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Atlanta Falcons News & Rumors

Falcons Activate G Chris Lindstrom

December 7th, 2019 at 4:31pm CST by Sam Robinson

Chris Lindstrom‘s season will resume Sunday. The Falcons activated the rookie guard off IR on Saturday and will reinstall him as their starting right guard.

Atlanta waived tight end Carson Meier to clear a roster spot. The team has used both of its IR-return spots over the past week, activating both Lindstrom and punter Matt Bosher. The latter, however, re-injured his groin and is back on IR.

Lindstrom returned to practice just this week, but the Falcons are evidently satisfied with his health and progress after a few days. The Boston College-developed prospect has spent nearly three months on IR because of a foot injury, last playing in Atlanta’s opener.

The Falcons used two first-round picks on offensive linemen this year, selecting Lindstrom at No. 14 overall and adding Kaleb McGary at No. 31. Neither’s first years have gone as the team hoped. McGary underwent heart surgery but returned to start all 12 Falcons games thus far. As a result, the Falcons have barely seen their two top rookie investments in uniform together.

Falcons Place Matt Bosher Back On IR

December 7th, 2019 at 4:14pm CST by Sam Robinson

Shortly after the Falcons brought Matt Bosher off IR, the veteran punter will return to the team’s injured list. Bosher re-injured his groin and is back on IR.

The Falcons used one of their two IR-DTR slots on their ninth-year punter late last week but will not have the chance to redeploy him on fourth downs Sunday. Atlanta re-signed Ryan Allen, its punter in the past four games.

Bosher returned to Falcons practice on Nov. 20 but will have to wait until 2020 to return to game action. His Falcons contract — signed way back in 2014 — expires after this season. The 32-year-old specialist has been Atlanta’s punter since 2011.

One of the key Patriots in Super Bowl LIII, Allen has only punted since November of this season. The Patriots drafted Jake Bailey in Round 5 and released Allen this summer.

Chris Lindstrom represents the other Falcons IR-DTR player. The rookie lineman is still on track to return this week.

NFC South Injury Notes: Cappa, Little, Lindstrom, Logan

December 6th, 2019 at 2:03pm CST by Marc Delucchi

The Buccaneers will be without starting right guard Alex Cappa this week, according to Jenna Laine of ESPN. Cappa sustained an elbow injury in Tampa Bay’s game against the Jaguars this past Sunday. Head coach Bruce Arians removed Cappa from the game in hopes that the precaution could allow Cappa to play this week, but unfortunately the injury is just too severe.

Veteran offensive lineman Earl Watford is behind Cappa on the depth chart and is expected to start in his place against the Colts. A six-year veteran, Watford has played all across the line, but is primarily an interior lineman. An injury earlier in the year forced Watford to start in place of Cappa for two games, so this will not be entirely unfamiliar territory for Tampa’s o-line.

Here’s some more injury notes from the NFC South:

  • Panthers tackle Greg Little was ruled out for Sunday’s game against the Falcons with an ankle injury, per Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic. While Little was selected with the 37th pick in this year’s draft by Carolina to immediately jump into their rotation along the line, injuries have limited him to only four appearances on the season. Little can play either tackle spot, but was listed as the team’s top left tackle on the depth chart. Fellow rookie Dennis Daley will likely return to the starting lineup in his place.
  • Rookie offensive guard Chris Lindstrom will return to the field for the first time since Week 1 for the Falcons. According to D. Orlando Ledbetter of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Atlanta is activating Lindstrom from the injured reserve to start this week against the Panthers. The Falcons focused on solidifying their offensive line through the draft last offseason, selecting Lindstrom with the 14th overall pick and tackle Kaleb McGary later in the first round. Lindstrom, however, has been out since injuring his foot in the season opener and the offensive line has struggled mightily, allowing 38 sacks on the season.
  • Buccaneers running back T.J. Logan broke his thumb during practice and will be out for the remainder of the season, according to Rick Stroud of The Tampa Bay Times. Logan has played a couple dozen offensive snaps on the season, accruing 23 yards from scrimmage. His primary role though, is as the team’s punt and kickoff returner. This season, Logan averaged 9.5 yards per return on 13 punt returns and 20.8 yards per return on 13 kick returns. Jenna Laine of ESPN reports that Justin Watson and Sean Murphy-Bunting will share punt return duties while Dare Ogunbowale handles kick returns in Logan’s absence.

Current 2020 NFL Draft Order

December 3rd, 2019 at 8:15am CST by Zachary Links

With 13 full weeks of the NFL season in the books, the 2020 draft order is beginning to take shape. Here’s the rundown of where things would stand if the 2019 season ended today:

1. Bengals: 1-11
2. Giants: 2-10
3. Redskins: 3-9
4. Dolphins: 3-9
5. Falcons: 3-9
6. Lions: 3-8-1
7. Cardinals: 3-8-1
8. Jaguars: 4-8
9. Jets: 4-8
10. Chargers: 4-8
11. Broncos 4-8
12. Eagles 5-7
13. Buccaneers 5-7
T-14. Panthers 5-7
T-14. Browns
16. Raiders 6-6
17. Colts 6-6
18. Raiders (via Bears) 6-6
19. Titans 7-5
20. Jaguars (via Rams) 7-5
21. Cowboys 6-6
22. Dolphins (via Steelers) 7-5
23. Vikings 8-4
24. Chiefs 8-4
25. Dolphins (via Texans) 8-4
26. Bills 9-3
27. Packers 9-3
28. Saints 10-2
29. Patriots 10-2
30. 49ers 10-2
31. Ravens 10-2
32. Seahawks 10-2

Falcons Designate Chris Lindstrom For Return

December 2nd, 2019 at 11:24am CST by Zachary Links

The Falcons have designated rookie guard Chris Lindstrom to return from injured reserve, per a club announcement. In related moves, they’ve also signed offensive tackle John Wetzel and formally activated punter Matt Bosher from injured reserve. 

Lindstrom, 22, was selected by the Falcons with the No. 14 pick in the 2019 draft. He started at right guard in the season opener against the Vikings, but, unfortunately, he suffered a foot injury that landed him on injured reserve.

With his return to practice, the NFL’s 21-day window for activation begins. If Lindstrom is not activated to the 53-man roster during that window, he will not be eligible to return this season.

Bosher, 32, landed on IR prior to Week 5 matchup with a groin injury. Then, in late November, they earmarked him for return. The veteran has averaged 45.7 yards per punt during his nine seasons with the Falcons and will resume his place in the lineup starting this week against the Panthers.

Falcons Activate Matt Bosher, Cut Ryan Allen

November 29th, 2019 at 4:54pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

The Falcons made a couple of roster moves on Black Friday. The team announced they’ve waived punter Ryan Allen and linebacker Jermaine Grace. They’re activating punter Matt Bosher off injured reserve, who had been designated as one of their return players.

Bosher was the punter to start the season, but went down with a groin injury after just a few games. Bosher has been Atlanta’s punter since 2011, so it’s not surprising that the former sixth-round pick had his job waiting for him when he got healthy. The Falcons have used four different punters this season, and hopefully the cycling through can stop now. Allen had been the Patriots’ punter for six seasons up until he was cut this past August in favor of rookie Jake Bailey.

Allen latched on with Atlanta just a few weeks ago, after Matt Wile and Kasey Redfern had previously filled in. Grace entered the league as an UDFA back in 2017, and has already spent time with four different teams. Grace had played only a handful of defensive snaps, but had been a key special teamer all year, playing almost 70 percent of special teams snaps. Grace missed the block on Taysom Hill‘s punt block during last night’s loss to the Saints, which apparently sealed his fate.

Falcons’ Julio Jones Won’t Play Vs. Saints

November 28th, 2019 at 6:24pm CST by Zachary Links

Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones is inactive for tonight’s game against the Saints, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. The Falcons ruled Jones out after testing his shoulder strength and it’s not immediately clear whether he’ll be able to play in Week 14 against the Panthers either. 

Jones’ right shoulder will cause him to miss his first regular season game since the 2016 season. Through eleven games this year, Jones has reeled in 64 catches for 950 yards and four touchdowns – good numbers in spite of the Falcons’ overall woes.

After signing Jones to a three-year, $66MM extension in September, the Falcons would probably like to play it safe with Jones and keep him out of action, since the playoffs are out of reach. That’s unlikely to fly with the multiple-time Pro Bowler, however.

Jones’ unprecedented contract is fully guaranteed, with all but $2MM being completely locked down at the time of signing. After years of pushing for an extension, Jones set a new benchmark at his position and passed his previous AAV of $14.25MM – good for just 12th among wideouts – on a rocket ship.

The Falcons figure to overhaul their team in the offseason, but Jones will remain the face of the club for years to come.

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/27/19

November 27th, 2019 at 8:58pm CST by Marc Delucchi

Here are Wednesday’s minor moves:

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Detroit Lions

New York Giants

Oakland Raiders

San Francisco 49ers

Washington

Falcons Promote DE Austin Larkin

November 23rd, 2019 at 12:03pm CST by Ben Levine

Austin Larkin could end up making his NFL debut this weekend. The Falcons announced that they’ve promoted the defensive end from the practice squad. Larkin will take the roster spot that was previously held by offensive lineman Sean Harlow, who was cut yesterday.

Atlanta’s defensive end corps is currently struggling with injuries. Takkarist McKinley is listed as questionable for tomorrow’s game with a shoulder injury. Fellow defensive linemen John Cominsky and Adrian Clayborn are also ailing, so the Falcons were clearly in need of some reinforcement.

In comes Larkin, who was a standout for the Falcons during the preseason. The Purdue product had 11 tackles, one sack, and two tackles for loss, landing him a role on Atlanta’s practice squad. He’s had three separate stints with the organization this season, and this is the first that’s led to a promotion.

Considering the injuries, Larkin could end up getting some playing time against the Buccaneers. Vic Beasley, Allen Bailey, and Jacob Tuioti-Mariner are the only other healthy defensive ends on the active roster.

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