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10 reasons why the Atlanta Falcons’ offseason is beginning to look like a failure

By Colin Hubbard

Dec 20, 2015; Jacksonville, FL, USA; Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Roddy White (84) hugs owner Arthur Blank as they beat the Jacksonville Jaguars during the second half at EverBank Field. Atlanta Falcons defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars 23-17. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 20, 2015; Jacksonville, FL, USA; Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Roddy White (84) hugs owner Arthur Blank as they beat the Jacksonville Jaguars during the second half at EverBank Field. Atlanta Falcons defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars 23-17. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /
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Oct 4, 2015; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Falcons head coach Dan Quinn is shown on the sideline in the second quarter of their game against the Houston Texans at the Georgia Dome. Mandatory Credit: Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 4, 2015; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Falcons head coach Dan Quinn is shown on the sideline in the second quarter of their game against the Houston Texans at the Georgia Dome. Mandatory Credit: Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports /

Heading into the Atlanta Falcons’ 2016 offseason there were a lot of things that they needed to address before the start of next season. For starts, they needed to let go some of their dead weight and replace them with better talent in the free agency pool and that hasn’t gone all that well.

The Falcons’ first big headline was the surprising release of 11-year veteran receiver Roddy White. Some figured that it was a very realistic possibility that it could happen, but nobody wanted to believe it. Sadly, it turned out to be true and the fan base is still trying to recover from it.

While it was heartbreaking to see White walk away from the only team he has ever known, there was still hope that the Falcons would replace him with someone really good. The player they decided to go with was free agent receiver Mohamed Sanu and that has gone over just as worse as the white release.

People have grabbed their pitchforks and have yet to put them down.

Those two moves alone were enough to make this years’ free agency look like a dumpster fire. It appears that the Falcons may be done in free agency after losing out on several players they had been linked too. They still have at least two major holes to fill and have yet to fill them.

There is still no clearcut starter at strong safety, weak side linebacker and right guard. Atlanta cut their 2015 starting weak side linebacker Justin Durant at season’s end as well as cut William Moore, their starting strong safety.

The two players on the roster who are set to take over full-time starting duties are safety Kemal Ishmael and recently acquired OLB Sean Weatherspon. If those two players turn out to be the week 1 starters, this Falcons’ defense could be in for a very long, disappointing season.

Atlanta got some even worse news in the past few days after former starting nose tackle Paul Soliai decided to sign with the rival Carolina Panthers and backup inside linebacker Nate Stupar signed a 3-year deal with the New Orleans Saints.

It’s never fun to see your former players leave the team and sign elsewhere, but to see them sign with a team inside the division and to play for your teams’ bitter rivals is borderline sickening. It’s safe to say that Soliai and Stupar are two players that are no longer fan favorites in Atlanta. If you haven’t hit them with a unfollow on twitter then you need to do so as soon as you’re done reading this.

It looks like it’s going to come down to the 2016 draft to determine whether or not this 2016 offseason was either a success or a huge failure. Here are 10 reasons why things may be leaning on the negative side rather than the positive.

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