Hear ye hear ye! It’s time for the city of Atlanta to rejoice. After years of rule, Brady has retired, and many fans have found new hope. Roll those breaking news tickers out and shine them bright because the future looks very promising for the Falcons right about now.
Seven-time Super Bowl champion, three-time MVP and arguably the greatest football player of all time has retired from the NFL, opening the floodgates for a wide-open NFC South.
As many Atlanta natives remember, in 2017, the Falcons lost the Super Bowl to Brady himself. In March 2020, the hate for Brady only exasperated the Falcons’ fans even more.
The news had come flooding in, and the caption flooded every sports network on television.
Tom Brady was leaving the New England Patriots and joining the young and hungry Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFC South, the same division as the beloved Falcons.
Fans would now have to endure Brady’s wrath twice a year.
With a Brady-less NFC South, a rebuilding year for the Buccaneers, a questionable Saints squad and a very untrustworthy Panthers team, the division crown is for the taking in Atlanta.
For starters, the Falcons’ offense could be lethal. This offense will depend on several factors starting with Matt Ryan for this to work. Ryan will go into next season as a 37-year-old QB but don’t get it twisted. Despite his age, he has shown that he can still throw the football year after year.
Ryan threw for 4000-plus yards 10 seasons straight, only missing the mark this past year by 32 yards. Unfortunately, fans will probably never see Ryan play as good as he did during his MVP run, but the stats speak for themself.
Kyle Pitts lived up to the hype, the highest-drafted tight end of all time. In his rookie year, he broke the legend Julio Jones’s record for most receiving yards by a rookie. Pitts showed off in his debut season and proved himself as a force to be reckoned with for years to come.
For this season to be successful, the Falcons will need to address the concerns of Corradelle Patterson and Calvin Ridley possibly leaving the team.
Cordarrelle Patterson was the MVP of this Falcons team last year. Week after week, he left defensive coordinators frustrated with no answers for the star.
Patterson had 11 touchdowns and had career highs across the board.
Falcons owner Arthur Blank recognizes the talent Patterson brings to this roster and hopes to re-sign him this summer.
“From our standpoint, we’d love to have [CP] back,” said Blank on AtlantaFalcons.Com. “We saw the same thing that you saw on the field. I think this is a very talented player, a very talented athlete. He’s a terrific young man. He’s great with the fans. He’s great in the locker room. He’s a real competitor [and] I hope that he’ll be a Falcon this time [next] year.”
Ridley took a step away from the Falcons back in October due to mental health. Blank and the Falcons would love to sign him back, but Ridley has yet to contact the Falcons organization with a timetable for his return.
On the other side of the ball, the defense for the Falcons remained bottom of the barrel last year. According to Pro Football Reference, they finished the season as the #29 ranked defense. Despite the ranking, there’s still hope.
They have the elite A.J. Terrell at cornerback, ranked #2 in the league at his position only behind Jalen Ramsey.
At linebacker, with 192 tackles last season, league leader Foyesade Oluokun is a free agent this summer. Re-signing Oluokun will be at the very top of the to-do list for the team this offseason.
From what we know, Brady has officially retired from football, but to no surprise, it turns out the thought of him coming back may not be that far-fetched. Brady appeared on the LetsGo! Podcast and left listeners with something to think about.
“I’m just gonna take things as they come,” said Brady. “I think that’s the best way to put it, and I don’t think anything, you know, you never say never.”
All in all, this offseason will be huge for the Falcons. They haven’t won the division outright since 2016, and with Brady out of the picture, the NFC South is up for grabs. Can they get it together at this opportune time and snatch the division crown?
