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USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
Deen Worley

Projecting the Falcons’ 53-man roster before Tuesdays’ deadline

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A number of players will see their names called for the wrong reasons by the time the 53-man roster deadline rolls around on Tuesday. Surviving final cuts is obviously important, but with NFL rosters changing constantly, each player will have to produce in order to stick around.

So which Falcons players are on the way out, and which ones are here to stay? Here’s our final projection for Atlanta’s 53-man roster, as organized by position.

1
Quarterbacks

Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports

Marcus Mariota and Desmond Ridder are both locks to make the 53-man roster. With that being said, the Falcons have the option to bring along Feleipe Franks, who may not be an NFL-level quarterback but has some upside at tight end.

Name Cap Hit
Marcus Mariota $4.25 Million
Desmond Ridder $975,084
Feleipe Franks $830,000
Total $6,055,084

 

2
Running back/Fullback

Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

The Falcons have a large running back room that could see key rotational figures just miss the cut. The team parted ways with Mike Davis a year ago,  and there are a handful of guys in line to take his place. I think Damien Williams and Cordarrelle Patterson are safe and it’s anyone’s guess how the rest fare.

Name Cap Hit
Cordarrelle Patterson $2.5 Million
Damien Williams $1.62 Million
Avery Williams $885,038
Tyler Allgeier $788,472
Keith Smith (FB) $1.67 Million
Total $7,460,178

 

3
Wide Receivers

(AP Photo/Danny Karnik)

The Falcons have a number of players who are virtual locks to make the roster, despite seeing very minimal action. Bryan Edwards and Drake London were both limited in the preseason due to injuries, but they remain the top two receivers on the team.

Name Cap Hit
Drake London $3.91 Million
Bryan Edwards $1.03 Million
Olamide Zaccheaus $2.43 Million
KhaDarel Hodge $930,000
Damiere Byrd $1.04 Million
Jared Bernhardt $706,666
Total $10,069,112

 

4
Tight Ends

(AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

The No. 2 tight end spot behind is still largely up for grabs. The Falcons signed two former Titans tight ends this offseason, and both have played well enough to stick around. Then there’s Georgia rookie John FitzPatrick, who despite being outshined in camp, has the most upside of anyone not named Kyle Pitts.

Name Cap Hit
Kyle Pitts $7,48 Million
Anthony Firkser $1.04 Million
MyCole Pruitt $895,000
John FitzPatrick $738,003
Total $10,160,161

 

5
Offensive Line

(AP Photo/Rick Osentoski)

The biggest question mark on this Falcons roster is along the offensive line. Being the kind of coach, and having the background he does, you should expect Arthur Smith to elevate this position group in his second year running the team. The biggest question is at guard where last year’s starter, Jalen Mayfield, has struggled throughout camp. Mayfield may not return to the starting lineup this season, but his versatility should earn him a roster spot.

Name Cap Hit
Jake Matthews $15.19 Million
Elijah Wilkinson $1.04 Million
Matt Hennessy $1.29 Million
Chris Lindstrom $4.68 Million
Kaleb McGary $3.27 Million
Jalen Mayfield $1.18 Million
Drew Dalman $1.02 Million
Germain Ifedi $1.04 Million
Colby Gossett $965,000
Total $29,692,045

 

6
Interior Defensive Line

(AP Photo/Danny Karnik)

After Grady Jarrett, there aren’t any proven defensive linemen on this team. And as much as we want to see Jarrett on the field, he can’t do it by himself. Despite some impressive performances from Timmy Horne and Derrick Tangelo in the preseason, I think the Falcons keep the following four defensive linemen.

Name Cap Hit
Grady Jarrett $12.93 Million
Anthony Rush $1.25 Million
Marlon Davidson $1.88 Million
Ta’Quon Graham $912,653
Total $16,976,434

 

7
Edge Rushers

(AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

Going into this season, my hopes for the Falcons’ pass rush remain unusually high. The biggest addition was free-agent signing Lorenzo Carter, who should be a noticeable upgrade over the disappointing Dante Fowler. Additionally, I liked what I saw from Ade Ogundeji a season ago, and he has even more of a chance to further enhance his game this season.

Name Cap Hit
Lorenzo Carter $2.5 Million
Ade Ogundeji $885,038
Arnold Ebiketie $1.6 million
DeAngelo Malone $950,833
Total $5,939,269

 

8
Middle Linebackers

(AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

The Falcons couldn’t afford to retain Foye Oluokun this past offseason, so expect to see some shifting in the middle of the second level. Deion Jones remains on the roster but how the team uses him is up for debate. The entirety of the offseason has seen jones’ name floated around in the trade pool, and while it’s all just speculation, don’t be surprised to see the former Pro Bowl linebacker moved before the trade deadline.

Name Cap Hit
Deion Jones $20 Million
Mykal Walker $$1.08 Million
Rashaan Evans $1.64 Million
Troy Anderson $1.11 Million
Total $23,886,164

 

9
Cornerbacks

(AP Photo/Duane Burleson)

The Falcons defensive secondary has the potential to be near the top of the league in 2022. With the recent addition of Casey Hayward playing opposite of an already established A.J. Terrell, opposing quarterbacks can no longer attack whoever is on the opposite side of Terrell. Behind Terrell and Hayward, two players have stood out all camp and did just enough to make the roster, in my opinion.

Name Cap Hit
A.J. Terrell $3.9 million
Casey Hayward $4 Million
Dee Alford $708,500
Darren Hall $1.02 Million
Mike Ford $1.04 Million
Isaiah Oliver $1.03 Million
Total $11,718,755

 

10
Safeties

Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

Paired up with a potentially good defensive secondary, the Falcons safety group is set to take a step forward in 2022. Led by Richie Grant, who many had written off a season ago, and Jaylinn Hawkins, who saw an improved 2021 campaign to earn the starting job. The team added Dean Marlowe in free agency as well.

Name Cap Hit
Jaylinn Hawkins $1.06 Million
Richie Grant $1.88 million
Erik Harris $1.04 Million
Teez Tabor $965,000
Dean Marlowe $1.04 Million
Total $6,000,904

 

11
Kicker / Punter

(AP Photo/Danny Karnik)

The Falcons only have one punter, kicker, and long snapper. There’s no competition here.

Name Cap Hit
Younghoe Koo (K) $3 Million
Bradley Pinion (P) $1.48 Million
Liam McCullough (LS) $705,000
Total $5,185,000

 

12
Conclusion

(AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

With the roster selected above, the Falcons will see a total of $133,143,106 count against the $208.2 million this upcoming season. That’s a pretty large gap in cap space, but that room is quickly eaten up by the dead money the team is stuck with after parting ways with Matt Ryan and Julio Jones.

Taking into consideration the dead money and the cost of the players put on the injury reserve, the Falcons are at $198,110,895 million for the upcoming season. There will also need to be an additional $2-3 million for the allotted players on the practice squad. This grows the cap total to a potential minimum of $200,760,495 or a maximum total hit of $201,278,895. That’s not a lot of leftover room, but if the team wishes to trade Deion Jones, then that would free up $14 million in cap space.

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