The Falcons are being “associated” with Panthers free agent tight end Ed Dickson, according to Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com.
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Atlanta is likely on the lookout for a veteran tight end after releasing Levine Toilolo last week. Toilolo played roughly 40% of the Falcons’ offensive snaps in 2017, but spent the majority of that time as a blocker. Dickson isn’t quite the run-blocker that Toilolo is, per Pro Football Focus, but he grade as the single-best pass-blocking tight end in the league a season ago.
Dickson, 30, didn’t play a large receiving role during his first three years with the Panthers, but an injury to starting tight end Greg Olsen allowed Dickson to play on 80% of Carolina’s offensive plays last season. While he wasn’t a world-beater, Dickson did manage 437 yards and a touchdown, solid numbers considering he’d managed just 370 receiving yards from 2014-16.
While it’s unclear if the Panthers have interest in re-signing Dickson, head coach Ron Rivera recently implied Dickson would hit the open market, per McClure.