Atlanta Falcons: Their draft will make-or-break their season

Feb 25, 2016; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Atlanta Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff speaks to the media during the 2016 NFL Scouting Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 25, 2016; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Atlanta Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff speaks to the media during the 2016 NFL Scouting Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Atlanta Falcons are going through a rebuilding period and most of the fan base isn’t even realizing it.

When the Atlanta Falcons hired Dan Quinn to be the head coach, everyone knew that it was going to take a couple of years before he was able to mold the roster into something that he could call his own, and that is still very much a work in progress.

The expectations for the upcoming season shouldn’t be very high as a result. The Falcons were tagged with the toughest schedule in the NFL and will face a slew of 2015-16 playoff teams as a result. And while that’s already not going to be very fun, the Falcons are also trying to fill several starting jobs and will be relying mostly on the draft to do that.

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If there was ever a year to have a bunch of draft picks, this would be the year. But guess what. The Falcons have the league’s fewest picks so things just got really complicated as a result. With just five draft picks to work with, Atlanta will need to be extremely precise and that’s easier said than done.

Drafting a player is never a guarantee. The hope is to always hit a home run with your first-round pick and anything else is just gravy. However, you can never bank on your first pick in the draft to be a success. Just ask the Cleveland Browns.

Not only are the Falcons looking for great players in the draft, but there are looking for players that can come right in as a rookie and contribute. In years’ past we have seen the Falcons daft players in the later rounds with the hopes of them turning into something down the road. that won’t be the case this season.

The Falcons are going to need to rely on at least two of their draft picks to be full-time starters if they want to have any chance of competing for a playoff spot next season. Instead of drafting that typical second-round project player, the Falcons will use that pick on a player that is ready for playing time as a rookie.

If the Falcons strike out on this upcoming draft, their 2016 season will take a hit as a result. If they hit a home run, expect some solid play out of the team. It’s really going to be that simple.

Next: Updated mock draft roundup

Atlanta has done everything they can to fill their holes with free agents but at the end of the day, if they don’t have a good draft, they won’t do well in the season.