FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — In 2025, the Atlanta Falcons set a franchise record with 57 sacks. Twenty-six of those sacks are now gone, and another 12 are in limbo as the team has a serious problem at edge rusher.The math: Jalon Walker (5.5 sacks) was lost for the season due to a torn ACL last week. Ruke Orhorhoro (3.5) was traded, and Kaden Elliss (3.5), Leonard Floyd (3.5), Ronnie Harrison (2), Kentavius Street (2), Dee Alford (2), Arnold Ebiketie (2), David Onyemata (1) and Sam Roberts (1) left via free agency. James Pearce Jr. (10.5) could face a lengthy suspension from the NFL after his offseason arrest, and Billy Bowman Jr. (1.5) still hasn’t returned to the practice field after last season’s Achilles tear.So now what? First, the Falcons have to get over the shock of Walker’s loss. Despite having just one year of NFL experience, the University of Georgia product was expected to have an outsized influence on the defense because of his versatility and maturity.“We all know what he means to the team,” outside linebackers coach John Timu said. “When he comes in, we feel it. Huge loss.”Can the Falcons defense survive 2026?Josh KendallWalker, the 15th pick in the 2025 draft, had 36 tackles, six quarterback hurries and five tackles for loss on top of his 5.5 sacks while starting nine games last year, and he had taken almost every snap with the starters in training camp practices leading up to his injury.“That’s the worst part of this game, stuff like that,” offensive tackle Jake Matthews said. “He’s one of the leaders of our defense. He’s a vocal guy. He leads by example. He’s always in the right place. The leadership role he took on at such a young age is really impressive.”Now the Falcons have to replace not only that leadership but Walker’s production on the field.“To see Jalon go down was disappointing and frustrating for him, but I know what he’s made of. He will bounce back,” coach Kevin Stefanski said. “In the interim, like any injury or player being unavailable, we just have to make sure we have a plan defensively to move guys around.”