PFF’s Surprise Pick for Atlanta Falcons’ Most Underrated Player

THE Atlanta Falcons hope to have found value for their defensive line on Days 2 and 3 of the 2024 NFL Draft. In 2021, that’s exactly what the Falcons did with center Drew Dalman.

Dalman was acquired in a draft trade with the Denver Broncos. The Broncos moved up to No. 35 and selected running back Javonte Williams. The Falcons used the Broncos’ 40th pick on safety Richie Grant and the fourth-round pick on Dalman.

Three years after Atlanta drafted Dalman 114th overall, Zoltan Buday of Pro Football Focus named the Falcons center the team’s most underrated player.

“While every other Atlanta offensive lineman was a top-40 pick in their draft – including three top picks – former fourth-round pick Dalman could have stood out in a negative way, but it wasn’t not so,” Buday wrote. “The Stanford product built on a promising 2022 campaign and ended up becoming the third-highest rated center in the NFL in 2023 (82.3).”

Besides Dalman, the only starting offensive lineman the Falcons did not draft in the first round was left guard Matthew Bergeron. Atlanta grabbed him 38th overall in the second round last offseason.

But according to Pro Football Focus player ratings, right guard Chris Lindstrom was the only Falcons offensive lineman better than Dalman last season. The Atlanta center earned an 82.3 PFF player rating. He particularly excelled in run blocking, posting a 90 rating.

Among centers who played 50% of his team’s snaps in 2023, Dalman was second behind Detroit Lions veteran Frank Ragnow. Dalman was also second in run blocking behind Ragnow.

While Dalman posted his best PFF player grades last season, he earned a “good” grade or better in his three NFL campaigns. In 2021, he had a player rating of 78.3 as a rookie.

Behind that strong play, Dalman has helped the Falcons solidify their offensive line, which is a unit the team hopes will get more run-blocking opportunities in 2024.

A super excited recruit Bijan Robinson only recorded about 23% of his carries with the team having a lead last season. The Falcons should hope to give Robinson the ball a lot more with a lead in 2024, especially if Dalman blocks again like he did last fall.