While the Falcons will know their schedule for the 2025 season by night’s end, they will still have some time before knowing whether or not their move back into the first round to select James Pearce Jr. will pay off and on Wednesday, NFL Network’s Cynthia Frelund joined Mike Bell and Abe Gordon on the Dukes and Bell Show to share why the Falcons’ gamble for Pearce Jr. may prove to be worth the “risk”.
“If they’re right and it pays off, then it could be something that makes a huge difference in a team that hasn’t had a lot of push up front in quite some time,” Frelund explained as she weighed in on the Falcons decision to trade their way back into the first round of this year’s draft to take the Tennessee edge rusher with the 26th overall pick.
And while the questionable move proves the Falcons were willing to go all in to address their pass rush concerns throughout the past few seasons, with their last double-digit single season sack leader being Vic Beasley (15.5) in 2016, Frelund noted being in favor of the Falcons choice. “Again, it’s a big risk, but I’m kind of a rick taker, so I’m into it,” Frelund said in approval of the pick.
As for Pearce Jr. and his production, while his final season at Tennessee end with seven and a half sacks, the Falcons’ rookie reached double digits in 2023, totaling 10 sacks on the season as a sophomore. So, if Pearce Jr. can tap into his 2023 campaign, perhaps Falcons’ defensive coordinator, Jeff Ulbrich can help him reach the potential the team needs from him.
