It's been a pretty wild opening week of free agency for the Atlanta Falcons. Not only did they controversially sign Tua Tagovailoa, they have made some smaller signings that could reap some legit benefits in 2026. And in Ian Cunningham's first free agency as GM, things are off to a real strong start.
Through all of the good moves they've made this offseason, the storyline of free agency wasn't who the new regime brought in, it was the guys that left. Cunningham has responded well, the Falcons have enjoyed a mass exodus of key contributors leaving in free agency, which killed the mood a bit.
Some of these players they will sorely miss in 2026 and beyond, and others... not so much. Losing someone like Kentavius Street is nothing to phone home about, but Kaden Elliss is another story. So let's dive into the players the Dirty Birds will miss the most (and least) in Kevin Stefanski's first season.
Which departed free agents will the Atlanta Falcons miss the most and least?
Won't Miss: Arnold Ebiketie
Arnold Ebiketie has been a good, not great player across his four years with Atlanta. He combined for 12 sacks in 2023 and 2024, but took a massive step backwards in 2025 because his role significantly decreased. Jalon Walker became the face of the pass-rush in ways that Ebiketie never did.
The Falcons replaced him with Azeez Ojulari and Samson Ebukam, one player with upside and one with a higher floor. They won't miss him because he was too inconsistent for their liking, but he should be in for a bounce-back year in Vic Fangio's defense after signing a deal with the Philadelphia Eagles.
Won't Miss: Dee Alford
Dee Alford was the breakout star for the Falcons' secondary in 2025, which is why he was able to cash in. He led the team with 13 passes defensed, only Xavier Watts had more interceptions than him, and he stepped up admirably as a starter after both Mike Hughes and Billy Bowman Jr. got injured.
You might be asking, "How would they not miss him?", but hear me out. Prior to 2025, Alford was so bad to the point that fans were consistently calling for him to be cut. He was genuinely burnt toast, so even though he was good this past year, paying him $7 million annually to keep him is a bad choice.
Won't Miss: Darnell Mooney
This is a little bit of a cop-out, but Darnell Mooney will not be missed by the Falcons. Not only was he awful in 2025, he wasn't even healthy for most of the season. I blame Raheem Morris more for allowing him to play through a broken collarbone, but he is too inconsistent for this offense to trust.
Mooney landed in a solid place in New York. but the Falcons are better off too. I like Jahan Dotson and Olamide Zaccheus more than him in this new offense, and the revamped WR room is off to a strong start. And his release was the spark that confirmed that Cunningham needed to add more wideouts.
Will Miss: Kaden Elliss
This is the point in the article where we will reach a pretty somber reality. Any scenario where Atlanta lost Kaden Elliss was one where they were going to sorely miss him. Not only was he the heart of this Jeff Ulbrich-led defense, he was the perfect jack-of-all trades linebacker you need as your green dot.
It's hard to lose him, but it'll be even worse having to face him twice a year for the next three seasons while he is with the New Orleans Saints. He did everything the defense asked of him, so while Christian Harris is good but, I would choose paying up to keep Elliss over him 100 out of 100 times.
Will Miss: Tyler Allgeier
Technically speaking, Tyler Allgeier wasn't even a starter and he'll be missed. He was the perfect complement to Bijan Robinson in the running back rotation. At 225 pounds, the 25-year-old was the perfect change-of-pace back who seamlessly adopted the short-yardage and goal-line back roles.
I understand why he left, though. Not only did he get a solid payday, he'll probably be competing for the starting running back job, so he'll have a much larger role in the offense for the Arizona Cardinals: and he deserves it. Allgeier is a damn good football player who was stuck behind a world-class talent.
I want to point out a caveat here: the Falcons will miss him, but of the players I listed, he will probably be the easiest to replace as a running back.