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Earl Mitchell finished up a visit with Denver yesterday and arrived in Atlanta, with a meeting with the Falcons on the docket. We’ll see if he winds up leaving the city without a contract.
Broncos had dinner w/ Earl Mitchell last night. He talked to coaches this a.m. & visit went well. He's expected to continue FA tour, to ATL.
— Nicki Jhabvala (@NickiJhabvala) February 23, 2017
Mitchell, 29, has never put up eye-popping stat lines. That’s the case for many very good defensive tackles, however, and Mitchell offers the ability to penetrate into the backfield and a proficiency against the run that would be welcome in the team’s defensive tackle rotation. The Falcons may be seriously considering cutting ties with Tyson Jackson and may not re-sign the legendary Jonathan Babineaux, leaving them with Grady Jarrett, Ra’Shede Hageman, and not much else. Mitchell would be an overall upgrade on T-Jax and Babs, in all likelihood, and as such Quinn is likely to make a big push for him. The defensive line is Quinn’s bread and butter, and given that it’s one of the most obvious areas for improvement on this defense, it’s likely to get dollars and plenty of attention thrown at it.
Mitchell, of course, has plenty of suitors and doesn’t need to make a quick decision, and a visit does not guarantee a signing. The pieces fit, though, and I wouldn’t be at all surprised if Mitchell wound up becoming Atlanta’s first major signing of 2017.
Atlanta is, to my knowledge, Mitchell’s final visit on his whirlwind tour of contenders, including Denver. We should know where he’ll end up before long.