Falcons’ biggest breakout candidates: Picking 5 players in line for a jump

Dorlus was the Falcons’ biggest breakout performer last season. As a fourth-round rookie in 2024, he played in only two games and was often a healthy scratch. In 2025, he took the second-year leap, collecting 8½ sacks and 11 tackles for loss in 15 games.

Dorlus enters Year 3 wanting more — and the Falcons start training camp July 29 hoping another player takes a similar step forward.

Who’s next? Here are the five likeliest answers.

OLB Jalon Walker

Overshadowed by the brilliance of two fellow rookies last season — outside linebacker James Pearce Jr. and safety Xavier Watts both finished in the top 5 in NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year voting — Walker pieced together a solid campaign. There is, however, plenty of room for him to grow.

Walker had 5½ sacks, five tackles for loss and nine quarterback hits across 15 games. Falcons defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich feels he didn’t maximize Walker’s versatility amid the defense’s week-by-week evolution, and Ulbrich wants to be more intentional with moving Walker around the field.

Drafted No. 15 overall in 2025, Walker can fill several roles. He has largely been an edge rusher for the Falcons, and that remained his primary spot during OTAs and minicamp, but there’s a chance he aligns over center or gets a few snaps at inside linebacker this fall, too.

All told, the stars align for Walker to take a step forward. He’s playing in the same system as last year, and he’ll benefit from, as coach Kevin Stefanski said during minicamp, “a trip around the sun” at the NFL level.

WR Jahan Dotson

Dotson is the oldest player on this list and a nontraditional pick for a breakout. He’s 26 years old, entering his fifth NFL season and has 42 professional starts under his belt, but the No. 16 overall pick in the 2022 draft is searching for a second wind.

After two consistent years with the Washington Commanders — he made 84 catches for 1,041 yards and 11 touchdowns in 29 games — Dotson was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles and had to accept a reserve role. His targets, numbers and snaps diminished.

But the Falcons signed Dotson to be their No. 2 receiver and complement star Drake London. He should get plenty of reps, and opportunities, to remind the league why he was a prized prospect exiting Penn State.

Cordarrelle Patterson had a rare Year 9 breakout with the Falcons in 2021. Perhaps Dotson, in his fifth season, can finally cement himself as a legitimate starting wideout and central piece to an offensive game plan.

DE Zach Harrison

Before missing the final eight games last season because of a knee injury, Harrison appeared well on his way to joining Dorlus as the Falcons’ biggest breakthrough performers. In only seven games, the 2023 third-round pick set career highs with 4½ sacks and five tackles for loss.

Back healthy and carrying the subtle confidence of a player whose NFL light bulb appeared to turn on, Harrison worked with the first-team unit on a deep Falcons defensive line in the early part of summer practices.

He’s back with Ulbrich and defensive line coach Nate Ollie, and the Falcons appear interested in moving Harrison around the front. The 6-foot-5 270-pounder should bring a versatile, disruptive presence to the Falcons’ defensive line, and if he can translate his seven-game success into a full year’s worth of production, he’ll get a nice contract next spring in free agency.

DT Maason Smith

The Falcons acquired Smith, a 2024 second-round pick, from the Jaguars in a direct swap for Ruke Orhorhoro. Smith turned heads during OTAs and minicamp, with his size, movement skills and ability to learn the system drawing positive reviews from coaches and teammates.

Ollie said Smith will be an “every-down guy” this fall, and while the 6-foot-5, 306-pounder has only three sacks and four quarterback hits in his career, the Falcons expect him to be a bonus to their pass rush.

A change of scenery could prove beneficial for Smith, who started only seven of 24 appearances with the Jaguars. The Falcons expect Smith to take a step forward in his new home, and his early returns were encouraging.

S Xavier Watts

Is this cheating? Watts had a brilliant rookie season, starting all 17 games while registering 96 tackles and five interceptions. He finished fourth in the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year race and will, once more, play under Ulbrich and secondary coach Justin Hood.

Watts technically doesn’t need to break out. He does, however, have another glass ceiling to break through — the one separating him from the NFL’s elite safeties. Another year of similar production and game-changing plays should vault Watts to such heights.