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Dontari Poe spent quite a bit of time with the Atlanta Falcons over the last 24 hours or so, and likely had a nice dinner, many illuminating conversations, and a contract offer by the time he left. Make no mistake: He is leaving, and may already have left.
Free agent defensive tackle Dontari Poe is scheduled to leave the Falcons tonight and the #Dolphins are next on his free agent visit tour.
— Omar Kelly (@OmarKelly) March 14, 2017
Poe has now taken visits with multiple teams and likely has some solid contract offers on the table, and no one should be surprised that he’s continuing to test the waters. Atlanta gives him the best chance to win, but odds are that he could get more money from, say, the Jaguars. His departure tonight doesn’t mean the door is closed with the Falcons, but it does mean the Falcons didn’t get him sewn up, and that creates doubt. Unless Miami blows him away, though, I’d bet you haven’t seen the last of the Falcons being linked to the hulking former Chiefs defender.
We’ll see what happens with Poe from here, but the Falcons should absolutely be looking at players like Jonathan Hankins hard as a fallback plan. The team will need to get a capable defensive tackle in free agency at some point, or risk the position being a trouble spot again in 2017.