The collaboration did not end when the meeting adjourned. In the weeks since, texts from Cunningham have flooded the Falcons coordinators' inboxes.
"It's constant communication as we go," Cunningham said, "sending Brich or sending Tommy players who pique my interest or guys I think they may like or guys I want to confirm: Is this the skillset that you mean when you say this linebacker or this corner or this receiver?"
Stefanski said the foundation for that process was evident in the preparation Rees and Ulbrich brought to the February meeting, held just two days into Cunningham's tenure.
Without a first-round pick, the Falcons must be realistic in their evaluations. Stefanski noted the coordinators reflected that approach in the examples they presented.
"What the coaches did a nice job of is they showed some examples of guys who were fifth-round picks, seventh-round picks," Stefanski said. "They would show a trait that was there that showed what we do, and not being so unrealistic — if you will. I thought the coaches did a really nice job of painting a picture of players that have been acquired, not just in the first round, but later on or through free agency, that you have seen their usage be dependent on the player, their skill."
Ultimately, Stefanski said, the Falcons are searching for players with one "dominant trait."
Because: "If you have one dominant trait, we will find a way to exploit it."
In a matter of days, the tone inside the Falcons' facility shifted from transition to intention. From that first extended meeting to the steady stream of follow-up messages, Cunningham and his staff have established a clear standard: every decision will be deliberate, every trait evaluated with purpose.
With no first-round pick and little time to spare, the Falcons are not chasing headlines. They are chasing clarity, and the kind of dominant traits they believe can make the difference on Sundays.