The Atlanta Falcons are expected to focus on building their defense this offseason, but Trice and Hellams could impact how they go about doing that.
FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — The Atlanta Falcons are preparing for offseason decisions that will impact the 2025 season and beyond. There will be departures, additions and players working their way back from injury to consider.
There are two key players who fall into that last category for Atlanta — Bralen Trice and DeMarcco Hellams. Both were lost for the season during the Falcons' first preseason game against the Miami Dolphins, and each could have a role for a defense in transition.
Trice, a third-round pick for Atlanta in the 2024 NFL Draft, could be the biggest x-factor for the defense next season. In his first training camp, Trice showed potential as an impact player off the edge. He was the Washington Huskies' defensive MVP in both 2022 and 2023 and finished his college career with 28.5 tackles for a loss and 18 sacks over 40 games played.
"Another versatile player, tough, instinctive, he can play the run, he can rush the passer," Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot said of Trice after they selected him. "Powerful, heavy-handed on the edge, and again, excellent motor, non-stop motor. Love the way he plays the game and the way he approaches the game."
Trice is part of a rookie class that also includes Ruke Orhorhoro and Brandon Dorlus, who will likely be asked to handle a bigger workload on the interior of Atlanta's defensive line in their second seasons. Their play on the inside, coupled with Trice's performance off the edge, will be crucial for the defensive front in 2025.
It's a group that ended the year on a hot streak. Atlanta ranked 11th in rushing yards allowed per game and second in sacks per pass attempt from Weeks 13-18 last season. Arnold Ebiketie made an impact off the edge with five sacks in the final six games, but the pass rush remains a central area of focus for the team.
If Trice can step up opposite of Ebiketie, it would go a long way towards settling a position group that has been an annual question in Atlanta.
Safety was a strength for the defense in 2024 thanks to the high-caliber play of Jessie Bates III and Justin Simmons. Simmons is set to be a free agent, however, and the Falcons may need to find a different running mate for Bates on the back end.
Hellams is an interesting in-house candidate for that job. It's a role he appeared poised to take over based on his work in training camp, when he was regularly working with the first-team unit. A former seventh-round pick for Atlanta in 2023, Hellams started four of the team's final six games as a rookie.
An ankle injury robbed Hellams of a critical second season, however, and it remains somewhat of a mystery how exactly the Falcons planned to use him. Bates is versatile enough to work with a lot of different players opposite him, which gives the coaching staff nice flexibility at the position. While he wasn't on the field, Hellams stayed engaged in the meeting rooms to be ready for a future return.
"He's been in every meeting, understanding what he's supposed to do," Falcons assistant head coach/defense Jerry Gray said during the season. "You know, we've given him assignments, say, what about this here. He gets an assignment on Tuesday, and then he has to present it on Friday. So, mentally he's prepared, even though physically he may not be out there. Because to me, I'm a firm believer, if you really go mentally, you'll get your body back right. If you take a year off mentally and physically, it's going to be a strain."
The coaching staff will have the best sense of anyone what Hellams is capable of in their defensive designs, but are the Falcons ready to fully rely on him as a 17-game starter? Has the change in defensive coordinator altered that thinking?
If Hellams is a player the Falcons trust for that role, it would allow them to focus on some of their other defensive needs this offseason. It's a lot to expect him to immediately play to the level Simmons did in 2024, and he'd likely be tested a lot in his first year as a starter.
Trice and Hellams are two blank puzzle pieces for the Falcons this offseason. They could prove to be exactly the right fit and help fill out the defense, but there's no guarantee that will be the case. When looking at Atlanta's future outlook on defense, though, there's no doubt that they are a key part of the picture.
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