The Green Bay Packers are signing tight end John FitzPatrick off the practice squad of the Atlanta Falcons, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.
A corresponding roster move will need to be made to fit FitzPatrick on the 53-man roster.
The Packers have three tight ends on the roster currently, but Luke Musgrave has been dealing with an ankle injury. He was active last week but didn’t play any snaps, and he was limited during Wednesday’s practice.
FitzPatrick (6-7, 250) was a sixth-round pick (213th overall) of the Falcons in the 2022 draft. He spent the 2022 season on injured reserve but played in nine games for the Falcons last season, catching one pass for 12 yards. He was on the field for 18 offensive snaps and 83 special teams snaps.
Of the 18 snaps, FitzPatrick was a run blocker on 11.
The Falcons released FitzPatrick at final cutdowns but signed him to the team’s initial practice squad.
Over three preseasons with the Falcons, FitzPatrick caught nine passes on 16 targets for 68 yards. He dropped two passes. His best ability is blocking, and he received solid run-blocking grades from PFF over 92 run-blocking snaps.
At Georgia, FitzPatrick appeared in 38 games, making 13 starts. He caught 17 passes for 200 yards and a touchdown but was primarily used as an inline blocking tight end.
“He’s the guy who does the dirty work,” Falcons scout Shepley Heard said following the 2022 draft. “He’s the blocking tight end. He’s big, physical, tough, nasty, always trying to finish guys.”