The tough pill that Jalon Walker tore his ACL and will miss the entirety of the 2026 NFL season hasn't exactly gotten any easier for Atlanta Falcons fans to swallow as the days have dragged on. And while potential solutions may be on the roster in one form or another, the Falcons could use more help.
With the NFC South up for the taking this fall and Ian Cunningham clearly investing in the present this offseason, the Dirty Birds could be scouring the market for an edge rusher as we speak. While free agent signings are quite a bit more straightforward, a splashy trade could also be in play.
Across the NFC, our fellow red bird team has a disgruntled pass rusher in Josh Sweat. The Arizona Cardinals, if they know what's good for them, will stack assets this season and gun for the No. 1 pick, making this a potential match made in heaven for a preseason trade.
It may cost Atlanta a pretty penny, but both now and in the long-term, the Falcons would benefit massively from bringing Sweat in.
Falcons should really consider swinging big for Cardinals OLB Josh Sweat
Fans may remember Sweat most from his time with the Philadelphia Eagles, where he brought down Patrick Mahomes on numerous occasions in a Super Bowl LIX routing of the Kansas City Chiefs. But he has also been one of the league's most productive pass-rushers in the last five years.
With 45.0 sacks, 51 tackles for loss and eight forced fumbles in that span, it is almost impossible to argue that Sweat wouldn't instantly become the best edge rusher in Atlanta. Yes, that even includes Walker and James Pearce Jr., the latter of whom could be suspended to start the year as well.
If both Walker and Pearce Jr. are sidelined, who is going to strike fear in opposing quarterbacks on the Falcons' defensive line? Certainly not a combination of Cameron Thomas, Azeez Ojulari and Samson Ebukam. This group needs reinforcements, with or without Pearce Jr.
So, Cunningham would be a fool not to at least call the Cardinals and see what the asking price is. Now, Sweat has made his affinity for now-Green Bay Packers defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon rather clear, but he doesn't have a no-trade clause, and anywhere is better than Arizona.
Should he come to the Falcons, the team has the cap space to accommodate his not insignificant but also not backbreaking contract. And that's another great thing about trading for a player like Sweat instead of a guy like the New York Giants' Kayvon Thibodeaux: His deal is already in place.
Atlanta has all of its picks in the first five rounds of the 2027 and 2028 NFL Drafts, so it has some flexibility to bring Sweat on board. It may take up to a second-round pick for the Cardinals to start considering, but perhaps a pair of thirds or a third and a player gets a deal done.
In what is a win-now window for the Falcons, sitting on their hands and waiting for this edge rusher issue to inevitably rear its ugly head shouldn't be an option. Being proactive and at least kicking the tires on a player like Sweat should be the bare minimum that this fanbase asks of its front office.
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