Heading into the 2026 NFL Draft, most analysts believed that the Atlanta Falcons would be drafting a defensive tackle early, with many mocks pairing Atlanta with a nose tackle in Round 2.
In retrospect, it's now clear the Falcons believe they solved a large part of that issue by trading for Jaguars DT Maason Smith the week before the draft.
So, Atlanta didn't feel the need to take a DT early - and waited all the way until the sixth round to take one. That's where they landed Washington's Anterio Thompson, who may qualify as a legitimate Day 3 gem. Just take a look at his elite RAS score.
Anterio Thompson is a DT prospect in the 2026 draft class. He scored a 9.39 RAS out of a possible 10.00. This ranked 141 out of 2278 DT from 1987 to 2026.https://t.co/WCWmd02DII pic.twitter.com/DGtyEsQXMI
Thompson bounced around during his college career, putting in one year each at Iowa, Western Michigan and Washington.
All together, he appeared in 33 college games, totaling 2.5 sacks, four tackles for a loss and four pass breakups. Peak Aaron Donald production this is not, but what matters are Thompson's traits, including elite speed at his position, paired with solid agility and explosiveness.
As a rookie, Thompson projects as a backup behind Brandon Dorlus. He'll need to win his playing time by out-competing the other rotational tackles but Thompson has all the tools he needs to eventually break into Atlanta's starting lineup.
USA TODAY Sports IMAGESUSA TODAY IMAGESUSA TODAY Sports ImagesUSA TODAY Sports ImagesUSA TODAY Sports ImagesUSA TODAY Sports Images1 / 6Atlanta Falcons 2026 NFL Draft classUSA TODAY Sports IMAGES1 / 6Atlanta Falcons 2026 NFL Draft classUSA TODAY Sports IMAGES2 / 6Atlanta Falcons 2026 NFL Draft classUSA TODAY IMAGES3 / 6Atlanta Falcons 2026 NFL Draft classUSA TODAY Sports Images4 / 6Atlanta Falcons 2026 NFL Draft classUSA TODAY Sports Images5 / 6Atlanta Falcons 2026 NFL Draft classUSA TODAY Sports Images6 / 6Atlanta Falcons 2026 NFL Draft classUSA TODAY Sports ImagesThis article originally appeared on Falcons Wire: Atlanta Falcons DT Anterio Thompson has elite RAS Score