Atlanta Falcons: How will Dontari Poe do in 2017 for new team?

How will newly signed defensive tackle Dontari Poe perform for the Atlanta Falcons on his one-year deal after spending the last five seasons in Kansas City?

He was the 11th overall pick in the 2012 NFL Draft out of Memphis and developed into one of the better nose tackles in the game. Dontari Poe had his best season in 2014 when he recorded 46 tackles and six quarterback sacks for the Chiefs. Since then, he has still been a force against the rush, but hasn’t had as much success attacking quarterbacks.

That had a lot to do with the Chiefs turning Poe into a two-down player that left the field in obvious passing situations. For Atlanta that may not be the case as he steps in as arguably the best pass rusher on the line right now — the caveat being that Vic Beasley, Jr. is listed as an outside linebacker and rookie defensive end Takkarist McKinley is still recovering from shoulder surgery.

Atlanta’s plan to use Poe more often on passing downs will have a huge effect on his bottom line. It will help all those around him as well simply because there’s no easy way to stop a 346-pound man trying to get through an offensive line.

So how good can he be?

Look for Poe to take advantage of the situation. He’s working on a one-year deal as he seeks the big pay day and security of a multi-year contract. If Atlanta sets him free, and that’s coupled with his motivation of such a deal, it can be great for the Falcons. It may not be great in terms of bringing him back following this season, depending of course on what they plan to pay a nose tackle, but it could have a huge impact on a defense on the rise in 2017.

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2017 Bold Prediction

55 tackles, 6.5 sacks, 2 forced fumbles