A clear message was sent this past weekend by the Atlanta Falcons and General Manager Terry Fontenot. The message is, simply, that the Falcons and Fontenot are officially all in.

In what could have arguably been his best draft since joining the Falcons four years ago, Fontenot delivered on many fans’ hopes that the Falcons would address its defensive woes. And boy, did they.

First up was Jalon Walker at pick No. 15. The Georgia EDGE became the first player picked from down the road in Athens in the first round in franchise history. While that’s a baffling statistic in itself, I’m glad that now was the time the Falcons brass changed its previous stance.

When Walker fell to No. 15, I thought, “This pick is so obvious that Terry Fontenot can’t even mess this up.” Thankfully, the Falcons went with the obvious, safe choice and made a ton of fans happy in the process.

And that was the end of night 1… except it wasn’t.

In classic Fontenot fashion, the Falcons traded back into the first round at pick No. 26 to select Tennessee EDGE James Pearce Jr. In doing so, the Falcons traded its 2025 second round pick and next year’s first round selection.

There have been a lot of hot takes about this pick. Pearce shows a lot of potential, and was someone who I thought the Falcons could take at No. 15 if Walker was off the board. If nothing else, he gives the Falcons another option at a position that hasn’t been good in my entire lifetime.

But was it really worth losing next year’s first? I’d argue no.

There were other players available in the late second round if you wanted to double up on the EDGE position. Mike Green from Marshall comes to mind immediately, barring his character and moral issues.  Ex Yellow-Jacket Demetrius Knight was there, too.

While I think Pearce in general was a good value pick at No. 26, I’m just not a fan of the trade. It showed me that Fontenot has pushed his chips to the middle on this pick.

The rest of the draft was fantastic. Xavier Watts and Billy Bowman are two stud defensive backs that were both steals. They both have all of the potential to be a one-two punch at safety, especially if we ever lose Jessie Bates.

Jack Nelson is a good developmental tackle prospect who could become our swing tackle. He shows a lot of upside for a seventh round pick.

Another bright spot came in the hours following the draft. The Falcons signed wide receiver Nick Nash and defensive back Cobee Bryant as undrafted free agents.

Both prospects were projected to be selected in the late rounds of the draft by many experts. They were also extremely productive during their time in college. It’s very possible that both of these players will make the roster and contribute early for the Falcons and UDFA rookies.

As critical as I have been in the past, this was Fontenot’s best draft by a mile. But the cloud that will stick over his head here will be the success of James Pearce Jr.

The high cost involved in the trade to get him will make or break Fontenot. But as I mentioned earlier, he seemed to have been comfortable pushing all of his chips in the middle of the table with his hand shown.

It’s a bold strategy. Sometimes when you go all in, you win it all. Other times, you lose it all. We’ll see which direction it goes for Fontenot in the coming years.

Evan Newton is the managing editor of The Covington News. He can be reached at enewton@covnews.com.