Morris seems to make more sense now from what I have heard from others. Hopefully Cousins and Penix stay healthy. Maybe Cousins comes out rusty was an initial thought I had, but in my experience, that probably wont be the case... he takes good care of himself. Morris said after Saturday’s game that Penix had shown enough to not play again in the preseason. The head coach elaborated on his reasoning during his Monday press conference. “Michael’s role is really clear on what we want to see,” Morris said. “We had a chance to get him two really hard practices versus the Dolphins, which I value just as much as these games. And I got a chance to get him out there versus the Dolphins and go out there and all these things about mitigating injuries. And you can’t affect them all. You can’t help them all, but it’s certainly a player that I could, particularly with our scrimmage coming up. “In a normal year, you’d like to get four of those joint practices to be able to get those evaluations done, to be able to mitigate injury. I’ve been able to simulate three with other people, getting him a little bit of game work action. I think it was 25 or so plays. And within those practices, we’re able to get a lot more than that. And I’ll be able to get a nice look at him on Wednesday [in our scrimmage] and some of the problems and the things that we want to see if he can actually grasp and hold onto a little bit more from our standpoint, which he’s done a great job of getting better throughout this process. So it’ll be a really similar look on how we went about our process this week and how we approach this next preseason game.” As a follow-up, Morris was asked if not playing Penix was solely about injury prevention and the head coach noted that the rookie has been able to take plenty of reps without really taking them away from Cousins. “And it’s been awesome,” Morris said. “I don’t see that varying at all in his developmental plan, even moving into the season. Because he’ll be able to have 100 percent of the reps versus our defense [as the scout-team QB]. And he’s getting, I don’t know how many reps he’s got versus our starting defense now, but he’s got a huge amount of reps versus our starting defense. And I feel really good about where he’s going and what he’s going to develop. “And if I felt that way, I could play him a little bit more if I needed something else. But I don’t feel that way. And I don’t think any of the people that I would talk to in that circle of trust would feel that way. Or we’d be playing him a little bit more, but we don’t feel like we need to.” That was from Simmons down at PFT
The part about the joint practices also applies to Cousins... he had two full practice sessions that were basically scrimmages against the Dolphins, with a LOT of 11-on-11 work. QBs were protected from taking hits, but he still had a full pocket with bodies all around him, and his first-unit receivers going up against Miami's first unit defense. So the main difference between those practices and having him play the first half of the game is that he didn't face the danger of someone actually hitting him.
Falcons signing CB A.J. Terrell to four-year, $81 million contract extension The Atlanta Falcons continue to be movers and shakers ahead of the 2024 NFL season. This time, they locked down one of their own studs. The Falcons agreed to terms with cornerback A.J. Terrell on a four-year, $81 million contract extension, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported Thursday, per a source informed of the deal. The pact includes $65.8 million effectively fully guaranteed, making Terrell the second-highest paid CB in NFL history, per Rapoport. Set to play on his fifth-year rookie option, worth $12.34 million, Terrell dismissed any concerns about his future in Atlanta when asked about his contract situation last month. Now we know why. The payday was barreling down the pike. The physical corner has developed into one of the best cover men in the NFL during his four seasons in Atlanta. Terrell is a shadow corner who regularly matches up with No. 1 receivers across the formation. A second-team All-Pro in 2021, Terrell has compiled 247 tackles, 43 passes defensed, four interceptions and one sack in four seasons. Surprisingly never voted to the Pro Bowl, Terrell's lack of interceptions (zero the past two seasons) likely keeps him off the national radar, but that belies his impact. The 25-year-old is the straw that stirs the drink in the Falcons' secondary. His ability to follow top targets is rare in today's game. That skill might lead to some yards given up, but Terrell has shown the talent to make plays in key moments. In the first year under Raheem Morris, the Falcons could have played out the campaign, seeing how the corner fits into the scheme. Instead, they locked him down through the 2028 season. It's the latest big offseason move for the Falcons, who traded for edge rusher Matt Judon and signed safety Justin Simmons in the past week. NFL.com
FalconsWire (USA Today) had an article going back and giving all the quotes from the "experts" when he was drafted. Most of them called the pick a reach. Overall it wasn't a great draft class for former GM Thomas Dimitroff, as his second round pick (DT Marlon Davidson) had his career derailed by injuries while the three mid-rounders were all released during the Arthur Smith years. But Terrell proved Kiper and the rest wrong. NOT a reach.
It has begun... Here's the first wave of cuts, quoted directly from the team's own web page: Wide receiver Josh Ali Offensive lineman Zack Bailey Safety Lukas Denis Cornerback William Hooper Linebacker Storey Jackson Offensive lineman Jaryd Jones-Smith Offensive lineman John Leglue Inside linebacker Donavan Mutin Quarterback John Paddock Tight end Austin Stogner Cornerback Trey Vaval Outside linebacker Bradlee Anae Tight end Jordan Thomas No true surprises here, in the sense that none of them were on my projected 53-man roster. But I did think that several of these players had shown enough to be worthy of practice squad spots, so I'm a little surprised to see a few of them in the first wave of cuts. But... if I remember correctly, during the Dan Quinn years it was not a certainty that the first cuts weren't coming back. And Ra was part of that staff, so he might be taking that same approach.
The breaking news from Flowery Branch... as of 1pm on cutdown Tuesday, the Falcons were still debating those last difficult roster decisions. The players who are on the bubble have still not learned their fates. The only two releases that have leaked so far today are WR O.J. Hiliare and RB Spencer Brown. Those reports came from third party sources. I'd say both players have a shot at being signed to the practice squad. They might not be the #1 candidates at their respective positions, but they would definitely be in the mix.
Running back Bijan Robinson believes Cousins is indeed good to go. “He’s definitely ready to go,” Bijan told Jim Rome on Wednesday. “You know, he looks amazing like he didn’t even tear his Achilles. I mean, the dude’s out here sprinting in practice and just having fun with it. So like I know he’s amped up, I know he’s ready to go. But just to see like his progress from when he got here to now, and seeing how ready he is, I’m excited for him.”
Most of the practice squad has been signed. 13 players that were in camp/preseason with the team, 3 open spots remaining. For me the only real surprise is safety Dane Cruikshank was healthy enough at the roster cut deadline for the team to be able to release him and then sign him to the squad today. He missed the last two preseason games due to injury. I figured him to be banged up enough that an injury settlement would be necessary to clear him from the roster. That would have made him ineligible for the team to bring him back for around two months or so, depending on the duration of the settlement. So I'm happy to see him back to health and ready to roll. Mild surprise that no ILBs are on the squad so far... but again, 3 spots left to go. I'm guessing at least one LB Key names for me are that WR Chris Blair and CB Natrone Brooks cleared waivers and were signed to the squad. They were beasts in the preseason games, and it would not have been surprising at all if they had both been kept on the 53. (I certainly would have kept them.) CB Kevin King may have been the biggest surprise among the final roster cuts, but as a tenured veteran (4+ years) he didn't have to clear waivers first. He was instantly a free agent. The two OT candidates, Julien Davenport and Andrew Stueber, are both on the squad as well. I'm happy to see that, as I thought Davenport did an outstanding job in the preseason games while Stueber is a younger player who showed fantastic potential. The other signings so far are RB Carlos Washington, TE John FitzPatrick, sixth round DT Zion Logue, WRs Dylan Drummond and Jesse Matthews, and defensive linemen LaCale London and Demone Harris. No surprises there at all. Drummond and Matthews showed enough in preseason to win their spots, even with Blair already an obvious WR signing. London was part of last year's practice squad who ended up on the roster, appearing in 7 games. He and Harris truly had no shot at the roster with the DL group so insanely deep this year, but it's good to see that they are sticking around. The team also officially signed defensive lineman Kenny Oginni to the squad, but he doesn't count - he's Atlanta's foreign exchange student this year.
Inside linebacker prospect Milo Eifler was banged up in the final preseason game and waived/injured at the final roster cuts, along with safety prospect Josh Thompson. Both cleared waivers as expected, and the team has placed both of them on the injured reserve list. Injury settlements/releases are still a possibility, but for now the team is keeping both of them. Eifler had some "flash" moments during preseason, and it seemed like he and Donavan Mutin would both be strong candidates for practice squad roles. Mutin was released in the first round of cuts despite an insane 18 total tackles in the final preseason game.
@gidion72 - week 1 is going to be like a great big family reunion. Ex-Falcons Arthur Smith, Cordarrelle Patterson, Damontae Kazee, Van Jefferson, Scotty Miller, and Mycole Pruitt will all be coming back to Georgia, along with ex-Bulldogs George Pickens, Justin Fields, Darnell Washington and Broderick Jones. Cameron and Connor Heyward went to Peachtree Ridge, and Montravious Adams (Dooly County) and Mark Robinson (Lee County) also went to Georgia high schools.
Certainly could work out that way. Seems like the Falcons ALWAYS play like crap in the season opener, so it wouldn't surprise me at all if they looked like they were playing their very first preseason game. For that matter, most of them will be, since they didn't play at all in the three exhibition games.
Latest... OG/OT Elijah Wilkinson is back with Atlanta, taking one of the last three spots on the practice squad. He came aboard in 2022 on a cheap one-year contract and won the starting LG spot. He hurt his knee in the 7th game, went on IR, returned to play two more games at the end of the season, but was not resigned. (Atlanta drafted Matthew Bergeron to plug that hole.) Wilkinson went on to Arizona on a similar one-year deal, with similar results - 10 games played, 9 starts, and missed the rest on IR with a neck injury. Arizona did resign him, but he didn't make the final roster. So now he's back with us on the practice squad. I'd say it's an outstanding depth signing in addition to filling out the offensive line for the scout team. Note that Wilkinson can play tackle or guard. He said when he arrived the first time around that he was more familiar with playing the right side of the line, but he did well at left guard while he was here. I don't know if I'd want him at LT with Cousins, but I'd be fine with him at LT if necessary for the left-hander Penix, and I'd be good with him at RG or RT for either quarterback.
In 2012 the Falcons finished 13-3, whats your thinking on that Torgo in comparison to this years roster, can they match that? I know your hoping so, but who knows? (maybe Torgo knows.) This new version of the Falcons with the easier schedule (actually according to stats the easiest, which dont mean shit) and everybody staying healthy, new OC and all (with a revamped defense), this might be the year they roll. The only legit comp to win the Division might be and should be the Buccaneers. If I were a Falcons fan on the level I am a Vikings fan... I couldnt sit still.
The Falcons signed quarterback Nathan Peterman to their practice squad Tuesday, the team announced. In a corresponding move, the Falcons cut offensive lineman Julién Davenport. The Falcons have Kirk Cousins and rookie Michael Penix on their 53-player roster at the position. The Raiders cut Peterman out of the preseason after the Saints released him early in training camp. He completed 12 of 19 passes for 108 yards with one touchdown in preseason play. Peterman, 30, entered the NFL as a fifth-round pick of the Bills in 2017, and he spent his first two seasons in Buffalo. In 15 career games, Peterman has completed 53 percent of his throws for 712 yards with four touchdowns and 13 interceptions. ____________ ______________________ That 4 TD's and 13 INT's was an eye-popper.
I'm totally stoked about the season, no doubt about it. Funny that you mentioned 2012 as the comparison year, as that was the harbinger of doom. Late in the 2011 season, Mike Smith had a cardiovascular scare. When the OC and DC both headed elsewhere after the 2011 season, Smitty basically took a step back from coaching and hired people that he knew well to be the new OC and DC. That didn't work out so well, especially on defense - new DC Mike Nolan inherited the league's #12 total defense and turned it into the league's worst (by far - 14 yards per game allowed more than #31). Meanwhile, GM Thomas Dimitroff had the worst draft of his career in 2012 and got into a long streak of picking up only two or three "useful" players while throwing away lots of picks on projects / long shots. I don't know what would be the best year to compare it to though... 1998 and 2008 come to mind for me as years when I got excited about a team on the rise, but in those two years the media had no love at all for the team and then acted completely surprised when they turned out to be better than "expected". This year, I think everyone gets it - they're widely pegged to win the division. As for the number of wins, what scares me a bit is the team's history over the last 10 years or so of starting the season looking like they're still in the first stages of training camp. It's a new coaching staff, so we really don't know what to expect from this bunch. But I noted in another thread that the offensive starters played a grand total of ZERO snaps in the preseason games, as did nine of the eleven defensive starters. One of the other two defensive starters (OLB Lorenzo Carter) got in 8 snaps in the first exhibition game for whatever reason before they shut him down as well. I can only guess that he had been banged up and was limited in the joint practices. I'm actually not sure who the other defensive starter will be. If it's second year defensive lineman Zach Harrison (listed as first unit on the new depth chart), he got all of 12 snaps in the Miami game before they shut him down for the rest of preseason. But it could be designated run-stuffer Eddie Goldman seeing as how the opposing OC is the run-happy Arthur Smith. If so, he had 8 snaps. So if they come out as unprepared as the later Dan Quinn years, they could easily be 2-4 or worse at the end of week six. In theory, the hardest part of the schedule is the first three weeks. Atlanta has only beaten Pittsburgh twice - ever. After that it's Philadelphia and then Kansas City. And then it's the first run through the division. They should do well against their rivals, but if they are still shaking off rust they'll dig themselves into a deep hole. Flip side... the coaches say the two joint practices with Miami were the preseason for the starters, which does make some sense - the starters got more full team reps against actual competition (and with referees) in those two days than most starters around the league got in the three preseason games. The element of secrecy is a nice touch - the joint practices weren't televised and were closed to the public, so no one other than Miami knows what plays/systems the coaches tried out. They also had a full contact (except for the QBs) scrimmage as their last practice before the final preseason game. It was still just them going against each other, but it was in the form of a simulated game. If it works and they don't look terribly rusty on Sunday, it might become the blueprint for preparing with just 3 preseason games. So... naturally I have to be nervous about the possibility that the team isn't as "ready" as they think they are. But yeah, if they can keep everybody healthy, the potential of this lineup is staggering. Bijan Robinson and Tyler Allgeier running the ball, Cousins throwing ACCURATE passes to Drake London, Kyle Pitts and the rest... yeah, that's going to be something to watch, for sure. As for win totals, I'm not expecting 14-3 or 13-4, but if they actually are ready to compete now and can avoid injury issues I can easily see 11 or 12 wins including a 5-1 record within the division.
He's not a name that I had anticipated as a candidate for the QB3 spot, but I did say that if it's a practice squad signing then pretty much anything goes. Peterman certainly qualifies as "anything". I don't mind Peterman coming aboard. I'm not happy about losing Julien Davenport though. Right now swing tackle Storm Norton is the only backup OT on the roster. Davenport played both LT and RT in preseason and was rock solid in pass protection. I had him pegged as a likely choice for one of the two standard practice squad elevations this week, not someone who would be released. I'm also waiting for news of one more transaction. Taylor Heinecke had been on the 53-man roster when he was traded to the Chargers. There's still an open roster spot, and Peterman isn't it since he's only bumping Davenport off the practice squad. If it's an internal move, my preference would be to get CB/S Kevin King on the roster and sign Davenport back to the practice squad in King's place. If it's an external move, who knows. With two elevations per week from the practice squad, the balance of offense vs defense on the roster isn't as important now as it used to be. It's more a matter of what players are suddenly available and how the team's pro scouts feel about them.
Enjoyed the write-up. Im in agreement with all of it. I personally see potential rust over the first quarter or two of game 1, but the get into it and set a groove early after that. I think they have too much talent and some crazy personality mixes to stay down for too long... In my opinion, the offensive-line is the biggest wildcard in game 1... if they gel right from the git-go, there is no doubt at all Cousins will be extremely accurate and he will fire up the entire offense. When the defense see's the offense and what it can do, they will be totally amped and feed off of that, next thing you have is a full-blown confident, border-line cocky football team that means business. Thats the ultimate vision anyway. If Cousins isnt rushed too bad, he's really has one of the better arms as far as accuracy goes. He makes incredible passes more often than not. I like the fact that he stays in shape and well conditioned all year round, he's really good at that. Ive reconsidered the South competition and, in my opinion, everybody in that Division may well be sub .500 teams, including the Buccaneers. The South is Atlanta's for the taking and If things fall into place as you have mentioned, I wouldnt be surprised at all to see at least an 11 win season. Many variables/factors/injuries/refs/luck all play a part in this show, so basically, nothing I say or predict means diddly, but hell, Im excited for you.
Catching up with the roster updates... the team really did go all the way through Week 1 with only 52 players on the roster. They traded QB Taylor Heinecke from the roster but only signed Nathan Peterman to the practice squad, leaving the roster opening that went unfilled. Meanwhile, they had released OT Julien Davenport from the practice squad to make room for Peterman. So for week two, they signed OL Brandon Parker, who was originally a 2018 third round pick by the Raiders. He appeared in 59 games with 33 starts, mainly playing right tackle. A spare tackle is exactly what they needed for the OL, as swing tackle Storm Norton was the only backup they had on the roster at the position. ILB Nate Landman was placed on IR last week as well, and the team went ahead and signed Kevin King from the practice squad to fill the roster spot. I was very happy to see this move. King is simply too good to leave exposed that way. They had already signed ILB Monty Rice to the practice squad, and now they have also signed ILB Josh Woods to the practice squad to take King's spot. I was kind of hoping they'd bring back Davenport, but they need an extra LB for practice with Landman out so the move makes sense.
ATLANTA — Welcome to Super Bowl LXII, where the players play. The NFL announced Tuesday afternoon that Atlanta will host Super Bowl LXII. The game will be played in February 2028 and mark the fourth time Atlanta has hosted the Super Bowl, and the second in Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The announcement took place in Atlanta during the league meetings, and it solidifies the sites of the sport's biggest game for the next four years. Super Bowl LXII will be broadcast by CBS. It will be the 23rd Super Bowl broadcast by CBS, a record among all networks. Atlanta hosted its first Super Bowl in 1994 when the Cowboys beat the Bills in Super Bowl XXVIII. The game returned to the Georgia Dome in 2000 when the Rams beat the Titans. And in 2019, the Patriots beat the Rams in Super Bowl LIII in Mercedes-Benz Stadium, which had opened less than two years earlier. CBS
