- Speaking of guys playing unheralded positions getting paid, Falcons fullback Keith Smith also signed an extension yesterday. His new three-year contract will pay him a solid $4.3MM, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network (Twitter link). The San Jose State product, who was in his first year with Atlanta in 2019, will get $1.95MM in guaranteed money. Smith played about 17 percent of the offensive snaps last year as a lead-blocker, while also contributing heavily on special teams.
UPDATE, 5:53pm: We’ve now got the terms for the deal. Davison is getting a three-year, $12MM pact with $4.5MM guaranteed, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network tweets. Considering he made only $895K last year, this is a pretty nice pay-raise for the 27-year-old Fresno State product.
4:57pm: A source tells Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com, the Falcons are close a three-year contract extension with defensive tackle Tyeler Davison. Davison signed a one-year contract with Atlanta last offseason and proved to be a productive member of their defense.
Originally a fifth-round pick by the Saints in 2015, Davison quickly earned playing time as a rotational interior lineman capable of manning the nose tackle position. Over the first four years of his career in New Orleans, Davison became a starting interior lineman for the Saints, starting 43 games from 2016-2018. Like most nose tackles, Davison is most effective against the run game, only contributing 3.5 sacks over his time with the Saints.
In his lone season with the Falcons, Davison continued his trend of being a healthy contributor along the Falcons front, recording a career-high 55 tackles, tying his career-best mark of 4 tackles for loss, and adding a sack as well.
The Falcons took care of one of their free agents Saturday, reaching an extension agreement with fullback Keith Smith. The team announced the parties agreed on a three-year contract.
Cut by the Raiders after training camp, Smith latched on with the Falcons just before the 2019 regular season. He played 198 offensive snaps with Atlanta — the sixth-most among fullbacks last season — and is now locked up through the 2022 season.
The soon-to-be 28-year-old blocking back has played six NFL seasons. He spent four seasons with the Cowboys and one with the Raiders. Smith’s 2020 base salary will likely be determined by the players’ decision on the CBA, which is due at 10:59pm CT Saturday. If the agreement is ratified, minimum-salary players will receive an approximate $100K salary spike.
Devonta Freeman is not a lock to return as the team’s backfield centerpiece, but Smith is set to reprise his role as the team’s blocking back. It is not yet certain who will be the beneficiaries of Smith blocks, however.
In the final days of a one-year Falcons contract, Steven Means landed another. The Falcons will bring back the veteran defensive end for the 2020 season, the team announced Monday.
It’s a one-year deal for the 29-year-old defender. The Falcons gave Means a one-year, $805K deal in February 2019.
With Means coming off a lost season due to an ACL tear during OTAs, this pact also figures to be a league-minimum agreement. The CBA proposal passing would stand to increase Means’ salary by more than $100K.
Means, 29, originally caught on with the Falcons in September 2018, agreeing to terms after being part of the Eagles’ Super Bowl LII-winning roster. He has registered one sack in each of the last three seasons and made four starts for the 2018 Falcons. The former Buccaneers fifth-round pick will be in line to vie for a Falcons backup job again this summer.
The Falcons also waived tackle Lukayus McNeil on Monday.
Today’s minor moves:
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed: OL John Wetzel
Denver Broncos
- Released: DL Billy Winn
- Waived: CB Horace Richardson
San Francisco 49ers
- Tendered as exclusive rights free agents: OL Daniel Brunskill, TE Ross Dwelley, CB Emmanuel Moseley, QB Nick Mullens, RB Jeff Wilson
The Falcons announced today that they released offensive lineman John Wetzel.
The 28-year-old had six separate stints with the Falcons last season, but the organization continued to turn to him whenever they had a need on the offensive line. The Boston College product ultimately got into a pair of games for Atlanta in 2019. The offensive guard previously started 19 of his 32 games for the Cardinals between the 2016 and 2017 seasons, but he was limited to only eight games (five starts) in 2018.
The organization clearly sees value in Wetzel, so it wouldn’t be a shock if the veteran landed back with the Falcons at some point. It’s worth noting that the lineman was able to sneak in a workout with the Texans between one of his runs in Atlanta.
This will likely be one of many minor moves that the Falcons make as they scrounge around for extra cap. The team’s currently sitting with around $5MM in space, although they could move on from someone like Devonta Freeman to clear up even more room.
- A Falcons cog for seven seasons, Kemal Ishmael will likely have to find another team in order to continue his career. The seven-year veteran linebacker-safety will not be brought back, according to Ishmael’s agent (via D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution). The Falcons have shuttled the 28-year-old defender/special-teamer between safety and linebacker and have re-signed him to one-year deals in each of the past three offseasons.
Falcons head coach Dan Quinn told reporters earlier Tuesday that the team is undecided on whether to exercise the fifth-year option in edge rusher Takkarist McKinley‘s rookie contract, according to Jason Butt of The Athletic Atlanta. Butt first reported that Quinn said the team would decline McKinley’s option just 
after general manager Thomas Dimitroff said the team had yet to make a decision. When Quinn was asked to clarify, he deferred to Dimitroff and said the team was “still deciding.”
McKinley has failed to develop in the way Atlanta hoped when they selected him with the 26th overall pick back in the 2017 NFL Draft. While he has consistently taken the field for the Falcons and put up reasonable production, he has yet to emerge as a legitimate game-changer.
As a rookie, McKinley appeared as a rotational pass rusher in all 16 games and accrued 6.0 sacks. In his sophomore campaign, McKinley started 8 games, recorded 22 tackles, and 7.0 sacks and expectations were he could become a game-changer with time. However, in 2019, McKinley turned in his least productive campaign even while receiving the most playing time of his career (13 starts).
McKinley’s fifth-year option would be above eight figures and would be a very large gamble on a player who has yet to take the next step at the NFL level.
The Falcons would like to re-sign two of their key players, but they won’t stop them from testing the open waters. Tight ends Austin Hooper and De’Vondre Campbell will be permitted to explore free agency, GM Thomas Dimitroff told reporters on Tuesday morning (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). 
[RELATED: Falcons To Pick Up Matt Schaub’s Option]
As of this writing, the Falcons have approximately $5MM in cap room. They can carve out more by shedding running back Devonta Freeman, safety Keanu Neal, offensive tackle Ty Sambrailo, defensive lineman Allen Bailey, and other veterans, but their cap situation will be tight regardless. Meanwhile, they have other areas to address, including the secondary.
Hooper took full advantage of his walk year, reeling in 75 catches, 787 yards, and six touchdowns in just 13 games. He’s a dynamic threat at the tight end position with two 70-catch seasons under his belt and it’s expected that he’ll be lavished with big money offers when the bell rings in March. Hooper is still just 25 (he turns 26 in November) and retaining him would require a top-of-the-market deal.
At one point in January, the Falcons and Campbell were discussing an extension. But, over the last few weeks, those talks between Dimitroff and agent Drew Rosenhaus have slowed down. Last year, Campbell led the Falcons in tackles for the second straight year and turned in a perfect attendance record for the third straight season. As a young and elite run-stopper, Campbell may have also priced himself out of Atlanta.
The Falcons are expected to exercise Matt Schaub’s $2MM option for 2020, a source tells NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero (on Twitter). This doesn’t completely guarantee his place on the roster in September, but it’s an indication that they intend to keep the veteran as Matt Ryan‘s backup.
[RELATED: Falcons Move On From Vic Beasley]
Schaub, 39 in June, was thrust into action last year when Ryan suffered his ankle injury. In his first start since the 2015 season, Schaub completed 75% of his passes and threw for 460 yards. Still, the Falcons fell short, losing 27-20 to the Seahawks.
Schaub came back to where it all started in 2016 and signed a two year, $3.78MM extension to stay with the Falcons in 2019. He spent seven years as the Texans starter and collected two Pro Bowl nominations in some of his healthier seasons. Since 2014, he’s served as a backup for the Raiders, Ravens, and Falcons.
The veteran is now slated to come back for another year with a reasonable cap hit of $2.375MM. Meanwhile, the offseason could see the departure of mainstays like running back Devonta Freeman. Unfortunately for them, they’re tight against the cap as they look to overhaul their defense. A new deal for tight end Austin Hooper is on the to-do list, but it might not be feasible to give him a multi-year deal at the top of the market.