Now that the Atlanta Falcons have kicked off OTA's, the storylines are running rampant leading into Year 1 of the Kevin Stefanski era. The biggest storyline to watch has been the quarterback situation, but one of the biggest benefactors of who will be throwing him the ball will be star WR Drake London.
London is still vying for a long-term extension (which he deserves) from the Falcons, and the expectation is that it'll come this summer. But that's not the only thing happening this summer, as the 25-year-old entered OTAs with a wild body transformation suggesting a breakout year is coming.
During the Falcons' first practice session that was open to the media, the AJC's Daniel Flick caught a video of the receivers going through some contract drills. London went first, and he looked massive. He looked bigger than ever before and it looked like he put on some serious muscle this offseason
A bigger Drake London suggests he'll be at his most terrifying in 2026
The fifth-year wideout is listed at 6-foot-4 and 215 pounds on the team website, but that number might be in need of an update. He looked closer to 220 or 230 pounds and appeared as though he definitely spent his fair share of time in the weight room entering his most important NFL offseason.
Another video from Miles Garrett showed that the extra muscle didn't look to affect his speed either. His cuts looked elite, and his straight-line speed afterward didn't look to be affected by the added muscle. And I think he's about to cement himself as one of the top "X" receivers in the NFL in 2026--if he hasn't already, that is.
Because of London, Atlanta is home to one of the better QB-WR connections in the NFL that nobody's talking about. The 2022 first-round pick has an electric rapport with Michael Penix Jr., and assuming Penix starts over Tua Tagovailoa, the star wideout is about to be peppered with targets.
We all know by now that the former USC Trojan is an elite red zone threat, but he wins just as much downfield because of his burst and route-running ability. Penix's best games last season came when London had big games, so a more dangerous version of his WR1 will make for an even more reliable security blanket. And he's a mentor to the younger members of the WR room.
London looking like this would be scary enough in a regular year, but it's also set to be a contract year for him. And if he's not gonna command over $30 million a year on a new deal this summer, it wouldn't be surprising in the slightest if a new-look London increased his price tag even further in 2026.
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