James Pearce Jr. recorded two sacks in Atlanta’s Week 15 win over Tampa Bay.

The Atlanta Falcons defeated the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Thursday night in a game that sent the NFC South standings into a jumbled mess. The Buccaneers and Carolina Panthers both sit at 7-7 with three games left to play, two of which are against each other.

While the Falcons have long been eliminated from the playoff race, they have to be happy with how their draft class performed in another big game. Rookie James Pearce Jr. added two more sacks to his total on Thursday night. The first-round pick out Tennessee now leads all rookies with eight sacks this season.

Jalon Walker also recorded a sack in Week 15, continuing his stellar rookie campaign. Despite missing some time, Walker has been wildly productive when healthy. Overall, Atlanta’s two first-round picks have been a consistent bright spot in an otherwise down year.

Pro Football Focus has been grading all 32 first-round selections in the 2025 NFL draft after each game. Let’s check out what PFF had to say about Walker and Pearce following Week 15.

Jalon Walker Week 15 PFF grade: 65.6

Walker bounced back from a shortened Week 14 appearance to tally four pressures, including a sack, in Atlanta’s comeback victory over the Buccaneers in Week 15. That sack came on a crucial third-down play late in the fourth quarter, which gave the Falcons a chance to take the eventual lead as time expired. — Dalton Wasserman, PFF

James Pearce Jr. Week 15 PFF grade: 57.3

Pearce racked up a team-high six pressures and two sacks in the Falcons’ victory over the Buccaneers. His 39 pressures and nine sacks on the season lead the team as he continues to make his case for the Defensive Rookie of the Year award. Pearce and fellow first-rounder Jalon Walker have led the effort that has their team ranked 13th in the NFL in PFF pass-rush grade. — Dalton Wasserman, PFF

The Falcons will hit the road in Week 16 to face off against the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday afternoon. Neither team has been very good over the second half of the season.

The Cardinals have lost their last six games, while the Falcons have been dreadful aside from last week’s upset over the Buccaneers. Sunday’s game starts at 4:05 p.m. ET.