As much as I love the idea of pairing one of the amazing corners in this draft with AJ Terrell, how about we take a look at that Falcons’ receiver room. Up first, with 54 career receptions from the University of Virginia, it’s Olamide Zaccheaus! Next up, with five total career receiving touchdowns after his sixth season in the NFL, it’s Damiere Byrd! And to round off the top three, we have Auden Tate! As you can tell from all of my very positive use of exclamation points, this trio is great when you consider the starting quarterback is Marcus Mariota! Right? WRONG. Outside of Kyle Pitts, this team doesn’t have a legitimate receiving threat, until now.

If the #49ers are looking to trade Deebo, they may be looking at his replacement in the draft. Wide receiver Khalil Shakir out of Boise State is a dawg. 77 Recs | 7 TD | 1117 yards. He's versatile. #49wz pic.twitter.com/4jZ73Y5NJP

— WayneBreezie (@WayneBreezie) April 10, 2022

Khalil Shakir. If you don’t know that name (which could mean you don’t follow me on Twitter because he’s all I tweet about), you will know eventually. Shakir is my favorite player in the draft for many reasons. Number One: he is a top-tier separator. Whether he’s shaking guys off the line of scrimmage or making them miss deep, Shakir is going to make the quarterback’s job a heck of a lot easier. Number Two: his ability to win contested catches even though his frame wouldn’t suggest that. Even at 6-foot, Shakir just knows how to win those contested catches by having amazing balance and showing great body control in the air to put himself in the best position to make the play. Number Three (quite honestly my favorite): tackling Khalil Shakir in the open field is harder to do than catching a bar of soap in the shower. When he has the ball in his hands, you lose all hope of trying to tackle him.

If the #Cowboys pick a WR on Day 2, one of my favorites is Boise State WR Khalil Shakir. pic.twitter.com/YpM4b7cHnF

— Marcus Mosher (@Marcus_Mosher) April 12, 2022

If the Falcons do decide to go after one of the talented corners at the eighth pick, getting Shakir in the second round may end up helping the Falcons have the best first few picks in the entire draft. Do you know that saying “bang your fist on the table for your guy?” Well, I would karate chop a reinforced metal table with all of my might just for a chance to get Khalil Shakir on my football team, and you should too.

The Atlanta Falcons hold five picks inside the top 100: 8, 43, 58, 74, and 82. This is a team that desperately needs help on the offensive side of the ball. It looks to me like they’ll be tanking for CJ Stroud or Bryce Young, but let’s hope they don’t botch the tank and end up missing out on both of them in the 2023 draft. This year’s draft for Atlanta should be all about finding high-quality players that will be of positive impacts years down the road. No selection the Falcons make this year will drastically turn them into a potential playoff team. What I’m saying is they should be looking to compete in 2024. Your 2022 draft picks need to be a part of your playoff push in 2024. You need to identify talent no matter the position and bank on your development process to turn them into great players. So I’ll be taking UConn’s Travis Jones with the 43rd pick. Yes, Atlanta needs WR and CB help among many other things, but Jones is the guy at 43. He’s someone you can develop into a monster DT and someone you can rely on to be a key piece in your rebuild, someone who could very well play a key role in the 2024 playoff push. 

#UConn IDL Travis Jones (DT #57):

6-4, 330

Massive A gap presence that has a lot of twitch overall. This is a three-down player that has some standout reps as a pass rusher and his presence frees others on the second and third levels of the defense. pic.twitter.com/3d5pdtCYyl

— Jordan Reid (@Jordan_Reid) February 26, 2022

Jones checks in at 6-foot-5 and 333 pounds, and you know he’s ready to go to war. In 584 snaps in 2021, he played 313 in pass rush and 271 against the run. That’s really good balance and helps paint the picture that Jones is a lot more than just a stout run stuffer. He tallied 4.5 sacks in 2021 as he gets after the QB with brute strength that has the interior offensive lineman begging for a double team, gasping for air as he cries for help. Jones bullies his matchups by displaying elite hand strength that helps him get off blocks consistently. And while he’s a giant, he displays such precise footwork. His feet never stop churning. Jones is even agile and shockingly quick.

I truly believe that Travis Jones is on his way to being a highly productive pro football player. He’s the perfect selection for a franchise like Atlanta. The Falcons are currently in the dumps, but you can spot a slight rainbow, a glimmer of hope. Talents like AJ Terrell and Kyle Pitts are radiating in Atlanta, so go get them some help. Build for 2024. Accumulate talent in 2022, hope for CJ Stroud or Bryce Young in 2023, and go make the playoffs in 2024. That’s the blueprint. And one important part of that blueprint is to draft Travis Jones at 43. Trust.