The Atlanta Falcons have been looking for pass-rushing help, but clearly not hard enough. They lost Jalon Walker to a season-ending ACL tear and James Pearce Jr. will be suspended for the first eight games of the season, so they need to bring in an established vet to add to the current foundation.
Bralen Trice, Cameron Thomas, Samson Ebukam, and Azeez Ojulari is not gonna cut it, and Falcons fans know that. There's a reason that Von Miller was a name constantly popped up for this team. But unfortunately, that was a fever dream that ended before the rumor mill could ever truly start churning.
Miller was somehow still unsigned this late into free agency, but not anymore. ESPN's Adam Schefter reported late last night that the former Super Bowl MVP was signing with the Dallas Cowboys, which is a major missed opportunity for a pass-rushing room that desperately could've used his services.
The Atlanta Falcons lost out on Von Miller because of the Dallas Cowboys
It remains to be seen whether or not the 37-year-old would've been a realistic option for the Falcons, but it seems unlikely. This team isn't exactly built to compete in 2026, and he likely wanted to play for a contender. Besides, he's been foaming at the mouth to play for the Cowboys all offseason long.
The eight-time Pro Bowler's social media activity made it clear that Dallas was where he wanted to be, and it's not hard to see why. He's a Texas native who played his college ball at Texas A&M and considering he may not have much time left, wanted to play close to home for the first time in a while.
But that's not the only connection. Cowboys' defensive line coach Marcus Dixon was Von Miller's assistant defensive line coach for half a season with the Rams in 2021, and he overlapped with DC Christian Parker for the other half of that 2021 season for what was his final year with the Broncos.
The sad part is that the Dirty Birds really could've used this guy. It's not like he's Celtics Shaq at this stage of his career: 2025 proved that the seven-time All-Pro has still got it. He racked up nine sacks for the Washington Commanders last season and is still a plenty dangerous pass-rusher at his age.
Von Miller was the most accomplished pass-rusher available in free agency, and the Falcons should have been desperate to sign any real contributor and not Cameron Sample. You can call this a missed opportunity, but the better phrasing is that they never had a chance--so now they have to pivot to other free-agent edge rushers.
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