In their first offseason with a new regime, the Atlanta Falcons have made sweeping changes to their roster makeup. Their QB room is completely revamped amid an open competition, the receiver room looks far better than it did a year ago, and the defensive line looks to have replaced James Pearce Jr.
For Ian Cunningham and Kevin Stefanski's first offseason--where they intentionally chose not to make any lucrative signings-- that's as good as it gets. But quarterback might not be the only position with a new starter in 2026, especially given the number of players the Falcons lost in FA.
Based on how the Dirty Birds' offseason has shaken out to date, these three players could be in line to lose their jobs, and they may not even know it yet.
These former Atlanta Falcons' starters lost their starting jobs this offseason
LB JD Bertrand
While Divine Deablo was briefly sidelined in 2025, Bertrand was the player who assumed most of his snaps at linebacker... and it went about as poorly as you could've expected. Due to his sheer lack of athleticism, he struggled in coverage and cemented his status as a mere special teams contributor.
When the Falcons lost Kaden Elliss to New Orleans, the 25-year-old was looked at as someone who could receive a bigger role in his absence, but this has since been debunked. Atlanta signed both Christian Harris and Channing Tindall, players who Jeff Ulbrich would prefer to play at LB over him.
CB Billy Bowman Jr.
Before his midseason Achilles tear, Billy Bowman Jr. was shaping up to be a major steal in the draft for Atlanta. While on the field, he shined as the starting nickel corner, but after his injury, Dee Alford arguably looked even better than the Oklahoma product, which led him to cash in in free agency.
Bowman is a good player, but who knows if he'll even be ready to roll for Week 1. In the wake of Alford's departure, the Falcons brought in their fair share of nickel insurance in Sydney Brown and Darnay Holmes, so it's no guarantee that Bowman will be able to hold onto the starting role in 2026.
WR Casey Washington
This may be a cop-out, but Raheem Morris had Casey Washington deep in the doghouse late last season, and it isn't hard to see why. He showed some flashes in late 2024 and early 2025, but with how bad the Falcons' receiver room was behind Drake London, Morris was healthy scratching him.
Once regarded as a potential WR3 in Atlanta, Washington would be lucky to survive summer roster cuts. The Falcons already brought in two new starting wideouts in Jahan Dotson and Olamide Zaccheus. and they're likely to add another WR in the draft, so Washington could be WR5 soon.