Atlanta's list of options to improve the struggling pass rush has very quickly grown bleak. It doesn't help matters that teams are overpaying for the position in the first wave of free agency. Demarcus Lawrence signing a three-year deal worth $42 million is the latest example of this. While Maxx Crosby and Myles Garrett have been removed from the potential target list, signing top dollar deals with their respective franchises.
Garrett's deal reset the market at the position, convincing the star to stay in Cleveland. All of this adding up to the Falcons making only one move of note at the position so far. Atlanta signed Leonard Floyd after San Francisco released the edge rusher in their ongoing roster purge. Floyd is a great addition but not the star the defensive line is lacking. The Falcons need to continue to make moves and one potential target is veteran Von Miller.
Von Miller is one of two possible paths Atlanta still has to fix the ailing pass rush
Let's be clear, Von Miller isn't turning back the clock to the monster he once was in Denver. This version of the pass rusher is gone. Still, Miller is a valuable veteran that can rush the quarterback at a high level in short bursts. The Falcons signing Miller should be a consideration if the team believes there isn't a chance they can land Trey Hendrickson or Micah Parsons.
With the edge rushing market, a trade for either star appears an extremely long shot. A more feasible path for the Falcons might be to sign Von Miller and a myriad of other veteran options. Bring in a handful of affordable veteran rushers to build out your rotation and use your first-round pick on an edge rusher.
The one downside to this approach is locking yourself into one position in a draft that could go a number of ways. There are pieces Atlanta's secondary badly needs, they could consider taking if the pass rush is already on solid ground.
However, with the amount of needs the Atlanta defense is facing with such limited cap space, it is an uphill battle. One that might have the team considering adding veteran pieces such as Miller to help set the tone for the young roster.