Shortly after the Falcons lost A.J. McCarron to a season-ending ACL tear, they have agreed to terms with Josh Rosen. The recently cut 49ers quarterback will head to Atlanta, per ESPN.com’s Jordan Schultz (on Twitter).
This will mark Rosen’s fifth team since 2018. The former Cardinals top-10 pick was in Miami by 2019 and spent the 2020 season in Tampa and San Francisco. The 49ers, however, made Rosen one of their first training camp cuts this year. The UCLA product cleared waivers shortly before McCarron’s injury, opening the door for this marriage of convenience.
Rosen has not played since the 2019 season, having spent the 2020 campaign on the Bucs’ practice squad and as a 49ers backup. The Falcons, however, have seen their QB room become light on experience behind Matt Ryan. Following longtime backup Matt Schaub‘s retirement, the Falcons signed McCarron. His ACL tear left rookie UDFA Feleipe Franks as Atlanta’s lone quarterback behind Ryan on the depth chart.
The fourth quarterback selected in 2018’s five-QB first round, Rosen has drawn some bad cards to start his career. He struggled on an overmatched Cardinals offense in 2018, and the franchise’s Kliff Kingsbury hire led to Rosen being traded to the Dolphins during the 2019 draft. Starting a rebuild, the Dolphins plugged in Rosen for three starts. Ryan Fitzpatrick held onto that job for most of the season. Rosen did not move up to the Bucs’ active roster during his time on what turned out to be a Super Bowl-winning team.
Overall, Rosen has not shown much to justify that original 10th overall draft position. The 24-year-old QB has completed just 55% of his passes (on 5.7 yards per attempt) and has thrown 12 touchdown passes compared to 19 interceptions. Rosen will attempt to learn a fifth offense, but Ryan has been one of the most durable players of his generation. The 14th-year Falcons passer has missed just three games in his career.
