Falcons double down on pass rush help, select Georgia’s Walker with No. 15 pick, Tennessee’s Pearce in 2025 NFL draft.
— The Atlanta Falcons doubled down on their commitment to boosting their pass rush by selecting Georgia linebacker Jalon Walker with the No. 15 overall pick and then trading with the Los Angeles Rams to add Tennessee defensive end James Pearce Jr. later in the first round of the NFL draft on Thursday night.
Walker won the 2024 Butkus Award as the nation’s best linebacker. He is viewed as a player with the potential to play a hybrid role in the NFL as a linebacker and edge rusher.
Pearce (6-5, 245) ran the 40-yard dash at 4.47 seconds to rank as the fastest defensive lineman at the NFL scouting combine.
The Falcons sent the Rams their 2026 first-round pick as well as second-round and seventh-round selections in this year’s draft. The Falcons also obtained a third-round selection from the Rams in this year’s draft.
The picks in this year’s draft acquired by the Rams are No. 46 overall in the second round and No. 242 in the seventh round.
Rams general manager Les Snead said the Falcons outbid several teams that wanted to acquire the No. 26 pick. When Atlanta included its first-round pick in 2026, the offer was too good to pass up.
Rams coach Sean McVay compared the Falcons’ move up for Pearce to the Rams’ own move for the No. 39 overall pick last year to get defensive tackle Braden Fiske, who cost LA its second-round pick this year. Fiske has emerged as one of the NFL’s top young defensive linemen.
At 6-foot-1 and 243 pounds, there are questions if Walker has sufficient size to flourish as a pass rusher against NFL offensive tackles. He had 69 tackles, including 101/2 for losses, and 6 1/2 sacks for Georgia in 2024.
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