 2023 after trading No. 44 and No. 110 to the Colts, and the former Syracuse tackle has settled in at left guard. Verderame wrote, “As for Bergeron, he’s settled in nicely through three years, starting all but two games of his career,” and added that Bergeron posted top-30 PFF grades last season both overall and as a run blocker.
That matters now because Bergeron is headed toward free agency after this season. He carries a $4.8 million cap hit, while Lindstrom sits atop the Falcons’ payroll with a $26.3 million cap number. If Bergeron delivers another strong year, he figures to draw plenty of interest on the open market.
The money question is where this gets interesting for Atlanta. Bergeron was the 20th-ranked guard by PFF last season, and the market for players at that level is already expensive. Ed Ingram of the Texans and Patrick Mekari of the Jaguars are tied at $12.5 million per season as the 20th highest-paid guards, according to Spotrac.
Atlanta already has the fifth-highest-paid offensive line, even with Bergeron still on a rookie contract and Jawaan Taylor at right tackle on a relatively modest $4.6 million deal. The Falcons have also handed out major extensions to Drake London and Kyle Pitts, with Bijan Robinson next in line.
That leaves a familiar roster-building question hanging over the team: can it keep pouring premium money into a position the league does not treat as premium? The Falcons have tied up a lot of resources in places that do not always move the needle the way quarterback, tackle, pass rush, or cornerback do, and that has been part of the story of why they have not broken through over the last five seasons.
Under new general manager Ian Cunningham, the early signs point in a different direction. He has not shown much interest in trading up, he values premium positions, and he is willing to work the cap creatively. London’s four-year, $141 million extension, for example, comes with just an $8 million cap hit in year one.
So Bergeron’s future may come down to performance and price. If he turns into a player Atlanta cannot afford to lose, Cunningham can probably find a way to keep him. If not, the Falcons may choose to let him walk and redirect that money elsewhere.
In Other News...
Falcons Fans May Not Like Where The Penix Situation Is Heading
Michael Penix Jr. was supposed to be the long-term answer when the Falcons used a first-round pick on him in 2024, but the quarterback picture is already getting complicated as Kevin Stefanski takes over in Atlanta. The new coach arrives with a reputation for valuing precision, and that matters in a room where Penix is still working his way back while Tua Tagovailoa is in position to make a strong case of his own.
For Falcons fans, the uneasy part is not just the competition itself, but how quickly the conversation around it has shifted. Penixs future with the team is now tied to a race that could be shaped as much by timing and readiness as by talent, and the early read from around the league is that Tagovailoas accuracy and preparation may give him the edge. [Read more 🡒]
Falcons Suddenly Have A Tyler Shough Problem They Can't Ignore
Tyler Shoughs first season in New Orleans gave the Falcons a lot more to think about than they probably expected. After taking over late in 2025, the Saints rookie helped push the team to four wins in the final five weeks and was throwing for 300 yards a game over his last three outings, a stretch that made his rise hard to dismiss even before the offseason buzz really started. He also finished as the Offensive Rookie of the Year runner-up despite making only nine starts in 11 games, which only adds to the sense that New Orleans may have found something real.
Now the part Atlanta has to monitor is what comes next, because the Saints did not leave Shough hanging out there on his own. They added Travis Etienne and Jordyn Tyson, drafted Oscar Delp and Bryce Lance, and kept Chris Olave, Alvin Kamara and Juwan Johnson in place, giving him a much sturdier supporting cast. With Kellen Moore running the offense, the setup looks built to give Shough every chance to keep climbing, and for the Falcons, that is the kind of division development that can quietly become a problem fast. [Read more 🡒]
Falcons Keep Posting One Stat That Makes Their Losing Even Worse
For all the talk about discipline being a shortcut to winning, the Falcons have spent the last five seasons proving how complicated that equation can be. Atlanta has been one of the least penalized teams in the NFL over that stretch, with 520 total penalties, second only to Cincinnati, yet it still has not managed a winning record or a playoff berth in that span.
The numbers get even more striking in the situational game, where the Falcons also ranked among the leagues cleanest teams on third and fourth down. Even so, fewer flags have not translated into a better record, which is why the focus in Atlanta has shifted from simply avoiding mistakes to whether the coaching changes and defensive identity shift can turn that discipline into actual results. [Read more 🡒]