The Falcons have dealt with extensive injury trouble at the safety position recently, and they lost one for the season on Monday.
J.J. Wilcox agreed to an Atlanta deal in April but may end up never putting on a Falcons game uniform. Wilcox suffered a torn ACL on the first day of Falcons training camp, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Although he had a second opinion scheduled, head coach Dan Quinn confirmed that it is indeed a season-ender (via Will McFadden of AtlantaFalcons.com). The team has placed Wilcox on the reserve/injured list.
Wilcox’s injury comes after a season that saw the Falcons lose both starting safeties — Keanu Neal and Ricardo Allen — to season-ending maladies in September. A former Cowboys starter who has played a depth role with the Steelers, Jets and Colts, Wilcox was expected to compete for a Falcons backup job this season. A full-time Dallas starter from 2014-15, the 28-year-old defender played 138 snaps last season.
Despite this early setback, the Falcons still boast experience at safety. Because of the injuries to Neal and Allen last season, backups Damontae Kazee and Sharrod Neasman received extensive work in 2018. Kazee graded as a top-20 safety, per Pro Football Focus. Both he and Neasman remain on the roster.
here we go again….hoping the snake bit injury bug would’ve move on to another team…its only the first day sheesh!
Can’t avoid the injuries but having them happen early in training camp is probably best because it gives the GM a bit of time to find replacements before teams start playing for real.