It didn't take very long for the Atlanta Falcons to find a new starting right tackle after Kaleb McGary retired. ESPN's Adam Schefter reported that the Falcons are signing former Kansas City Chiefs' OT Jawaan Taylor to a one-year deal worth $5 million to step in as Atlanta's new blindside protector.
Schefter noted that Taylor's deal comes with an extra $1 million in incentives, but since McGary's retirement opened up $14 million for the Falcons in cap space in 2026 and 2027, it makes the Taylor signing well worth it, as the 28-year-old is a better option than Chiefs fans would care to admit.
Not only does this likely mean the Falcons were prepared for the McGary news, but they signed one of the more reliable alternatives in the free agency market on a pretty low-stakes deal. There's no risk involved on a one-year deal, especially when we know Atlanta will likely address OT in the draft too.
The Atlanta Falcons are signing Jawaan Taylor to replace Kaleb McGary at RT
It may not be the flashiest signing Ian Cunningham has made as the GM of the Dirty Birds, but desperate times call for desperate measures. It's not like they'll have their pick of the litter in a strong tackle class without a first-round pick, so signing the former Florida Gator is a more strategic deal.
Taylor was drafted in the second round of the 2019 NFL Draft by the Jacksonville Jaguars, where he spent the first four seasons of his career before signing a four-year, $80 million deal with the Chiefs during the 2023 offseason, where he struggled before getting cut by them earlier this offseason.
Let's remember here, we sat through 17 games of Elijah Wilkinson as the starting right tackle in 2025, so even though Taylor has 50 penalties across the last three seasons, he's still better than Wilkinson. There's a reason he has made 111 career starts while Wilkinson was a journeyman before last year.
According to Pro Football Focus, Taylor's 53.3 PFF grade in 2025 ranked 80th out of 89 qualified tackles, while his 43.8 run blocking grade ranked 48th. I know that's not great at all, but working with Bijan Robinson and legendary OL coach should help him turn things around after a rough time in KC.
The major benefit of signing Taylor is that he's a pretty strong pass protector who can handle a serious snap share-- especially as a solid pass-protector. So even if he doesn't offer the same stability of McGary, he's at the very least a serviceable option to protect Tua and Penix's blind sides.