Jalon Walker
James Pearce Jr.
Ruke Orhorhoro
Bralen Trice
Arnold Ebiketie
Leonard Floyd

The #Falcons have all of a sudden transformed and added on to a pass rush filled with youth and some experience pic.twitter.com/OdVJ8TQlwl

— Miles Garrett (@MilesGarrettTV) April 25, 2025

The Atlanta Falcons had big expectations for outside linebacker Bralen Trice ahead of his rookie year in 2024. Unfortunately, the former Washington Huskies star and third-round pick suffered a torn ACL in his first preseason game against the Miami Dolphins, ending his first NFL campaign before it could even get started.

Heading into his second season, head coach Raheem Morris said that a realistic goal for Trice is to be ready by the start of training camp.

“He is at the point where he’s out there with our [physical therapist],” Morris told Falcons digital team reporter Terrin Waack in late May.

“I don’t want to misstep with my words. He is with him most of the time. He’s doing a couple things on the side. He’s doing a lot of the running things. But, definitely not at the full category yet if we were doing some of those things. So, he’s working his way back.”

Atlanta was expecting Trice to be a critical part of their pass rush last season, after leading the nation in pressures during both the 2022 and 2023 seasons with the Huskies, and Morris had him listed with the second team on the depth chart behind Arnold Ebiketie, who has tallied 14.5 sacks over his first three seasons in the league.

Then, general manager Terry Fontenot decided to further upgrade the defensive line, spending a pair of first-round picks on pass rushers Jalon Walker and James Pearce Jr. in 2025 before adding Ruke Orhorhoro in the second round.

As the Falcons look to build around Trice’s college teammate, quarterback Michael Penix Jr., a strong pass rush could mitigate some of the late-season defensive struggles Atlanta experienced last season under defensive coordinator and former UW head coach Jimmy Lake. If the former Husky star can come back healthy, he could prove to be a critical part of the team’s pass rush depth.