FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — Atlanta Falcons general manager was asked an important question in the middle portion of his training camp press conference Sunday morning. The gist of it involved players' futures and where the organization stands seeing as a bunch of players on this 2025 roster are — in essence — playing for their next contract.
"Is it a bunch?" Fontenot quipped with a smile.
It is a handful, truth be told. And all of them have varying degrees of significance.
There are decisions to be made about players on the final years of their rookie contracts: Tyler Allgeier, Troy Andersen, Arnold Ebiketie, to name a few.
There are key starters and playmakers with questions about what their next contract will even look like — whether with Atlanta or elsewhere. Think Drake London and Kyle Pitts. Even Kaleb McGary.
And then there's the biggest elephant that remains in the room: Kirk Cousins.
So, yeah, that probably constitutes "a bunch." But where does that leave Fontenot, and the Falcons' front office staff? Well, mums the word to a certain extent. Fontenot has often said he wouldn't negotiate contracts with the media, and that includes giving away any information that may tilt the balance one way or the other.
Still, it's the business as much as it is the game. Fontenot believes, however, that the players' focus is not on the future, but on the present.
"One good thing that we have here is that we communicate really well with the players. And the players, at any point, they're sitting down with Raheem (Morris), sitting down with me, we communicate with the agents — there are all different situations, different circumstances, but the mentality of our guys is really cool. Our guys, just being real, they don't really think like that," Fontenot said. "... There really is an unselfishness that they know that if they keep their head down, stay focused and do their job, then things are going to go well, whether here or somewhere else."
Fontenot was asked directly about the situations of three players: Pitts, London and Cousins. What could their futures hold, either in Atlanta or out of it? Let's break down where the Falcons stand within that answer.
Kyle Pitts
Fontenot: "I will say this about Kyle: Kyle, when we are talking about guys showing up in great shape and showing up in the right way, Kyle did the same thing. We're managing him in the offseason the right way and in the summer those guys really did a lot of work together. He showed up in great shape and with his mentality — so just continuing to build chemistry with Mike (Penix) and with his teammates, we love where Kyle is right now."
Pitts is playing on his fifth-year option in 2025. He's playing for his next contract. To say its a big year for him is an understatement. He knows it. The Falcons know it. So, what happens because of this? Everyone would probably like to know, right?
Unfortunately, it's kind of up to three specific entities to show us the way: Penix, Pitts and offensive coordinator Zac Robinson. If the expectation for Pitts' role in this offense is to mimix 2024, then we're not looking at too much of a major change. But if Pitts turns into Penix's favorite go-to target? Perhaps we're having a very different conversation. At this point, it's too soon to know which path this trio will go down, and that's probably why Fontenot only talked about the present in his answer.
Drake London
Fontenot: "We won't talk specifically about the contract but I understand the question and why you ask it. And we do love Drake. It's all positive with him. It's not always just about the production, but its the mentality and the type of person Drake is and the way he carries himself, the way he works. Everything that we preach that we want to be, he's about those things. It's no different from the way we talk about Chris Lindstrom as a guard, we know the skills he has as a guard but the way he carries himself, the consistent worker, the mentality ... We love (Drake) so much, love his mentality. We just wouldn't talk specifically about the contracts."
Questions peaked about a potential extension for London when the New York Jets announced Garrett Wilson's 4-year, $130 million extension in mid-July. Where is London's extension? Well, it may go without saying that Atlanta would like to get a deal done. It's the when, how and what that contract looks like that is the question mark right now. And honestly? Even recent history doesn't give us too many hints.
Unprompted, Fontenot mentioned Lindstrom in his answer about London. Lindstrom is a player who the Falcons officially extended in the waning days of his fifth-year option. Lindstrom had already played that season, and the extension wasn't announced until March — right before the start of the new league year in 2023. The Falcons' next big extension of a former first-round pick followed a different cadence, though.
Last year, the Falcons extended A.J. Terrell during late August. Whereas Lindstrom's deal was done at the conclusion of his fifth year, Terrell's was completed prior to the start of his.
For London, this means we don't really know the when, where and how of that potential extension announcement. All we know is that the Falcons love what they have in London.
"There are times that you study the market and there are times where going early to the market can be beneficial, but there are also times looking historically that it's OK to wait until the appropriate time," Fontenot explained. We weigh those factors and we are constantly studying things that come in and studying the market to anticipate things.
"But we're real clear about how we feel about Drake."
Kirk Cousins
Fontenot: "Kirk has been the ultimate professional. I think Raheem said this: Outside it's a lot more of a deal than it is in the building. He shows up. He does his job. Our job is to do the best for this football team. Our job is to be experts on the other 31 teams, and to be an expert on our team. ... Kirk — just like all the other players — is focused on doing their job. That's what he's been doing. That's where we focused. And in terms of making moves, whether its trades, or acquiring players, we're always looking at those factors and we're going to do whatever we can do to make this team as best as it possibly can be. But he's been a great professional and he has handled himself well."
The question presented to Fontenot about Cousins that led to this answer was a bit different than what one may have thought it was just by reading Fontenot's response. The question wasn't, "How has Kirk Cousins handled this training camp?" Nor was it, "What's next with Kirk Cousins and the Falcons organization?"
The question was, "The organization has been clear since January that it is comfortable with Kirk Cousins as the backup. However, now that training camp is here, roster cutdowns approach and injuries are happening, is the organization's stance on Kirk Cousins still the same as it's always been or does it evolve?"
Trying not to read too much into Fontenot's answer to this but it does make ears perk to feel as though this answer diverges from those previously. It could have been very easy for Fontenot to say, "Yes, the organization's stance is still the same." But he didn't say that. He praised Cousins' professionalism and talked about roster construction.
Does this ultimately mean anything? Who's to say? But its worth pointing out nonetheless.
