Keep or Cut: Which Falcons Deserve New Deals and Which Should Be Let Go to Free Agency?

NFL free agency is just around the corner, and the Atlanta Falcons are a team looking to make noise in the upcoming weeks. Atlanta has to make crucial roster decisions to not only stay under the salary cap ceiling, but also splurge in the upcoming free agent market. New general manager Ian Cunningham has his work cut out for him in the following weeks in deciding whether to extend talent, let them walk, or even cut players still under contract. These are a few potential extensions and cut candidates Cunningham will mull over before the start of free agency.

Keep - Kyle Pitts

After back-to-back underwhelming seasons in 2023 and 2024, Kyle Pitts had a breakout year similar to his rookie year in terms of production. The former fourth overall pick racked up an impressive 928 receiving yards along with five receiving touchdowns while starting all 17 games for Atlanta. The highlight of his season came in a Week 15, Thursday Night Football game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, where the tight end lit up the Buccaneers defense for 166 yards and three touchdowns in a 29-28 Falcons win. His late-year surge earned him a Second-Team All-Pro nod and a lot of buzz around the league about potential destinations for him. With that being said, Atlanta should try their best to at the very least franchise tag Pitts to see if he can continue this pace going into the 2026 season. Atlanta needs reliable pass catchers outside of Drake London, and Pitts should be one of those options for the foreseeable future.

Cut - Tyler Allgeier

Yeah, this one is going to make a lot of Falcons fans upset and a lot of fantasy football players elated. Tyler Allgeier is coming off yet another solid year in Atlanta with 514 rushing yards and eight touchdowns on the year. Despite the decent production for the backup power back, his rushing stats were at a career low this year, which is to be expected considering how well Bijan Robinson played this year. Allgeier, in limited snaps, has shown that he can be a starting running back in the NFL, just not with the Falcons. Despite the down-ish year in terms of rushing yards, the 25-year-old will have a rather large market for him in free agency, and the Falcons cannot afford to pay him at market rate while also making quality signings at positions of need. Unless Atlanta can re-sign him on a very team-friendly deal, Allgeier could be donning a different uniform next season.

Keep - Kaden Ellis

Kaden Ellis has been one of the few bright spots on some rather dreadful Falcons defenses when he was signed during the 2023 offseason. Ellis has given Atlanta steady and honestly underrated production for the past three seasons since coming over from New Orleans. His campaign this season saw the seven-year vet rack up 107 tackles, three and a half sacks, and even a single interception. He, alongside fellow linebacker Divine Diablo, helped the Falcons defense shoot from being the 22nd-ranked defense in 2024 all the way to the 15th-ranked defense in 2025. Solid production from linebackers is hard to come by in this league. Atlanta would be smart to try to extend him.

Cut - David Onyemata

Another former Saint defender that Atlanta signed in the 2023 offseason was defensive lineman David Onyemata. Onyemata has given Atlanta solid run-stopping production since his arrival, but not much else in overall production. The 10-year veteran ended the year with 62 tackles, seven tackles for a loss of yardage, and a sack. His production has slowly declined each year since his original signing in 2023. Onyemata will be 34 years old midway through the 2026 season. The most reasonable option would be for them to move on, likely finding younger and cheaper talent in the draft.

Keep - Zane Gonzales

A problem the Atlanta Falcons faced for the majority of the 2025 season was their abysmal special teams. Poor punt coverage, poor returning coverage, and probably the worst of all was their kicking issues. Younghoe Koo missed a potential game-tying field goal in Week One against the Buccaneers and was subsequently cut. Parker Romo seemed like he could be something before also missing kick after kick, the climax being a missed extra point in a Week Nine bout against the Patriots, which ended up costing them in a 24-23 loss. In comes Zane Gonzales, who hit 19 of his 22 of his field goals and 17 of 18 extra points to give the Falcons some stability at kicker, one of those field goals being blocked because of the aforementioned poor special teams play. Gonzales is the first step in fixing Atlanta’s bad special teams play. If he can continue his solid production for another year, he will help out the overall unit greatly.

Cut - Kirk Cousins

We all knew this name was coming. Kirk Cousins was signed to a massive four-year, 180 million dollar deal by Atlanta in 2024 to fix their subpar quarterback play ever since former MVP Matt Ryan had left the team. The highs were there, two separate Thursday Night Football games in which he decimated the Buccaneers secondary. The Swag Surf celebration after one of the said Thursday Night Football wins in Atlanta. However, it’s all marred by leading the league in interceptions in 2024 with a career high of 16, and proceeding to get benched for former first-round pick Michael Penix Jr. Cousins was a 180 million dollar backup in 2025 and was thrust into the starter position after Penix tore his ACL. Cousins has underperformed mightily for what he was signed for, leaving Atlanta hugging the cap ceiling and not fixing their problems at quarterback. Cutting Cousins from this large contract can contribute to helping their cap situation. It’s better for both parties, as Cousins clearly doesn’t fit in with this team’s future, and maybe he can find a new home back in Minnesota, which also has their own quarterback issues. Regardless, it would be wise for the Falcons to move on from Cousins and try to address the quarterback room during the draft.