The Atlanta Falcons have created a culture that players around the league want to be a part of again. It started when Raheem Morris was hired as head coach and continued when Kirk Cousins signed with the team in free agency.
The addition of Cousins raised the Falcons’ ceiling for 2024 and helped the team land two elite players over the last week. “People want to come here,” Morris said about adding Matthew Judon and Justin Simmons. “It’s a lot of fun when you have people who want to come here.”
After losing outside linebacker Bralen Trice and safety DeMarcco Hellams in the preseason opener, the team got aggressive and pulled off the trade for Judon. Atlanta outbid several other suitors for Judon, who reportedly preferred the Falcons over the Bears.
The Judon trade sparked Simmons’ interest in joining the team. “When the trade happens, I called my agent and said we gotta make this happen,” Simmons told reporters on Monday.
The two-time Pro Bowler then went to dinner with Morris, Grady Jarrett, Jessie Bates and Terry Fontenot to get a feel for the team’s mindset entering the season.
“These guys here are hungry,” said Simmons. “A lot of disappointing seasons in the past couple of years with a lot of potential and a lot of great skill players. So when I was at that dinner, man, I kind of asked some of the hard questions.”
Ultimately, Simmons liked what he heard from his future teammates during his recruitment dinner and said he’s buying into what the team is building. “You’re going to get my best this year. I’m all in because I can tell the guys here are all in.”
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