The Atlanta Falcons entered Week 1 knowing that their defensive line wasn't in great shape, particularly in the pass rush department.
After a loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers , they looked to free agency to see if there was any depth they could add.
They came back with Drake Jackson .
The Falcons announced on Wednesday that the defensive end Jackson has been signed to the practice squad in Atlanta.
Jackson is a player who was once viewed as a highly intriguing talent.
He was a talented recruit from the state of California who went to USC for his college career. In college, Jackson totaled 25.0 tackles for loss, including 12.5 sacks, in 28 games with the Trojans.
After his time at USC, Jackson was chosen in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft by the San Francisco 49ers at No. 61 overall.
The 6-foot-4, 273-pound edge rusher played 15 games as a rookie. He had 14 tackles, including 3.0 sacks, while also showing a knack for batting the ball down at the line with eight passes defensed and an interception.
Jackson got into just eight games in the 2023 season, and he again got 3.0 sacks.
He missed the entire 2024 season, though, sending his career a bit off the rails.
The 49ers waived Jackson in the 2025 offseason, and the Washington Commanders signed him in October 2025, although he was forced to miss more time with an injury and got into just three games, making three total tackles.
Now 25, Jackson was waived at the end of the preseason by the Commanders.
His waive from Washington was with an injury settlement, so it's not immediately clear how healthy Jackson is, but the practice squad signing will allow Atlanta to bring him in the building and help him both heal up and have a chance to show what kind of untapped potential he might still have.
The Falcons struggled to put a bunch of pressure on Aaron Rodgers in the season opener, except for one man.
Za'Darius Smith had two sacks, and that accounted for all the sacks the Falcons had on the day.
They totaled six quarterback hits, including those two by Smith. Samson Ebukam had two QB hits, and Cameron Thomas and Mike Ford Jr. each had one.
A limited pass rush then makes it tougher to cover on the back end of the defense, because defensive backs have to stay attached for long, and also because quarterbacks aren't rushed into as many mistakes.
Jackson may not be the solution, but he was once highly sought after, and maybe there's still something there to be unlocked.
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