When the Falcons signed Dante Fowler, he was fresh off an 11.5 sack season with the Rams, and was still young enough to think his best days were ahead of them. I cautioned at the time he was signed that he was unlikely to hit that production in Atlanta—the Falcons pass rush is under some kind of ancient curse—but he still figured to be a positive addition to the team.
After a 2020 season where he was limited by injuries and posted just a handful of sacks, the new Falcons regime effectively negotiated a pay cut with Fowler’s team, though he’d have an opportunity to earn back some cash by hitting sack milestones.