The Falcons should have one compensatory draft pick for Alex Mack

Atlanta’s heading into the 2022 NFL Draft with a list of needs longer than a python’s stomach. To address them, they’ll need as many picks as they can get, either so they can increase the number of darts they throw on the board or package a few picks up to swing for the fences on players they really like.

The Julio Jones trade gave them an additional second round selection that will be useful in that regard, but there’s another pick the Falcons are...well, picking up that might make a difference as well. That’d be the sixth rounder they’re set to get as a compensatory pick for losing Alex Mack, per Over The Cap.

That will give this team a pair of sixth rounders, and for the second straight year they won’t have a seventh rounder, because apparently this brain trust gets tired of the draft right about the same time the rest of us do. Here’s the projected picks:

• Round 1, Pick 8
• Round 2, Pick 43
• Round 2, Pick 58
• Round 3, Pick 74
• Round 4, Pick 113
• Round 5, Pick 151
• Round 6, Pick 189
• Round 6, Pick 212

In total, the Falcons will have eight selections in the 2022 NFL Draft, and once again will likely use all of them to deal with their laundry list of roster needs. While no pick last year except Kyle Pitts truly looked like a home run—and even with Pitts, some of that is his obvious upside rather than his 2021 season—but nearly every player proved to be useful on some level and got playing time. Whether the team elects to use all of these selections or trade a handful for shots at impact players remains to be seen, but either way this is a critically important draft and they’ll have their chances to make it a great one.

We’ll get official word on this comp pick very soon, but this team has the selections to put together a compelling draft class.