PFF grades Falcons’ transactions on Day 1 of free agency

The Atlanta Falcons were among the most active teams on the first day of the NFL’s legal tampering period. With over $60 million in cap space at their disposal, the Falcons swung for the fences by locking up one of the league’s best guards for five more years and agreeing to terms with the top safety on the market.

In addition to extending Chris Lindstrom and signing Jessie Bates III, the team brought back a few in-house free agents and signed two former Saints players — defensive tackle David Onyemata and linebacker Kaden Elliss. Thus far, the national reaction to Atlanta’s fast start to free agency has been mixed.

ESPN was lukewarm about the team’s signings, while CBS Sports named the Falcons as one of the “losers” of day one. Pro Football Focus offered grades for five of the team’s early transactions. Check them out below!

LB Kaden Elliss (3 years, $21.5 million)

Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports

• PFF Fit/need grade: A
• PFF Value grade: C+

Elliss is a very versatile player, with 250 snaps down on the line and 330 in the box last season. He racked up 20 pressures and seven sacks on 103 pass-rush snaps, plus an impressive 36 defensive stops given his limited reps. Elliss’ 21 stops in run defense from Week 9 through the end of the season were tied for the fourth most among linebackers.

FS Jessie Bates (4 years, $64 million)

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• PFF Fit/need grade: A-
• PFF Value grade: B+

Bates hasn’t hit the heights he did when he produced a 90.1 PFF grade back in 2020, but he has still been an above-average player at the position over the past two seasons. His 72.6 PFF coverage grade over the past two seasons ranks 30th among safeties, but when you factor in the impressive 2020 season, his three-year PFF coverage grade of 90.5 trails only Kevin Byard of the Tennessee Titans and Marcus Williams of the Baltimore Ravens.

DL David Onyemata (3 years, $35 million)

(Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

• PFF Fit/need grade: A
• PFF Value grade: B-

Ryan Nielsen, Onyemata’s defensive line coach with the New Orleans Saints from 2017-22, is the new Atlanta Falcons defensive coordinator. Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot also spent nearly two decades with the Saints, so there is a lot of familiarity here. Over the past three seasons, Onyemata’s 11.4% pressure percentage ranks 11th among interior defenders, and he earned back-to-back pass-rush grades above 75.0 in 2020 and 2021.

RG Chris Lindstrom (5 years, $105 million)

(Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)

• PFF Fit/need grade: A
• PFF Value grade: B+

Lindstrom is coming off a career year during which he thrived in Atlanta’s run-heavy offense, finishing the season with a 95.0 PFF grade that led all offensive linemen. His 93.1 PFF run-blocking grade was also the best across all positions on the offensive line, but he wasn’t limited to just a run blocker. Ranking sixth among all guards with an 81.7 PFF pass-blocking grade, Lindstrom allowed just two sacks, one hit and six hurries from 517 pass-blocking snaps.

TE Jonnu Smith (Trade Patriots)

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• PFF Fit/need grade: C
• PFF Value grade: B-

He takes a safe pair of hands with him to Atlanta, having never dropped more than three passes in a single season across his six-year career. While he saw just 27 catchable passes in 2022, all of them resulted in a reception. The need here is still a bit puzzling, with Atlanta drafting Kyle Pitts fourth overall in 2021 and with an H-back type of player in Parker Hesse involved in the offense already. Atlanta has a lot of cash and cap space to burn, but inheriting $11 million to acquire Smith isn’t the best use of resources.