The Falcoholic
Three games to go, 48 sacks already accumulated, and a chance to break a long-standing franchise record. In a year where the Falcons have not given us much to cheer about, their pass rush has been a shining exception, one that provides real intrigue over the final three weeks of the season.
Ten players have two or more sacks in 2025. James Pearce Jr. is the first Falcon to put up eight in a season since Vic Beasley did so in 2019 and has the official rookie single season record; Brandon Dorlus has seven sacks of his own in a breakout second year and fellow rookie Jalon Walker is sitting on 5.5. They’ve already tied the 2004 Falcons for the second-highest single season total for the statistic, a feat that team reached in 16 games and the Falcons took just 14 to get to. It has been a wild, wild year for the pass rush, and the investments the past two offseasons up front have been a true success story.
It raises one more obvious question: Can the Falcons break the single season franchise record, something that would have been unthinkable before, say, midway through this season?
The obvious answer is yes. The Falcons are averaging over three sacks per game, and need eight sacks to break the record. They play Jacoby Brissett (at least two sacks in all but one of his starts this season), Matthew Stafford (a challenging matchup, given his arm and ability to move in the pocket), and Tyler Shough (who the team sacked five times the last time they saw him). It’s a mark that is extremely within reach so long as this group stays healthy and keeps playing at the level they’re managing. Neither one of those items are a lock, naturally, but it’s not exactly pie in the sky either.
No matter how optimistic you were before the season, no one can honestly say they saw this coming. The Falcons pass rush now is perhaps the biggest non-Bijan building block this team has, and I’m rooting for them to break the franchise record and announce a new era of dominance. With this season having lost its luster long ago, it would be something worth celebrating.
