PFF names one thing the Falcons ‘must do’ in 2023 draft

When you’re picking in the top 10 of the NFL draft, there’s almost no benefit to telling other teams what your plans are. That’s the position the Atlanta Falcons find themselves in once again going into the 2023 NFL draft.

The team doesn’t want to handcuff itself by targeting one specific position or player. Atlanta has addressed pretty much every position in free agency and therefore, you could make a case for a number of different players at pick No. 8.

Does this mean that the overall talent level should trump positional value when it comes to the Falcons’ first-round pick? If it means drafting a running back, Pro Football Focus would likely say no.

In a new feature listing one thing that each team must do in the draft, PFF writes that Atlanta must avoid taking running back Bijan Robinson in the top 10, despite everything the Longhorns playmaker is capable of:

Without taking positional value into account, Bijan Robinson is the best football player in this year’s draft. He’s the best running back prospect since at least Saquon Barkley, and truthfully, that might not be going back far enough. 

Here’s the thing though, positional value exists and the Falcons can’t afford to take a running back, even one as talented as Robinson, with the eighth overall pick. Atlanta is still one of the worst teams in the league and should use that No. 8 pick on a more valuable position, like edge defender. It may be tempting for Arthur Smith to add a star running back like he had in Tennessee with Derrick Henry, but the Falcons need to look elsewhere. Plus, Tyler Allgeier had an excellent rookie season last year with an 86.7 grade that was fifth among all running backs. – Max Chadwick, PFF

Robinson is generating the same level of hype that Saquon Barkley received when he was selected with the second overall pick by the New York Giants back in 2018. Even then, the Giants were criticized for taking a running back as high as they did, but you could argue it worked out for the club as Barkley is a two-time Pro Bowler.

Robinson could potentially join a backfield that features both Cordarrelle Patterson and Tyler Allgeier, which would allow the team to ease the rookie in and spread the usage between the three backs. But is it necessary to forgo a more-pressing need in favor of a running back when the team already has two capable ball-carriers?

It just depends on how Atlanta feels about Robinson as a short and long-term prospect.

The Falcons do still need work on defense and have question marks along the offensive line. Ultimately, there’s no such thing as a can’t-miss prospect in the NFL, so the team will be taking a risk regardless of who ends up in a Falcons uniform Thursday evening.

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