FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — ESPN published its annual ranking of the top 100 NFL players for the upcoming season on Monday, and five Falcons made the cut.
ESPN compiled the list by asking a pool of experts to rate players based solely on expectations for the upcoming season. Below are the ranked Falcons and some noteworthy observations:
- 94. OL Chris Lindstrom
- 93. CB A.J. Terrell
- 87. QB Kirk Cousins
- 86. OLB Matthew Judon
- 71. RB Bijan Robinson
- 67. S Jessie Bates III
No other team in the NFC South had more players appear on the list than Atlanta. In fact, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were the only other division team represented in the ranking. They had three players selected while the New Orleans Saints and Carolina Panthers had none.
The San Francisco 49ers had the most players with eight. The reigning Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs had five players chosen, tying the Falcons' number. However, the Chiefs have something no other team does: Quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who is listed at No. 1 on the list for the fifth consecutive year.
Wide receiver Drake London and newly acquired safety Justin Simmons were notably missing from the list. Each of the Falcons players picked, aside from Robinson, has at least a Pro Bowl or second-team All-Pro selection to their name.
The Falcons on the list are representative of the front office's ability to find good players in differing ways. Cousins, Bates and, most recently, Judon were all established players before joining Atlanta as either free agents or via a trade. Terrell and Lindstrom, each of whom signed a contract extension following his fourth season, and Robinson are indicative of the team's ability to draft and develop talent.
"Quarterback Kirk Cousins is the leader of a new-look offense in Atlanta, but Lindstrom is the stalwart and one of the best guards in the league," ESPN's Marc Raimondi wrote of Lindstrom. "The Falcons' offensive line is a strength, and Lindstrom excels at pass protection and run blocking. He'll be one of the guys tasked with opening holes for running back Bijan Robinson and giving Cousins the necessary time to find targets such as wide receiver Drake London and tight end Kyle Pitts."
After announcing their initial 53-man roster on Tuesday, the Falcons will begin preparations for Week 1 when they take on the Pittsburgh Steelers (who had three players ranked) inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Sept. 8. There's no question, the players on this list will be critical for Atlanta this season.
