Atlanta Falcons Cut Roster Down to 52
By John Buhler
The Atlanta Falcons have trimmed their roster to 52 men after a series of cuts Saturday afternoon.
According to the Team Website, the Atlanta Falcons released the following players: LB Derek Akunne, OL Pierce Burton, CB Akeem King, OL Eric Lefeld, LB Stansly Maponga, NT Joey Mbu, WR Carlton Mitchell, and LB Tyler Starr.
-= See Also: Atlanta Falcons Trade for OG Andy Levitre =-
The Atlanta Falcons also waived injured OL Adam Repogle, RB Jerome Smith, and TE D.J. Tialavea. Atlanta placed the following players on injured reserve: G Jon Asamoah, FB Collin Mooney, and CB Travis Howard. The Falcons reached injury settlements with TE Tony Moeaki and RB Antone Smith.
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Of all the players released by the team, three names certainly surprise me: RB Antone Smith, LB Stansly Maponga, and LB Tyler Starr. Smith was a fan favorite at the tailback position. Last year, ‘Tone showed us that he had at least one explosive play in him every game.
However, a lingering hamstring injury suffered against the Tennessee Titans in the first week of the preseason allowed UDFA Terron Ward to take his spot as the Atlanta Falcons’ 3rd string running back behind Tevin Coleman and Devonta Freeman. Smith was on the wrong side of 30 and hopefully he finds a suitable new employer because the guy can play when he’s healthy.
I really thought that Stansly Maponga showed significant improvement this preseason with his pass rushing abilities. He looked great against the New York Jets. I seriously that he would make the 53-man roster over the likes of Malliciah Goodman and Kroy Biermann. However, perhaps it’s a special teams thing that I’m not seeing that proved the value of Biermann and Goodman over Maponga.
Lastly, I thought Tyler Starr was going to again make the 53-man roster after making the cut last season under then HC Mike Smith. Starr seemed like he was playing looser, as if the game finally slowed down for him. I have to believe that HC Dan Quinn has a spot for Tyler on the practice squad this season. Maybe his playmaking ability reaches the gridiron if Atlanta has injuries at linebacker this fall?
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Another note, the Atlanta Falcons cut both of its seventh round selections, OT Jake Rodgers yesterday and DB Akeem King this afternoon. I feel that Atlanta needs to keep them around on the practice squad for their rookie season in the league. Perhaps that’s where Quinn and GM Thomas Dimitroff’s heads are at.
Atlanta now has 52 men on its football team. There is still over a week’s worth of time before the home opener against the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday Night Football the 14th, so expect the Atlanta Falcons’ brass to have a few more roster moves in the works before the regular season begins.
Next: Atlanta Falcons Release Yates, Grossman
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