ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) – The Atlanta Falcons drafted Wisconsin tackle Jack Nelson with the No. 218 pick (seventh round) in the 2025 NFL Draft on Saturday.
The 6-foot-7, 316-pounder is coming off his fifth season at Wisconsin, where he played all 12 games for the Badgers. In 50 career starts, Nelson started 37 games at left tackle and 13 at right guard.
The big man offers versatility and effective run blocking, especially in zone schemes. However, scouts note areas for improvement in pass rushing.
This wraps up the draft for Atlanta, who went defense-heavy with defensive lineman UGA’s Jalon Walker (No. 15) and Tennessee’s James Pearce Jr. (No. 26) in the first round and Notre Dame safety Xavier Watts in the third round. Atlanta drafted Oklahoma safety Billy Bowman Jr. in the fourth round.
The team was involved in a flurry of trades throughout the draft, trading with the Los Angeles Rams to move up and select Pearce and striking a deal with the Philadelphia Eagles to move up and draft Watts.
The Falcons sent the Rams their 2026 first-round pick as well as second-round and seventh-round selections in this year’s draft. The Falcons also obtained a third-round selection from the Rams, which they included in the deal with the Eagles along with a 2026 fifth-rounder for No. 96 overall, where they drafted Watts.
“They had a whole thing where they sat me down, and said we need to trade back and pick up more picks,” Falcons GM Terry Fontenot said on Friday. “I’ll tell you, it’s when you have conviction on players and when you judge things and say if it was a good trade or a bad trade, it’s not about the points and all those things.”
Trading future picks to build its defense with these players indicates Fontenot was comfortable with the idea of bleak future drafts. But defense has been a struggle in recent history, and it was the team focused on most in this draft.
Atlanta narrowly missed the postseason in 2024 after finishing 8-9. Now, with a bolstered defensive staff, the team looks to make a push for its first postseason appearance since 2017.
Training camp begins mid-July.
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