Azeez Ojulari was once looked at as a first-round talent in the 2021 NFL Draft, but slipped to the middle of Round 2 due to medical issues. The New York Giants were banking on him to become a cornerstone of their defense, but those aforementioned medical issues have plagued his NFL career.
Ojulari spent the first four years of his career in New York before spending 2025 in Philadelphia, but signed with the Atlanta Falcons in free agency. And while the Falcons feel they can turn the 25-year-old's career around and help him return to form as the man who led the Giants in sacks as a rookie.
However, if you ask most people in the Big Blue realm, they're not as convinced that that side of Ojulari still exists. GMENHQ's Matt Sidney thinks that his injury history will continue to be an issue, especially given the sheer number of additions the Falcons made to the DL room this offseason.
"Any optimism surrounding Ojulari’s role in Atlanta was effectively extinguished by the Falcons' aggressive commitment to younger, more explosive talent," Sidney wrote. "Atlanta has spent the last two years building a defensive fortress that likely has no room for a veteran with a mounting injury history."
If Azeez Ojulari wants to revive his career with the Falcons, he'll have to stay healthy
Sidney noted Atlanta's commitment to adding younger talent off the edge. They have two franchise cornerstones in Jalon Walker and James Pearce Jr. (despite his legal troubles), while Samson Ebukam and the oft-mysterious Bralen Trice are expected to play rotational roles alongside Ojulari (if he can actually remain healthy) for the defensive line.
The situation with Ojulari in Atlanta is eerily similar to another former Georgia star who had a stint with the Giants: Lorenzo Carter. The Falcons signed Carter a month before drafting Troy Andersen in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft, and was looked at as a guy whose roster spot was not secured.
Somehow, he lasted three seasons in Atlanta, but Ojulari may not be as lucky. The Dirty Birds drafted LSU edge rusher Harold Perkins Jr. in the sixth round of the 2026 NFL Draft, and he's a game-wrecker who was once looked at as a top-five talent--and he's the Georgia native's main competition in camp.
Trice has never played a down of NFL football. Ebukam is on the wrong side of 30. Cameron Thomas has made three starts across five NFL seasons. Ojulari, despite his injury woes, is clearly talented, so if he's unable to beat these guys out for roster spot, Sidney thinks his NFL future could be in jeopardy.
"If he can't beat out a sixth-round rookie and a host of veteran journeymen this summer, his time in the NFL could be reaching a premature end."
The issue is that availability is the best ability in the NFL, so while Ojulari is good when he's on the field, that doesn't happen consistently enough for Falcons fans to feel content with him playing a meaningful role on defense. It's a nice homecoming story, but it can easily have an unhappy ending.
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