Final question: Who’s your favorite pick? And why?
Tori: My heart is with the defense, always. So, it would have been a safe bet for you to make to think I would choose a defender as my favorite player in this draft class. My pick is Arnold Ebiketie, and I choose him based on principle. If I wrote it one time in the last four months, I wrote it 50 times: The Falcons had to take an edge rusher and they had to do so early. Of course, I would have loved to see one of the top three edge rushers fall to No. 8, but when that didn’t happen I understood waiting for the second round to fill – arguably – your most significant need with the best edge rusher left on the board at that time. I think it shows how much the Falcons valued Ebiketie by trading up to get him.
I don’t think it’s up to Ebiketie to come in and change the Falcons pass rush immediately and in extreme fashion. (C’mon, that’s not realistic). However, I do think that in a process that will span one, two or even three years, I think Ebiketie is a good start.
Kris: I really like the Desmond Ridder pick at 74. It is a low-risk, high-reward pick to me. There is a lot to like about Ridder’s game. He can make all the throws and is a proven winner. Many of the questions around him come about his consistency. Ridder comes into a situation where he can learn from a quarterback with a similar playstyle in Marcus Mariota, who should help his transition to the league. And the great part about this pick is that it does not necessarily mean the Falcons are out on quarterback in 2023, like with a first-round pick.
Scott: I like running backs who can run around you but prefer to run through you. BYU alum Tyler Allgeier is one of those guys. I saw a stat where the vast majority of his yards came after contact, something the Falcons need and Arthur Smith prefers in his running backs. Allgeier’s a tackle breaker through and through, who should help make last year’s short-yardage struggles a thing of the past. I know he’s just a…