Now that the Atlanta Falcons cleared their first major hurdle of the offseason by hiring Kevin Stefanski to be their next head coach, but the battle is far from over. The Falcons still have to find a new general manager, since countless changes are needed for this roster to get to the next level.
Even though this roster is built to immediately compete in the NFC South, Stefanski and president of football Matt Ryan will have to start keying in on some massive areas of need. They need help at wide receiver, cornerback, and in the trenches, which could come from the 2026 NFL Draft or free agency.
However, for all of the players the 43-year-old could bring with him to Atlanta, he's also gonna have to trim the fat of the current roster. There are several players who don't deserve to be on this roster by Week 1 of next season, and these five are the most likely to be cut at some point this offseason.
These Atlanta Falcons players are at risk of not being retained after the Kevin Stefanski news
QB Kirk Cousins
If we're talking about Falcons players who the new regime needs to move on from, that list starts and ends with Kirk Cousins, which all comes down to finances. The 37-year-old makes way too much money to be a backup, which is why they restructured his contract to make for a cleaner break.
The reworked deal gave the Dirty Birds virtually no reason to keep the four-time Pro Bowler now, so even though Stefanski coached Cousins in Minnesota, they could find a more cost-effective backup to Michael Penix Jr. in free agency, which will fix their financial situation once and for all.
WR Darnell Mooney
I have never seen a player with a more dramatic fall from grace than Darnell Mooney. In 2024, he fell just short of 1,000 receiving yards and cemented himself as the clear No. 2 behind Drake London, but this past season, his numbers were cut in half as his connection with Penix never really took off.
The 28-year-old spent the majority of the season playing through an injury suffered in training camp, yet Raheem Morris never placed him on IR. He looked like a shell of himself, and with an out in his contract coming, the Falcons would be better-suited drafting a replacement for the Tulane product.
EDGE Leonard Floyd
I heavily debated between Leonard Floyd and Arnold Ebiketie here since I don't expect either of them back next season, but I settled on Floyd. The Georgia product could come back if he's somewhat cheap to keep, but it would be weird if he was a priority in free agency over Kyle Pitts or Kaden Elliss.
James Pearce Jr. and Jalon Walker are the future of this Atlanta pass-rush, which has Ebiketie and Floyd on the outside looking in. The 33-year-old has been productive in the past, but keeping him and his 3.5 sacks is not the life-or-death matter when other teams will come calling.
CB Mike Hughes
The only Falcons' cornerbacks who are completely safe entering 2026 are A.J. Terrell and Billy Bowman Jr., which is a bad sign for Hughes. He just signed a new extension last offseason and is fresh off of a down year where he was out-played by Terrell, Bowman, and Dee Alford on the backend.
The former first-round pick's new deal comes with an out after next season, so perhaps he may have earned another year in red and black. With Alford set to hit free agency, he's more suited to play on the outside and retaining him should take priority over Hughes.
LB Troy Andersen
Troy Andersen is one of the biggest disappointments this franchise has drafted in quiite some time... and they took Takk McKinley in the first round of an NFL Draft. The 2022 second-round pick out of Montana State has been great when he's on the field, but unfortunately, he's never healthy.
He was drafted with the pick the Falcons acquired in the Julio Jones trade, which makes it even worse. The Dirty Birds already have a solid linebacking core headlined by Kaden Elliss and Divine Deablo, so some other team should look to give Andersen a shot to turn things around.