Da’Shawn Hand joins a Falcons defensive line that needs his help

FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS - JANUARY 11: Da'shawn Hand #91 of the Los Angeles Chargers in action during the AFC Wild Card Playoff game against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium on January 11, 2026 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images) | Getty Images

The Falcons have talked about the importance of building up the trenches, and at least on the defensive side of the ball, the money's echoing that sentiment.

The Falcons came into Friday having signed Samson Ebukam, Azeez Ojulari, and Cameron Thomas to shore up their edge group, and brought back LaCale London and welcomed Chris Williams to help out on the defensive line. But they can still definitely use help, especially against the run, and prioritized that today by signing Da'Shawn Hand.

The #Falcons have agreed to terms with DL Da'Shawn Hand on a one-year, $3 million deal, per The Insiders.

The eight-year veteran heads to Atlanta on a deal negotiated by his agent Sean Kiernan of @AthletesFirst. pic.twitter.com/hfujSBmJAb

- Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) March 13, 2026

Hand, coming off a career-high 13 starts, is ticketed as at least a partial replacement for David Onyemata. I say at least partial" both because Williams will likely factor in there and because the Falcons still could look at the draft for further help; Onyemata played well enough last year that it's not going to be easy to cheaply replace him. But Hand gives the Falcons size, strength, and a pretty reliable track record against the run, all things they are definitely going to need to build on last year's defensive improvement. In 2025, Hand also generated the second-highest pressure total of his career and would have been fourth on the Falcons with 13 stops; he's not often a threat as a pass rusher but can be on occasion. The quality run defense alone makes him worth signing, given Atlanta's struggles up front in that regard in 2025.

Give Hand a warm welcome, and we'll see if the Falcons are done adding to their defensive line group. My guess is that they are not.