Atlanta Falcons general manager Ian Cunningham has been busy during the June hiatus in the NFL offseason. He has managed to secure two franchise players in Drake London and Kyle Pitts to long-term extensions, signing Pitts to a three-year, $54 million deal last week.
However, the work is not yet done. There are still several other players who must be secured for the next number of years -- they are too valuable to let walk. Here are the four players that need to follow in Pitts' footsteps and ink new deals with the Falcons before the start of the 2026 season.
Falcons must extend these three vital players to extensions
1. Bijan Robinson, RB
It is an inevitability that this deal will get done before training camp. There has been all sorts of buzz around it being the next checklist item for the new front office: and for good reason.
The superstar RB is the leader of the team, and the most important player on the roster. He is bound to set a new standard for the running back market. The rush is to get this deal done before Jahmyr Gibbs and the Detroit Lions get theirs done -- make them one-up Bijan's deal.
2. Matthew Bergeron, LG
The Falcons have made it a priority over the past few years to secure their starting offensive line. They did it with Jake Matthews, Chris Lindstrom, and Kaleb McGary.
Matthew Bergeron has been a solid piece for the left side of the offensive line. He is entering the final year of his rookie deal, and shouldn't be allowed to play it out. He has proven to be good enough to be starting for the long haul, and should improve under Bill Callahan.
3. Zach Harrison, DE
Zach Harrison was starting to break out last season before suffering a season-ending injury. He has 4.5 sacks in seven games last year, after having four in his first 33.
Much like Brandon Dorlus, it feels like the best is yet to come. That is why Cunningham needs to get an extension done before he puts up giant numbers in 2026. This is the last year of his deal and some team will be willing to pay him more than he is currently worth if he hits the open market.
4. Jessie Bates III, S
Jessie Bates is entering the final and most expensive year of his 2023 deal. He has a base salary of $13 million and a cap hit of $24.8 million, with the cap hit being the second-highest on the team.
Obviously, it would hurt to lose the veteran next offseason. He has been a stalwart of the secondary since the first snap he took in red and black.
Beyond that, extending him would free up more money for the Falcons to use on a couple of the big-name free agents still on the open market. You could argue that the cap impact and timing make it more important than the Robinson extension right now.
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