Contract Talks “Heating Up” Between Falcons & CB Desmond Trufant

D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that contract negotiations between the Falcons and CB Desmond Trufant are “heating up” this weekend.

Falcons GM Thomas Dimitroff and HC Dan Quinn met with Trufant’s agents Doug Hendrickson and C.J. Laboy last night.

According to Ledbetter, the Falcons would like to get an agreement in place with Trufant so that they can turn their attention to unrestricted players before the start of legal tampering on Tuesday.

Beyond Trufant, the Falcons are also trying to re-sign S Kemal Ishmael, TE Levine Toilolo and FB Patrick DiMarco.

Last month, Dimitroff mentioned that Trufant is a “very valuable asset” for their team and the plan to sign him to a long-term extension at some point in the near future.

“He’s a very valuable asset to this team,” Dimitroff said, via the Atlanta Journal-Sentinel. “We are going to get him signed up, and we’re going to get him healthy and signed up for years to come.”

Trufant has developed into one of the better young cornerbacks in the game, so it’s not surprising to hear that he’ll be an offseason priority for the Falcons.

Last season, Trufant suffered a torn pectoral muscle that cost him two months of the season, but this shouldn’t prevent him from being ready for the start of offseason workouts.

Trufant, 26, is a former first-round pick of the Falcons back in 2013. He played out the final year of his four-year, $8.165 million contract and made a base salary of $918,558 for the 2016 season.

The Falcons picked up his fifth-year option last year and he’s now in position to make $8.026 million for the 2017 season. However, this figures is guaranteed for injury only and won’t prevent them from negotiating a long-term extension that will come with a lower cap figure for next season.

In 2016, Trufant appeared in nine games for the Falcons and recorded 31 tackles, two sacks, an interception, two forced fumbles and four pass defenses.

We’ll have more regarding an extension for Trufant as the news is available.