According to NFL insider Ian Rapoport, the Atlanta Falcons seem poised to make a draft day trade this year. Most of the players they desire will likely be gone by No. 16, where the Falcons are currently selecting, so a potential trade-up feels very likely.
This wouldn’t be out of the ordinary for Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff. He famously made a huge draft day trade to move up and snag All Pro wideout Julio Jones in the 2011 NFL Draft.
This trade may not be as dramatic, but it all depends on which player the Falcons are targeting if they do trade up. If it’s Clemson’s Isaiah Simmons, which some pundits believe it could be, Atlanta will probably have to find a way to maneuver themselves into the 6-8 range, which won’t be cheap.
The team currently has six total draft picks to play around with, including two in the fourth. A combination of their first and one of their fourths this year, with maybe a second or third from next year would likely get a deal done to move up drastically.
With the draft just about a week away, we’ll surely hear more developments on this rumor as this week progresses.