And if? Insider says Atlanta Falcons could have added Russell Wilson and Justin Fields

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — The course of the Atlanta Falcons’ 2024 offseason changed just hours after it began.

Shortly after returning home from a 48-17 loss to the New Orleans Saints in Week 18, the Falcons fired head coach Arthur Smith, sparking the domino effect of a eventful spring marked by the hiring of Raheem Morris.

Atlanta, which had been plagued by short- and long-term quarterback questions during Smith’s tenure, overhauled the position both on the field and in the meeting rooms.

Most notably, the Falcons signed quarterback Kirk Cousins ​​to a four-year, $180 million contract and drafted his successor, Michael Penix Jr., 8th overall, giving the franchise a blueprint clear action plan under the center for the present and the future. .

But what if Atlanta doesn’t fire Smith? According to Ben Allbright, an NFL insider stationed in Denver, the Falcons’ quarterback situation would be much different – with Russell Wilson likely being the starting signal caller in Atlanta.

“I guarantee it would happen,” Allbright said on the Fantasy Football Metrics podcast about Wilson being the Falcons’ quarterback if Smith wasn’t fired. “And he would probably have Justin Fields as a backup there as well.”

Instead, the Falcons parted ways with Smith, who went 7-10 in each of his three seasons at the helm. The Pittsburgh Steelers hired Smith as offensive coordinator this spring, and they later added Wilson and Fields, a former Chicago Bears starting quarterback.

And according to Allbright, the momentum around a Smith and Wilson duo began long before pen came to paper.

“There were some twists and turns with Arthur Smith, who was with the Falcons then,” Allbright said of Wilson’s late-season contract-related benching. “That’s kind of how it happened.

“Russ and his team wanted Arthur Smith as their man.”

Essentially, there is a world in which the Falcons had Wilson as the answer in 2024 and then turned to Fields as a longer-term play — but it’s not this one. Instead, that’s the reality Pittsburgh faces, while Atlanta — led by Morris — has Cousins ​​and Penix in those roles.

And by all accounts, the Falcons, with five weeks until the start of training camp, believe they are now in a better situation than they otherwise would be.