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Atlanta Falcons News & Rumors

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/4/21

August 4th, 2021 at 4:39pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are Wednesday’s minor moves, with the list being updated throughout the day:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Denver Broncos

  • Signed: CB Saivion Smith
  • Waived/injured: OT Cody Conway; Conway suffered a torn ACL

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Rams

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

  • Waived/injured: S Brandon White

Pittsburgh Steelers

  • Placed on IR: DB DeMarkus Acy; Acy suffered a torn ACL
  • Waived/injured: OT Anthony Coyle

Falcons Work Out D’Onta Foreman

August 3rd, 2021 at 8:58am CST by Zachary Links

Former Texans and Titans running back D’Onta Foreman is meeting with the Falcons today (Twitter link via Adam Schefter of ESPN.com). Foreman, once a star at UT, could likely be had on a minimum-salaried deal with no guarantees.

[RELATED: Falcons GM Was Against Ryan Restructure]

Foreman saw time in ten games as a rookie for the Texans, notching 327 rushing yards and two scores on 78 carries. But, towards the end of the year, he tore his Achilles. His 2018 follow-up was limited to just one game and he was subsequently released. Up until the injury, Foreman was considered a possible heir to Lamar Miller‘s RB1 job.

Foreman then had a cup of coffee with the Colts, but sat as a free agent for all of 2019. In 2020, he caught on with the Titans and tallied 22 totes for 95 yards. For his career, Foreman has 421 yards rushing and a decent 3.9 ypc average, albeit in a limited sample.

The Falcons are currently set to feature veteran Mike Davis, wide receiver-turned-running back Cordarrelle Patterson, and Quadree Ollison in the backfield. Davis and Ollison, in particular, have drawn strong reviews from coach Arthur Smith.

“It’s clear that both guys are very smart players. That’s obvious about both of them,” Smith said recently (via the team website). “They have pretty good hands, and we’re trying to push to see what they can do. That’s part of our job. We need to make sure they can (do. We’re trying to test them and be aggressive.”

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/3/21

August 3rd, 2021 at 8:58am CST by Zachary Links

We’ll keep track of today’s minor moves here:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Carolina Panthers

  • Claimed off waivers (from Texans): LB Nate Hall

Green Bay Packers

  • Signed: DT Josh Avery

Pittsburgh Steelers

Minor NFL Transactions: 7/31/21

July 31st, 2021 at 8:26pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

We’ve got a bunch of minor moves to report from what turned out to be a pretty busy Saturday in the NFL:

Atlanta Falcons

Cleveland Browns

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

New England Patriots

New York Giants

New York Jets

Seattle Seahawks

Washington Football Team

  • Claimed off waivers from Dolphins: OL Ross Reynolds

Hundley is the biggest signing on this list. The Colts adding him is a pretty good sign they expect Carson Wentz to miss some significant time. Assuming Wentz misses games, Hundley will battle it out with second-year pro Jacob Eason.

A couple of kickers who have started a bunch of games both found themselves sent packing in Ficken and Rosas. Mannion latched on with the Seahawks. He’s familiar with new Seattle OC Shane Waldron from their time together with the Rams, explaining why the Seahawks added him as an option behind Russell Wilson.

Minor NFL Transactions: 7/26/21

July 26th, 2021 at 9:48am CST by Zachary Links

We’ll keep track of today’s minor moves here.

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Cincinnati Bengals

  • Signed: WR Reece Horn

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

  • Placed on IR: DT Rob Windsor (out for year)

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Rams

Miami Dolphins

  • Signed: TE Carson Meier
  • Cut with injury settlement: TE Jibri Blount

Minnesota Vikings

New Orleans Saints

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

  • Signed: DB Chris Cooper

Tennessee Titans

Falcons GM Was Against Matt Ryan Restructuring

July 13th, 2021 at 9:42pm CST by Ben Levine

Back in March, the Falcons managed to carve out some cap space by restructuring the contract of Matt Ryan. However, it sounds like at least one member of the front office wasn’t a proponent of the move. According to Tori McElhaney of The Athletic, Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot “didn’t really want to make” the move.

Fontenot was brought in as GM in January, and the organization needed some immediate breathing room to participate in the early parts of the offseason. While the Ryan restructuring reduced the quarterback’s cap number to $14MM, it also converted $21MM of Ryan’s $23MM upcoming base salary into future signing bonuses (spread out over the duration of his contract). The means Fontenot will have to once again deal with a muddled cap sheet next offseason, which was something he was presumably looking to avoid.

According to the writer, the recently hired GM ultimately “thought his hands were tied,” and he believed the team’s only solution to opening some necessary cap space was to either restructure Ryan or cut Deion Jones. Ultimately, the organization decided to rework Ryan’s contract, the fourth time the quarterback has restructured his mega-deal. Ryan will now have cap hits north of $40MM in 2022 and 2023.

The team (temporarily) committed to Ryan when they decided to not select a quarterback during this past year’s draft. Considering the money that’s owed to Ryan over the next few years, the team will likely be stuck with the veteran. Ryan hasn’t made a Pro Bowl since 2018, but he’s still completed 65.6-percent of his passes while averaging 26 touchdowns vs. 12.5 sacks over the past two years. Ryan won’t have one of his favorite targets with Julio Jones out of the picture, but the team still added tight end Kyle Pitts with the No. 4 pick to pair with 2020 second-team All-Pro Calvin Ridley.

2021 Cap Space For All 32 NFL Teams

July 12th, 2021 at 12:27pm CST by Zachary Links

There are still plenty of quality free agents left on the board as we look ahead to training camp. Cornerback Steven Nelson, tackle Russell Okung, and longtime Legion of Boom leader Richard Sherman headline the list, along with accomplished edge rushers like Justin Houston, Melvin Ingram, and Olivier Vernon. That list will only grow larger, of course, as more teams shed veterans to redirect their funds elsewhere.

With that in mind, here’s a look at every NFL team’s cap situation, starting with the league-leading Jaguars:

  1. Jacksonville Jaguars — $32.7MM
  2. Denver Broncos — $28.9MM
  3. New York Jets — $28.5MM
  4. Cleveland Browns — $20.6MM
  5. Los Angeles Chargers — $19.9MM
  6. Detroit Lions — $17.9MM
  7. San Francisco 49ers — $17.8MM
  8. Cincinnati Bengals — $17.4MM
  9. Washington Football Team — $16.7MM
  10. Indianapolis Colts— $14.3MM
  11. Carolina Panthers— $14.3MM
  12. Minnesota Vikings — $13.5MM
  13. Pittsburgh Steelers — $13.1MM
  14. New England Patriots — $13.1MM
  15. New Orleans Saints — $11.4MM
  16. Arizona Cardinals — $11.3MM
  17. Buffalo Bills — $10.5MM
  18. Baltimore Ravens — $8.8MM
  19. Atlanta Falcons — $8.6MM
  20. Seattle Seahawks — $8.3MM
  21. Tennessee Titans — $8.3MM
  22. Kansas City Chiefs — $7.9MM
  23. Los Angeles Rams — $7MM
  24. Chicago Bears — $6MM
  25. Dallas Cowboys — $6MM
  26. Miami Dolphins — $5.3MM
  27. Green Bay Packers — $5MM
  28. Houston Texans — $5MM
  29. Las Vegas Raiders — $3.3MM
  30. Philadelphia Eagles — $3.2MM
  31. New York Giants — $2.4MM
  32. Tampa Bay Buccaneers — $489K

Latest On Barkevious Mingo

July 12th, 2021 at 9:49am CST by Zachary Links

Linebacker Barkevious Mingo was arrested for an alleged child sex offense over the weekend. The Falcons released him less than 24 hours later, a decision that his lead attorney Chris Lewis disagrees with. 

[RELATED: Falcons Release Barkevious Mingo]

“We are extremely disappointed in the Atlanta Falcons’ rush to judgment in terminating Barkevious Mingo’s contract before gathering all of the relevant facts and prior to my client having his day in court,” Lewis said (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter). “The accusation against Mr. Mingo is a lie. Barkevious knows it — so does his accuser.”

Mingo cooperated with law enforcement upon learning of the warrant and immediately traveled to Texas to turn himself in, according to Lewis. Now, the attorney says, “he is ready to prove his innocence.”

Mingo never lived up to his first-round draft status, but he’s managed a lengthy career in the NFL as a special teamer with the Browns, Patriots, Colts, Seahawks, Texans, and Bears. Last year, he saw some time as a rotational ‘backer with the Bears and notched 2.5 sacks, leading to a one-year, $1.25MM deal earlier this year.

“Mr. Mingo understands the seriousness of an accusation like this and the immediate negative impact it can have on a person’s reputation, even when there is zero evidence,” Mingo’s lawyer said. “But, he also knows that he will be fully vindicated when the truth comes to light. When that happens, the true motivation of the accuser will be clear and unambiguous.”

Falcons Release Barkevious Mingo

July 11th, 2021 at 9:32am CST by Rory Parks

In light of Barkevious Mingo’s arrest on the charge of “indecency with a child–sexual contact,” the Falcons have elected to release the veteran linebacker. In a statement announcing the move, the team said, “After being made aware today of allegations involving Barkevious Mingo and gathering information on the matter, the Atlanta Falcons have terminated his contract.”

We now have a few more details on the matter, courtesy of Jon Wertheim of SI.com. Wertheim reports that the alleged incident took place during the Fourth of July weekend in 2019, when Mingo treated a teenage family member and the boy’s friend (also a teenager) to a trip to an amusement park and a go-kart complex. Mingo also took the boys to dinner at a local steakhouse and paid for an online shopping spree at Nike.com.

The boys spent the evening of July 4, 2019, at the hotel where Mingo was staying. The alleged victim said the boys were supposed to sleep in a different room from Mingo, but at around 3am, he woke up to find Mingo lying in bed with him. At this point, we will direct you to Wertheim’s article for the rest of the details, which are disturbing.

The alleged victim’s mother filed a complaint with police in January 2021, and the investigation — which included a search warrant for Nike’s sales records — culminated in a felony charge against Mingo. The No. 6 overall pick of the 2013 draft faces up to 20 years in prison.

Mingo’s attorney, Lukas Garcia, issued the following statement: “At this stage, our side has very limited information. What we do know is these allegations are from over two years ago and are completely untrue. Mr. Mingo is the victim of a false claim, and we believe this is motivated by money or some other ulterior motive.”

Barkevious Mingo Arrested On Felony Charge

July 10th, 2021 at 4:31pm CST by Sam Robinson

4:31pm: The attorney representing Mingo, Lukas Garcia, said this allegation is from over two years ago and is “completely baseless,” via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter). Garcia adds he does not have much information on the nature of the allegation, which led to a second-degree felony charge.

2:02pm: Falcons linebacker Barkevious Mingo is facing a second-degree felony charge in a child sex offense case. The Arlington Police Department arrested Mingo on July 8 for indecency with child sexual contact, according to TMZ.

The 30-year-old defender turned himself in and posted a $25,000 bond. He faces up to 20 years in prison. A former No. 6 overall pick, Mingo signed with the Falcons in March. This week’s development certainly puts his NFL career in jeopardy.

“Our organization became aware of the allegations involving Barkevious Mingo today and are currently gathering information on this incident,” the Falcons said in a statement. “The Falcons take the allegations very seriously and will continue to monitor the situation.”

Mingo did not pan out as an impact defender out of the 2013 draft and has bounced around the league since being a top-flight prospect at LSU. The Louisiana native has played for six teams in the past six years — the Browns, Patriots, Colts, Seahawks, Texans and Bears — but suited up for all 16 games in each of those seasons.

He registered 2.5 sacks as a Bears rotational defender in 2020. The Falcons agreed to add Mingo on a one-year, $1.25MM deal March 23.

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