NFL Team Needs: Falcons, Ravens, Buccaneers, Colts (2026)

NFL Team Needs: Falcons, Ravens, Buccaneers, Colts (2026)

The middle of Round 1 is where the draft truly starts to bend.

Picks 13 through 16 often belong to competitive teams — but this year, trade activity has reshaped the order. The Los Angeles Rams and New York Jets currently control selections in this range, yet for the purpose of evaluating roster construction and long-term outlooks, we’ll focus on the Atlanta Falcons and Indianapolis Colts alongside the Baltimore Ravens and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

This is a fascinating tier.

These aren’t TOTAL bottom-feeders. These are organizations with defined identities — some pushing for deep playoff runs, others trying to break through after trading first-round picks last season. But each has clear pressure points on the roster.

For contenders like Baltimore and Tampa Bay, this is about sustaining a window. For Atlanta and Indianapolis, it’s about accelerating one and overcoming the lack of first-round draft capital (and injured starting QBs).

The margin for error shrinks here. Reach too far for need, and you miss out on value. Sit back and draft purely on talent, and you risk ignoring a glaring weakness. Add in looming extensions and future cap decisions, and these picks become as strategic as they are impactful.

In this batch, we break down:

  • The biggest roster holes for each franchise
  • Contract situations and future cap implications
  • Which positions should be prioritized for veterans and rookies
  • Potential fantasy football implications

This is the range where good teams separate themselves from great ones — and where smart roster management pays off.

Up next: the Atlanta Falcons (via Rams selection), the Baltimore Ravens, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and the Indianapolis Colts (via Jets selection).

Salary cap contract information provided by Spotrac.

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Pick 13: Atlanta Falcons (traded to Los Angeles Rams)

2026 Free Agents

2027 Free Agents

Team Needs: DT, EDGE, WR, TE, CB, OT, LB

Obviously, solving the QB2 situation is a need for this new-look Atlanta Falcons roster under new head coach Kevin Stefanski. Kirk Cousins seemed possible to stick around, given his connection with Stefanski (they played together in Minnesota).

But he is expected to be released by the Falcons… with the team hoping to re-sign him on a cheaper contract (a la if he can’t get any starting jobs in free agency).

Former OC with Zac Robinson gone – replaced with Tommy Rees. Rees was also brought over from Cleveland to serve as the Falcons’ new OC. Before coming to Cleveland, Rees was at Alabama and Notre Dame, serving as offensive coordinator. Some players he coached eligible in this year’s draft class include TE Eli Raridon, RB Jadarian Price, QB Ty Simpson, and RB Jam Miller.

Matt Ryan was named the new President of Football.

Michael Penix Jr. is coming off another torn ACL injury. It’s his fifth season-ending injury. The Falcons must have a decent second option at the position. Joe Flacco looks like the obvious veteran option if Penix isn’t ready to start the year.

If not Flacco, it will most likely be in the form of a QB that can play under center. A la, Kyler Murray to Atlanta is probably a no-go.

Part of Stefanski’s offensive identity is to run under center – something Murray has not traditionally done.

They might need a replacement tight end if Kyle Pitts leaves in free agency. Adding another TE – David Njoku perhaps – also makes a lot of sense given the 12 personnel this offense also likes to operate from.

But Pitts seems likely to remain in Atlanta, according to The Athletic. The biggest question is whether the Falcons sign him to a long-term deal or place the franchise tag on him.

Also need to address the tackle position and IOL with FAs hitting those areas.

RT Kaleb McGary will also be returning from a season-ending knee injury in 2026.

Could also see WR given how poor Darnell Mooney was in 2025. The depth behind Mooney/Drake London was absurd for the Falcons.

Defensively, the pass rush finally came alive last season. One of the few bright spots in a disappointing year for the Dirty Birds overall.

But then edge rusher James Pearce Jr. had to go and get arrested, putting his status in doubt for next year (and future years, given the prior regime traded up for him).

So just like death and taxes…pass rush is back on the Falcons’ draft/needs board.

Otherwise, bolstering the secondary would be priority No. 1. Dee Alford is a free agent. However, Billy Bowman could kick inside and defend the slot (he got hurt last season).

LB Kaden Ellis is also a free agent and led the team in snaps on defense. Divine Deablo will be a free agent in 2027.

And even though pass rush was much better in 2025…there are a lot of bodies on the DL/EDGE that might walk in free agency (regardless of how Pearce’s situation shakes out). So, more defensive line depth is really needed here (particularly the interior). According to the Athletic…six of the nine interior defensive linemen who played for Atlanta last year are impending free agents or already gone.

Matt Ryan said in his opening news conference that his team would stop the run this year.

He also echoed that sentiment on an episode of “This Is Football” with Kevin Clark: Opened with running the football well, stopping the opponent from running the football well, etc.

The Falcons’ new GM is Ian Cunningham, who has been the Bears’ assistant GM since 2022. Started with the Ravens, and did personnel stuff with the Eagles as well. A lot of experience from some strong drafting teams that tend not to let value slip down the board.

Also learned a lot from those teams, building through the trenches across the OL and DL.

And given Cunningham’s ties to the Bears, possibly he could make a move for a player on the trade block, such as D.J. Moore.

Cole Kmet and Raiders No. 2 TE Michael Mayer also played with Rees at Notre Dame.

And although Falcons fans might not like it…Justin Fields might also make some sense here as back-up QB option if he is released from the Jets.

Cunningham was with him in Chicago. Tanner Engstrand (former Jets OC) was with Fields in New York last year. And Ryan has spoken pretty positively about Fields during his time as an analyst since he stopped playing football.

Both QBs played with Arthur Smith, so there is some coaching familiarity between them.

Regardless, Atlanta has to add somebody behind Penix due to his injury (and history of injuries).

Smart draft strategy and free-agent spending will be key for Atlanta, given that they do not have a first-round pick (traded to the Rams to select Pearce in last year’s draft). A move aging like spoiled milk.

Cunningham recently stated on ESPN that he wants to build his team through the draft, following the three principles: “draft, develop, and retain.”

And he loves draft picks.

Pick 14: Baltimore Ravens

2026 Free Agents:

2027 Free Agents:

Team Needs: EDGE, IOL, CB, TE, DT, S, WR

The biggest areas of need for the Ravens include the EDGE depth + interior OL (Tyler Linderbaum/Daniel Faalele timing matters a lot). They desperately need to add more pass rush juice (fifth-worst pressure rate in 2025). Defense wasn’t the same after DT Nnamdi Madubuike went down last season. NT Broderick Washington was also limited to just three games (but he could also be released to save money versus the salary cap, per The Athletic).

GM Eric DeCosta echoed his concerns about the need for defensive pressure, along with the inconsistency of the offensive line at times.

Also, the secondary could use a reset. Marlon Humphrey is entering the last year of his deal. CB Chidobe Awuzie was a one-year rental that didn’t go great. DeCosta mentioned before last year’s draft that CB is also a “big need” every year. Called them ‘Bugattis.’ They break down, so you need to have a surplus of reserves.

DeCosta also said on The Inner Circle podcast that they are a ‘draft and develop team.’

Look for new HC Jesse Minter to add former Chargers players after serving as their DC from 2024 to 2025. Or former Michigan Wolverines, given that Minter spent 2022-2023 coaching there.

Names to monitor include Marlin Klein, Derrick Moore, Rayshaun Benny, and TJ Guy.

Veteran safeties Alohi Gilman and A’Darius Washington are also free agents.

The Ravens are also in a weird spot when it comes to tight end.

Baltimore opted to sign Mark Andrews for more years instead of extending Isaiah Likely in the final year of his rookie deal. Likely struggled with injuries to himself and his QB… that dramatically hurt his 2025 production (along with a few TDs that didn’t actually count). Entering free agency, Likely’s stock is nowhere near where it was at this time last year. However, the upside we have seen from Likely when Andrews has missed time in the past – 11 PPG with no Andrews, the TE5 in PPG last year – warrants a shot on Likely if he carves out a TE1 role on a new team. He could reunite with John Harbaugh in NY, Todd Monken in CLE, or return to Baltimore on a 1-year deal in an effort to boost his stock further in 2027 free agency.

Charlie Kolar is also a free agent. Both TEs played over 400 offensive snaps last season.

Obviously, these heavy TE sets could change under the new OC – Declan Doyle (althought the deployed plenty of 12 personnel last season in the Windy City).

Some insight into what this offense might look like in 2026:

The Ravens ranked 29th in plays per game in 2025. The Bears? First (Doyle was OC there last season).

He also spent time with the Broncos and Sean Payton before landing with Ben Johnson last season.

Pick 15: Tampa Bay Buccaneers

2026 Free Agents:

2027 Free Agents:

Team Needs: CB, EDGE, WR, TE, LB

Multiple sources across the NFL have stated that Mike Evans is expected to leave Tampa this season to join a contender. He’d like to go to a contender and win another title.

That’s the big domino waiting to fall among the WRs available in free agency. Losing Evans will very much change the landscape of the Buccaneers’ receiving corps.

But it’s not as if they couldn’t manage. After all, they drafted Emeka Egbuka last year in Round 1 when they had Evans, Chris Godwin, and Jalen McMillan ALL in-house.

The team is also expected to lose RB Rachaad White, although Sean Tucker looks like a decent RB2 option (presuming he returns as an RFA) behind Bucky Irving. Irving is coming off an injury-plagued season, but new OC Zac Robinson is throwing out Bijan Robinson comparisons to the fellow dual-threat RB.

White made his biggest contributions in the Buccaneers offense as a pass-catcher, so you could see Irving’s receiving numbers really grow in Year 3.

Every-down TE Cade Otton is also a free agent, so there are tight-end snaps to be had in the Bucs’ offense.

Kyle Pitts to a division rival? He does look pretty good every time he faces that Bucs’ secondary….

OL is in good shape with guys returning from last season.

It’s a big win if OT Tristan Wirfs can return to full health. OG Cody Mauch should also return as the starting guard after missing nearly all of last year due to a knee injury.

Injuries are really what derailed the Bucs’ offense in 2025. If they can just get healthy in 2026, we could see them return to 2024 form. But if they don’t…it will be interesting to see how things shake out for pillar players on the final years of their contracts: Baker Mayfield, Godwin (club option year), and DT Vita Vea.

As noted previously, Tampa Bay has a new OC.

They also have a new QB coach who was Indiana’s QB coach last season during their run for the 2025 College Football National Championship.

Obviously, that roster is chock-full of NFL talent, but that coaching connection could bolster the case for Tampa Bay to select former Hoosiers this April. They won’t take the QB projected to go No. 1 overall…but WR Omar Cooper, CB De’Angelo Ponds, and WR Elijah Sarratt seem all like viable options.

Defensively, it’s a cornerback. Todd Bowles’ defenses can always snuff out the run, but they constantly get ripped by opposing pass attacks as fantasy football’s “pass-funnel defense.”

They had the 8th-lowest pressure rate generated despite the 4th-highest blitz rate.

CB Jamel Dean is also hitting the open market. Pass rusher Haason Reddick may also not return after getting just three sacks last season. Yaya Diaby was the best pass rusher for TB last season and is entering the last year of his contract. Getting DT Calijah Kancey back from injury will help, but generating pressure off the edge is a must for Tampa Bay.

LB Lavonte David ranked second on the team in defensive snaps. But he is 37 years old and is currently unsigned (mulling retirement). Linebacker SirVocea Dennis will be a free agent in 2027.

Pick 16: Indianapolis Colts (traded to New York Jets)

2026 Free Agents:

2027 Free Agents:

Team Needs: QB, EDGE, LB, DT, WR, OT, S, CB

GM Chris Ballard opened this offseason by discussing how important it was for the Colts to add fuel to their defensive front.

Via Colts.com

“I think our defensive front, we’ve got to add some fuel to the front. And we’ve got to get younger. We’ve got to get unequivocally faster on defense. Offensively, we’ve got to be able to run it when we want to. And I will say that when Daniel got hurt, it took away some things that we could do from a mobility standpoint, which I think affected it, but that’s something we’ll dig into. But just off our initial thinking, our defensive front, and we’ve got to get faster.”

Kwity Paye is a free agent, along with Samson Ebukam. DeForest Buckner and Grover Stewart are entering the last years of their contracts.

Veteran pass rusher Trey Hendrickson makes a ton of sense to sign in Indy, given his connection with the Colts DC: Lou Anarumo

Ballard also seemed to greatly support the return of quarterback Daniel Jones despite his Achilles injury. Says he has a bright future in Indy. Anthony Richardson seems more likely to be traded, with the Colts expressing confidence in Riley Leonard.

Ballard also said that WR Alec Pierce is a priority for the Colts to sign/retain in free agency.

Pierce finished 2025 with career highs in catches (47) and yards (1,003). But he was also solid in 2024 (827 yards on 37 receptions).

Michael Pittman/Josh Downs/Jonathan Taylor are entering the final years of their deals in 2026.

Pittman has routinely been thrown out as a potential salary cap casualty candidate this offseason.

As for the offensive line, the RT position needs to be addressed. Braden Smith is a free agent. Jalen Travis might be the heir apparent to that spot after seeing limited action as a 2025 rookie fourth-rounder. OT Blake Freeland will also be back (last year of contract) after missing all of last season.

Impending free agent safety Nick Cross played the second-most defensive snaps last season.

CB Charvarius Ward‘s future with the team remains up in the air after he suffered a series of concussions last season. Slot CB Kenny Moore will be a FA at the end of the season.

The Colts might also want to add more juice at linebacker. Zaire Franklin was PFF’s second-lowest graded LB last season. Germaine Pratt ranked second on the team in tackles (Cross finished first) and will be a free agent.

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Andrew Erickson

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Andrew Erickson is a fantasy football analyst at FantasyPros. LFG.