Disclaimer: The statements and opinions regarding players and/or potential future players in the article below are those of the AtlantaFalcons.com editorial staff and are not of the Atlanta Falcons' football personnel unless noted in a direct quote.
The 2024 free agency frenzy has arrived, and with it, speculation either picks up or quiets down depending on the moves made in the coming weeks.
The official start of the new league year is March 13. At 4 p.m. ET, free agents can officially sign with new teams. The legal tampering window, which is the two-day time period that team personnel can contact the agents of players on other teams, opens up March 11 and ends when the new league year begins. During this time, teams and free agents can announce they have agreed to contract terms, but an official signing cannot be announced until after the start of the new league year.
In the weeks ahead, you can use this article as a one-stop shop for all Falcons free agency moves and updates. We will update the tracker as news comes in about signings, extensions and where Falcons free agents land.
In addition to official signing news, there will also be aggregated reports of signings and extensions listed in the tracker. A full list of trusted and vetted reporters who the AtlantaFalcons.com editorial staff will aggregate news from is listed at the bottom of this tracker.
Let this be your location for everything you need to know about the Falcons offseason work in free agency.
Report: Falcons agree to terms with defensive end James Smith-Williams
Date of report: April 8, 2024
Details: Smith-Williams' agent, Mike McCartney of Vayner Sports, announced the defensive end agreed to the terms of a one-year deal with the Falcons.
Resume highlights:
- Smith-Williams was drafted by the Washington Commanders in the seventh round of the 2020 NFL Draft after playing college ball at NC State.
- Over the course of four seasons with the Commanders, Smith-Williams has seen action in 55 games, making 27 starts. He has accumulated 85 total tackles (14 for a loss), seven sacks and 31 quarterback hits.
Signing: Cornerback Kevin King
Date of signing announcement: April 8, 2023
Analysis: Falcons sign cornerback Kevin King
Resume highlights:
- The Green Bay Packers used a second-round pick in the 2017 NFL Draft to select King out of Washington. He then spent five seasons in Green Bay, totaling 97 tackles in 51 game appearances. He also forced two fumbles, recovered another two fumbles, picked off seven interceptions and broken up 30 passes.
- King chose to sit the 2022 season out for personal reasons, then missed 2023 due to a torn Achilles tendon sustained during a workout.
Signing: Defensive tackle Eddie Goldman
Date of signing announcement: April 3, 2023
Resume highlights:
- The Chicago Bears selected Goldman in the second round of the 2015 NFL Draft out of Florida State. He played with the Bears from 2015-19 and 2021, opting out of 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Goldman has 81 game appearances and 73 starts on his resume that have led to 175 total tackles, 21 quarterback hits and 13 sacks. Goldman has also been responsible for a safety, a pass breakup and two fumble recoveries.
Signing: Defensive lineman Kentavius Street
Date of signing announcement: March 18, 2023
Resume highlights:
- The Falcons acquired Street via a trade with the Philadelphia Eagles in October 2023. Atlanta received Street and a 2025 seventh-round pick. Philadelphia received a 2024 sixth-round pick.
- Street saw action in five games for the Falcons in 2023, starting all five. He accumulated 14 combined tackles (four for a loss), one pass deflected, one fumble recovery and one sack.
- The defensive tackle is coming off a pectoral injury sustained in December 2023. Street was placed on injured reserve with four games remaining in the 2023 season.
SIGNING: Falcons sign wide receiver Ray-Ray McCloud III
Date of signing announcement: March 18, 2024
Report: The Falcons are signing wide receiver Ray-Ray McCloud to a two-year deal worth up to $6 million, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero.
Resume highlights:
- The Buffalo Bills originally used a sixth-round pick on McCloud in the 2018 NFL Draft. McCloud spent a year with the Bills before a season with the Carolina Panthers and two seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers. McCloud then had a two-year contract with the San Francisco 49ers that ended with the conclusion of the 2023 season.
- McCloud is known as a receiver and a returner. Last season, he had 135 receiving yards on 12 receptions. He also had 24 punt returns for 203 yards and 10 kick returns for 225 yards. He played in 12 games, starting one, for the 49ers.
SIGNING: Falcons sign wide receiver Darnell Mooney
Date of signing announcement: March 15, 2023
Report: The Falcons are reportedly signing wide receiver Darnell Mooney to a three-year deal worth $39 million with $26 million fully guaranteed. The signing was first reported by NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.
Resume highlights:
- Mooney joins the Falcons after four seasons with the Chicago Bears, the organization that drafted him in the fifth round of the 2020 NFL Draft.
- The receiver had his best year in the league in 2021, when he accounted for 1,055 receiving yards on 81 receptions.
- Most recently in 2023, Mooney finished his last season with the Bears with 414 receiving yards on 31 receptions.
TRADE: Falcons agree to terms to trade quarterback Desmond Ridder to Arizona Cardinals in exchange for wide receiver Rondale Moore
Date of trade announcement: March 14, 2024
Moore resume highlights:
- Moore spent the last three seasons with the Cardinals after being drafted in the second round of the 2021 NFL Draft out of Purdue.
- Over the span of his three-year career, Moore has accumulated 1,201 receiving yards on 135 receptions. He has made 39 game appearances with Arizona, with 23 starts.
SIGNING: Wide receiver KhaDarel Hodge
Date of signing announcement: March 14, 2023
Resume highlights:
- Hodge has spent the past two years in Atlanta, originally signing in March 2022, after stops with the Los Angeles Rams (2018), Cleveland Browns (2019-20) and Detroit Lions (2021).
- In 2023, Hodge played in 17 games, starting four, and caught 14 of his 23 targets for 232 receiving yards – good for third-most among Falcons wide receivers last season. He averaged a team-high 16.6 yards per reception.
SIGNING: Offensive lineman Storm Norton
Date of signing announcement: March 14, 2024
Resume highlights:
- The Falcons signed Norton, a 2017 undrafted free agent, off the New Orleans Saints practice squad in September 2023. He never saw action for the Saints but previously had with the Minnesota Vikings (2018) and the Los Angeles Chargers (2020-22).
- Norton appeared in 14 games, starting three at right tackle, last season and took 31% of the Falcons' offensive snaps during that time. He also took 14% of the Falcons' special teams snaps in 2023.
SIGNING: Falcons sign quarterback Kirk Cousins
Date of signing announcement: March 13, 2024
Date of report: March 11, 2024
Report: The Athletic's Diana Russini was one of the first to report the news, while ESPN's Adam Schefter reported the contract is a four-year deal
Resume highlights:
- Since being drafted by the Washington Commanders (Redskins at the time) in the fourth round of the 2012 NFL Draft, Cousins has put together a consistent decade-plus of work at the quarterback position, spending six seasons with Washington and six with the Minnesota Vikings.
- Cousins was selected to the Pro Bowl four times in his career and has an overall record of 76-67-2 with a 66.9 completion percentage over 3,400 career completions.
- The veteran quarterback is coming off an Achilles tendon rupture that he sustained in the Vikings' Week 8 game against the Green Bay Packers in October 2023.
SIGNING: Falcons sign tight end Charlie Woerner
Date of signing announcement: March 13, 2024
Analysis: Falcons sign tight end Charlie Woerner
Resume highlights:
- Woerner, a Georgia native, returns home to play for the Falcons after four seasons with the San Francisco 49ers. The Niners drafted Woerner out of Georgia in the sixth round of the 2020 NFL Draft.
- Woerner recorded 120 yards on 15 total targets during his San Francisco tenure as a blocking specialist. The tight end played the majority of his snaps on special teams, an average of 74% in four years while starting seven total games.
RE-SIGNING: Inside linebacker Nate Landman
Date of re-signing announcement: March 6, 2024
Resume highlights:
- The Falcons signed Landman as an undrafted free agent after the 2022 NFL Draft. He appeared in seven games as a rookie, notching just one tackle, mainly on special teams.
- Landman stepped into a starting defensive role in 2023 amid Troy Andersen's injuries. Landman played in 16 games, starting 14, and totaled 110 tackles, three pass breakups, three forced fumbles, two sacks and an interception.
RE-SIGNING: Offensive lineman Ryan Neuzil
Date of re-signing announcement: March 4, 2024
First report: ESPN's Jeremy Fowler
Resume highlights:
- The Falcons signed Neuzil as an undrafted free agent following the 2021 NFL Draft. After being promoted to the active roster in late 2022, Neuzil saw action in nine games for the Falcons, mostly on special teams.
- In 2023, Neuzil was the team's backup center, seeing action in 17 games and making four starts.
RE-SIGNING: Long snapper Liam McCullough
Date of re-signing announcement: Feb. 23, 2024
Resume highlights:
- McCullough joined the Falcons in April 2022 after signing with the Las Vegas Raiders as an undrafted free agent following the 2020 NFL Draft.
- Over the course of the last two seasons with the Falcons, McCullough has seen action in all 34 games.
Former Falcons landing spots
- April 4, 2024: TE MyCole Pruittreportedly agreed to terms with the Pittsburgh Steelers, reuniting with former Falcons head coach Arthur Smith. The deal was first reported by ESPN's Jeremy Fowler.
- March 26, 2024: RB Cordarrelle Patterson agreed to terms on a two-year deal with the Pittsburgh Steelers, reuniting with former Falcons head coach Arthur Smith. The deal was first reported by ESPN's Adam Schefter.
- March 18, 2024: WR Van Jefferson signed a one-year contract with the Pittsburgh Steelers, reuniting with former Falcons head coach Arthur Smith.
- March 13, 2024: OL Matt Hennessy agreed to terms on a one-year deal with the Philadelphia Eagles.
- March 13, 2024: WR Mack Hollins reportedly signed a one-year deal with the Buffalo Bills, worth up to $3 million. The signing was first reported by ESPN's Jeremy Fowler.
- March 11, 2024: CB Jeff Okudah reportedly signed a one-year deal with the Houston Texans valued at $6 million. The signing was first reported by NFL Network's Tom Pelissero.
- March 7, 2024: TE Jonnu Smith reportedly signed a two-year deal with the Miami Dolphins valued at $10 million. The signing was first reported by NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.
DISCLAIMER: The Falcons editorial staff is independently aggregating reports of Falcons signings from select reporters, without confirmation from the team. The full list of reporters: Adam Schefter (ESPN), Jeremy Fowler (ESPN), Dan Graziano (ESPN), Ian Rapoport (NFL Network), Tom Pelissero (NFL Network), Mike Garafolo (NFL Network), Jonathan Jones (CBS), Jay Glazer (FOX), Dianna Russini (The Athletic), Jeff Howe (The Athletic), Albert Breer (Sports Illustrated) and Mark Maske (Washington Post).
