In early 2022, the Atlanta Falcons weren’t just interested in Deshaun Watson; they were all in. They rolled out a full-on charm offensive. Owner Arthur Blank, GM Terry Fontenot, and head coach Arthur Smith met with the quarterback, a Georgia native and former Falcons ball boy, hoping for a homecoming. By most accounts, including ESPN, Atlanta was a frontrunner. But when the Browns offered Watson a $230 million fully guaranteed contract, the largest in NFL history, the Falcons hit the brakes. Emotion met cold business. The dream crumbled instantly.
That wasn’t just a number. It was a statement, and a grenade in the NFL’s contract system. Blank later testified in a 2024 NFLPA collusion grievance that Deshaun Watson’s deal was mammoth. He said, “You have to leave that to (Browns owners) Jimmy and Dee Haslam to make their own judgment. The fact that it’s $80 million above the highest other contract ever given guaranteed in the history of the league (that is) 102 years old says a lot.”
He then clarified his stance that the deal was out of bounds for them. Perhaps the Falcons were not ready for it. Blank added, “Whether or not most teams in the NFL, or any other team, would’ve committed to that, I don’t know. That certainly is a huge commitment.” Behind closed doors, the NFL Management Council warned owners, via an actual PowerPoint slideshow, about giving out such deals again.
Blank recalled the meeting, but claimed it didn’t affect his team’s approach. The Falcons denied collusion. They courted Deshaun Watson hard. And then ghosted him once the money went nuclear. The NFLPA’s arbitration report, released in June 2025, confirmed that league leadership did encourage teams to avoid fully guaranteed deals post-Watson. But arbitrator Christopher Droney ruled that clubs didn’t formally collude. The Falcons got legal cover, but the court of public opinion? Different story. They were the team that got close, felt the fire, and walked away.
The bigger issue was the lost opportunity. If Atlanta had landed Watson, they likely would never have chased Kirk Cousins in 2024. Never draft Michael Penix Jr. Never burn two full seasons on Desmond Ridder. For better or worse, that non-signing shaped the next three years. And fans know it. But they also failed in building a strong team by not acquiring a popular MVP quarterback!
Falcons missed on another star after Deshaun Watson
If the Watson saga was a slow movement that ended in a financial breakup, the Falcons’ response to Lamar Jackson was a flat-out ghost. In March 2023, Jackson hit the market under the non-exclusive tag. For a moment, it seemed possible that a bold team might step in. Atlanta also discussed it internally, then publicly said it would not pursue him within 24 hours.
The Falcons had a glaring QB need and cap room. Yet they passed on a 28-year-old MVP who accounted for 166 total touchdowns in his career. Arthur Blank later testified that Jackson’s injury history (missed 10 games across 2021–22) and cap constraints influenced the decision. But it smelled like something more. Teams had just witnessed the Deshaun Watson mess, public blowback, legal trouble, and contract chaos. Jackson, represented by himself, was pushing for Watson-level guarantees.
The Falcons played it safe. Too safe, some would argue. Lamar eventually got a five-year, $260 million deal from Baltimore, $185 million guaranteed, still short of Watson. But the silence from most teams, especially the Falcons, raised eyebrows. And once again, Atlanta let a transformative quarterback pass them by, for reasons that were more about politics and pressure than pure football logic.
So, where does this leave Atlanta? They got their guy in Cousins, for now. They drafted their future in Penix. But their track record with elite quarterbacks tells a story of fear. Twice, they were in a position to land game-changing QBs. Both times, they said no. Maybe they dodged a bullet. Or maybe they missed their moment.
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