Atlanta Falcons re-signing Austin Hooper is a priority
By Matt Siegman
The Atlanta Falcons are 1-4 and have a tall hill to climb to reach the postseason. Currently, they sit in last place of the division, the season is essentially lost.
The Atlanta Falcons have major decisions looming on the organization these next couple of months and several of them seem pretty obvious at this point.
Between Dan Quinn and Thomas Dimitroff, there is a lot of uncertainty in the air with the future of the Atlanta Falcons front office. The Falcons also have major decisions to make with re-signing players as there are important pieces they need to keep for the long term.
One of the players on the Atlanta Falcons they must re-sign is tight end, Austin Hooper. Despite the team’s success, Hooper has been incredible during the 2019 season. Through five games Hooper is currently leading the team in receiving yards with 363 yards. He is second amongst tight end receiving yards in the league only trailing Evan Engram.
Hooper is on pace to have his first career 1,000-yard season and make his second Pro Bowl appearance. Hooper has emerged as a top-five tight end in the league and at 24 years old he is about to enter his prime. Re-signing Hooper is crucial for the future of this franchise.
As a pass catcher and as a blocker Hooper can do a little of everything and can fit any scheme because of his talent. The general consensus is the Atlanta Falcons are going to go after an offensive-minded head coach instead of a defensive-minded one like Dan Quinn and Mike Smith.
Hooper being so versatile should give the Atlanta Falcons plenty of confidence to sign Hooper to a long-term deal. The uncertainty in the Atlanta Falcons front office will likely delay his signing. They need to sign Hooper to a long-term deal before the season is over.
The Atlanta Falcons cap situation is tight at the moment but trading away some key pieces before the trade deadline will hopefully free up more cap to reach an extension. If the Atlanta Falcons lose Hooper to free agency it will be one of the biggest mistakes the organization makes in their entire history.