Atlanta Falcons trade up scenarios in the 2020 NFL Draft
The Atlanta Falcons are reportedly one of the teams looking to make a trade into the top of the 2020 NFL Draft. Who are they going up for and at what cost?
The Atlanta Falcons under Thomas Dimitroff certainly have a reputation for being aggressive in the NFL Draft.
That shouldn’t be expected to change in the 2020 NFL Draft.
Even though they only have six selections in the 2020 NFL Draft, the Falcons could be poised to move up from their 16th overall spot according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.
The Falcons once had two second-round selections, but traded one for tight end Hayden Hurst. Rapoport says they are a team to keep an eye on with just over a week before the 2020 draft.
One team that appears poised to make some noise with a move up is the #Falcons. They have spent a lot of times evaluating and talking to players who figure to be gone by No. 16… and when other teams do their projections, they believe Atlanta will be on the move.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) April 15, 2020
Who is the most obvious potential target for the Falcons?
At this point, it has to be Florida cornerback CJ Henderson. The Falcons released longtime CB1 Desmond Trufant leaving former second-round pick Isaiah Oliver and a number of former mid-round picks to take his place.
The Falcons need a true CB1 for their defense and Henderson could certainly provide them that. But how high up would they have to move to get him?
If the Falcons wanted Henderson, they would probably have to jump the Jacksonville Jaguars picking 9th overall. That would put them up to 8th overall (Arizona) at the bare minimum, and 7th overall wouldn’t seem very likely since that would require an inter-division trade with Carolina.
The Arizona Cardinals, currently without a second-round pick, would probably love the other second-rounder the Falcons have this year along with a high pick in next year’s draft to move from 8th to 16th.
According to the age-old trade value chart, a ‘fair’ deal for the Falcons to move up from 16th to 8th overall would look like this:
That would likely ensure the Falcons get one of Florida’s CJ Henderson, Auburn’s Derrick Brown, or South Carolina’s Javon Kinlaw, all of whom would fill substantial needs for them.
They’re not getting any of those players at 16 overall.
The Falcons know that the pressure is on to compete. They need someone in this draft who can come in and play at a high level right away. The dropoff at cornerback after CJ Henderson is substantial.
While up to this point not many have considered it this way, Henderson is closer to the level of Jeffrey Okudah in terms of coverage skills than he is to the second tier of corners. In fact, some feel like Henderson is the better overall cover guy.
2020 NFL mock draft: 3 rounds with trades. dark. Next
The Falcons will not be the only team vying for Henderson’s services, and if nothing else, this rumor drives up the price for the defenders in the top 10 picks in general.