Tag: falcons football

When it comes to defensive tackles, nobody is better than Clemson’s Jarrett

Former Clemson standout Grady Jarrett continues to stand out in his seventh season in the NFL. Jarrett played defensive tackle for the Tigers from 2011-14 and anchored the front when defensive coordinator Brent Venables arrived at Clemson ahead of …

Former Clemson standout Grady Jarrett continues to stand out in his seventh season in the NFL.

Jarrett played defensive tackle for the Tigers from 2011-14 and anchored the front when defensive coordinator Brent Venables arrived at Clemson ahead of the 2012 season.

On Monday a member of the media asked Venables about the impact Jarrett made at Clemson before starting his career with the Falcons. And the defensive coordinator raved about how Jarrett’s contributions to the Clemson defense persist in the present.

“Clemson has had good defenses and great generational type players long before I got here,” Venables said. “But to me he along with a small group of guys there is nobody that had more of an impact on the defensive mindset since I’ve been at Clemson than Grady.”

Jarrett finished his time as a Tiger with 80 solo tackles and 144 total tackles with 5.5 sacks, three fumble recoveries and two forced fumbles.

But according to his old coach the most notable contribution by the defensive tackle came on the practice field and in the locker room as Venables worked to change the DNA of the Clemson defense.

“Grady, he just changed the defensive huddle, he changed the locker room, his mindset was just different,” Venables said. He is relentless by example in every rep, every day, at every meeting.”

Unlike other talented student-athletes, Jarrett sought to push his teammates to achieve the same standard. “Some guys will just be by themselves and do all of those great things, but Grady really pulls people with him and makes them better,” Venables said. “He doesn’t look the other way if his buddy is cutting corners.”

Venables said Jarrett’s leadership set the tone for the exceptional defensive play at Clemson for the better part of the last decade.
“He is just an amazing impact and to me he has been the cornerstone,” Venables said. “We’ve played really good defense for a long time here at Clemson.”

Last season Jarrett earned his second straight Pro Bowl and All-Pro selections. In eight games this year he recorded 27 tackles including two tackles for loss.

Jarrett and the Falcons travel to Dallas this weekend to face the Cowboys.

Atlanta Falcons put former Georgia Bulldog on IR

The Atlanta Falcons have put former Georgia Bulldogs punter Cameron Nizialek on injured reserve

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The Atlanta Falcons have placed former Georgia Bulldogs punter Cameron Nizialek on injured reserve. Nizialek made the Atlanta Falcons’ roster this season, but has had up and down performances.

The 26-year-old punter has punted 18 times for an average of 45.4 yards this season. Nizialek additionally handles kickoffs for Atlanta. He has a 40% touchback rate on kickoffs this season.

Cameron Nizialek suffered a right hamstring injury in week four against the Washington Football Team. Nizialek’s injury forced Younghoe Koo to attempt kickoffs. The Football Team burned the Falcons for a kickoff return touchdown in the contest.

In a corresponding move, Falcons punter Dustin Colquitt was promoted to the Atlanta’s 53-man roster. It is unclear who will handle kickoff duties.

Nizialek, who came to UGA as a graduate transfer from Columbia University, was Georgia’s punter during the 2017-18 season when the Bulldogs won the Rose Bowl and came one play away from capturing a National Championship.

Nizialek was the punter for the Atlanta Legends in 2019. The Legends were briefly a member of the now extinct Alliance of American Football.

Georgia Bulldogs punter Cameron Nizialek (92) against the Alabama Crimson Tide in the 2018 CFP national championship college football game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

In his one year with Georgia, he averaged 45.0 yards per punt on 61 total punts. 26 of his punts landed inside the 20-yard line.  His career-best punt of 61 yards came in the Rose Bowl against Oklahoma. Nizialek has a long of 62 yards this season.

We wish Nizialek a speedy recovery. He can return in three weeks.

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Atlanta Falcons waive former Georgia Bulldogs DL

The Atlanta Falcons have waived former Georgia Bulldogs defensive lineman John Atkins.

The Atlanta Falcons have waived former Georgia Bulldogs defensive lineman John Atkins.

Atlanta waived several players following their preseason opener against the Tennessee Titans. The Falcons have to cut one more player to reach the NFL’s roster requirement by Tuesday.

Atkins played in 36 career games for the Georgia Bulldogs. He compiled 81 total tackles over his career in Athens, but he never recorded a sack. Atkins is more of a run-stopper than a pass rusher. Now, he will search for another NFL opportunity.

Jan 8, 2018; Atlanta, GA, USA; Georgia Bulldogs defensive tackle John Atkins is looking for a new NFL home. Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Atkins has 22 career tackles during his NFL career. He previosuly played with the Detroit Lions in 2018-2019. The 6-foot-3, 320-pound defensive tackle went undrafted in 2018.

Atkins signed with the New England Patriots following the draft, but was cut before the regular season. Atkins signed with the Lions, with whom he had an opportunity to play in a few games as a rookie.

Atkins opted out of the 2020 NFL season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Detroit Lions cut Atkins on June 2.

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Atlanta Falcons sign former Georgia Bulldog

Atlanta Falcons sign former Georgia Bulldog punter Cameron Nizialek

The Atlanta Falcons have once again signed former Georgia Bulldogs punter Cameron Nizialek. Nizialek signed a deal to join the Atlanta Falcons practice squad last September, but only spent three weeks with their practice squad.

The 26-year-old punter has also spent time in the NFL with the Baltimore Ravens but has not appeared in an NFL game.

To make room for the former University of Georgia punter, the Falcons have waived punter Sterling Hofrichter due to an injury.

Nizialek, who came to UGA as a graduate transfer from Columbia University, was Georgia’s punter during the 2017-18 season when the Bulldogs won the Rose Bowl and came one play away from capturing a National Championship.

Nizialek was the punter for the Atlanta Legends in 2019. The Legends were briefly a member of the now extinct Alliance of American Football.

Feb 24, 2019; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Legends punter Cameron Nizialek shows emotion after a punt against the Birmingham Iron in the second half at Georgia State Stadium. Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

In his one year with Georgia, he averaged 45.0 yards per punt on 61 total punts. 26 of his punts landed inside the 20-yard line.  His career-best punt of 61 yards came in the Rose Bowl against Oklahoma.

The Falcons brought in Nizialek along with Colby Wadman of California-Davis and Matt Wile of Michigan for workouts earlier this week following Sterling Hofrichter’s injury. Atlanta elected to sign Nizialek, who will have an opportunity to showcase his talent to the Falcons and NFL for the preseason.

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Falcons OC says only question mark for Todd Gurley is durability

Atlanta Falcons OC Dirk Koetter talks about the concerns with former Georgia football star, new Falcons running back Todd Gurley.

Atlanta Falcons offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter was pretty straight forward with the media about new running back Todd Gurley and his health concerns.

The 25-year-old sixth year pro is reportedly dealing with arthritis in his surgically repaired left knee.

Per ESPN‘s Vaughn McClure:

“He can still do it. It’s just a matter of how often can he do it,” Koetter said.

After being released by the L.A. Rams, Gurley returned to Georgia to sign a one-year $5.5 million deal with the Atlanta Falcons this offseason. The former Georgia football star was drafted by the Rams in 2015 NFL Draft and in his five seasons Gurley made three Pro Bowls while being named to the All-Pro team twice, in addition to winning NFL Offensive Player of the Year in 2017.

However, in 2019, Gurley’s knee issues surfaced and the Rams questioned his durability – ultimately leading to his release just two years after signing a four-year extension worth $45 million guaranteed.

“This guy, when he’s at his best, he’s got speed, he’s got power, he can break tackles, he’s elusive, he can catch the ball out of the backfield,” Koetter continued. “We’ve all seen what he can do. His accolades speak for themselves. We just have to see how healthy he is and how consistently he can do it.”

Gurley’s deal with the Falcons is still awaiting a physical and due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Falcons staff hasn’t been able to evaluate him just yet.

“I know from talking to Todd that he’s fired up to be coming back to Georgia. He can do everything. He’s an excellent runner. He’s good in the pass game. He can protect. The main question that no one seems to know is, ‘What’s his health status? What’s his workload?’ He averaged about 17 touches a game last year, which is a little bit lower than he had been when he was All-Pro. We’re just going to have to find that out once we get here and get him working, get him up and running.”

Deion Sanders didn’t want Todd Gurley wearing No. 21 for Falcons, later says it was just a joke

Former Georgia football RB Todd Gurley says Deion Sanders did not want him wearing No. 21 for the Atlanta Falcons.

After being drafted by Atlanta, Deion “Prime Time” Sanders played cornerback for the Falcons from 1989-1993 wearing the No. 21 jersey.

Prime Time recently commented on the Falcons new jerseys and according to Sanders, no one should be wearing No. 21 in Atlanta, even recently signed Todd Gurley.

“Only thing I don’t like about the Falcons uniforms is I really do think they need to take No. 21 and put it up in the rafters and leave it alone,” Sanders said. “Leave it alone!”

While Sanders comments didn’t keep Gurley from choosing to wear No. 21, the former Georgia running back did hear a few words from Deion on the matter.

 “Prime was hatin’ on me. He told me don’t wear it,” Gurley told 92.3 The Game in Atlanta. “If I was Prime, I wouldn’t want nobody be wearing my number either.”

Deion spent time with the San Francisco 49ers, Dallas Cowboys, Washington Redskins and Baltimore Ravens so does he really deserve that No. 21 in Atlanta retired in his name?

Don’t get me wrong, Sanders is one of the greatest Falcons of all-time and the NFL Hall of Famer deserves his accolades, but he may be reaching a bit.

After the news got out, Prime took to Twitter to say it was just a joke and that Gurley will “represent it (the number) right.”

I think if Sanders had his way every team in the NFL would have the No. 21 in the rafters.

Falcon’s GM comfortable with former Georgia star Todd Gurley’s knee injuries

Atlanta Falcons GM Thomas Dimitroff talks about newly signed former Georgia football running back Todd Gurley’s knee injuries.

Atlanta Falcons beat reporter Kelsey Conway recently spoke to the franchise’s general manager Thomas Dimitroff about newly signed running back Todd Gurley.

The former Georgia Bulldog recently signed a one-year contract worth $6m with the Falcons after being released earlier this year by the L.A. Rams.

Gurley was a two-time All-Pro in L.A. but after issues with arthritis in his previously injured left-knee, the team decided to move on from the 24-year old.

Unlike the Rams, the Falcons do not seem to be worried about Gurley’s injury history.

Dimitroff said:

He really takes care of his body well. We feel very comfortable with it. He’s a hard-charging runner and we’re counting on him being an excellent player for us.

Gurley being on just a one-year deal creates an easy out for Atlanta if he can’t meet expectations in 2020, but Falcons and UGA fans hope the Bulldog great can bounce back with a great season for Atlanta.

Solomon Kindley has advice for former Georgia football teammates

Georgia football offensive guard Solomon Kindley has advice for his former UGA teammates while at the NFL Combine.

Georgia offensive guard Solomon Kindley is in Indianapolis this week for the NFL Combine.

Viewed anywhere from a first to third round draft pick, Kindley is meeting with teams, undergoing body measurements and eventually will partake in on-field drills.

Related: Solomon Kindley a classic NFL guard

Kindley said he has already met with the Packers and Patriots and has plans to meet with the Falcons and the Chiefs.

Since 2017, he started 10 games at right guard and 26 at left guard. He left Georgia with one year of eligibility remaining, and during an interview at the combine he mentioned that he misses Athens and his teammates back in Georgia.

“I’m not going to lie, I miss my teammates,” Kindley said. “I miss my little brothers. I miss them UGA Dawgs.”

When asked what he missed most about Kirby Smart, Kindley noted that it was Kirby’s drive and constant motivation that he has missed the most.

He also went on to give advice to the younger Bulldogs in Athens.

“Take it all in. Just soak it all up because it feels like I had just got there and now I’m here already. Don’t waste no time. The time is short at Georgia. Everything you do, you gotta pay attention to.”

“Do everything the right way.”

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Busy week for Solomon Kindley, including possible meeting with Falcons

Former Georgia football OT Solomon Kindley says he has meetings with multiple NFL teams, including a potential one with the Atlanta Falcons.

Could the Atlanta Falcons finally snap the streak of refusing to select former Georgia payers in the NFL Draft?

This year could be the year, especially with the high volume of Georgia players in the draft. Is it possible that the Falcons will be left no choice but to draft a former Bulldog?

Solomon Kindley, Georgia’s offensive guard who is viewed as a 1-3 round draft pick, said that he believes he has a formal interview with the Falcons this week.

He also added that he has met with the Packers and Patriots, and also thinks he has a meeting with the Chiefs coming up.

Kindley to the Falcons would excite Georgia fans, and it would surely excite Kindley, who would stay close to home. Kindley grew up in Jacksonville, Florida.

And then there’s the Chiefs, who Kindley also said he believes he has a meeting with this week. Kindley, if taken by Kansas City, would pair up with speedster Mecole Hardman on the Super Bowl champs.

But the possibility that excites me the most is Kindley to the Patriots. The two parties have already met at the NFL Combine, and it’s a known fact that Pats head coach Bill Belichick is a big fan of drafting Dawgs.

If Kindley does wind up in New England, he would join an offensive line that already features two Georgia guys — David Andrews and Isaiah Wynn. Additionally, he would join his fellow Dawgs in blocking for another Georgia boy, running back Sony Michel.

In Indy, Kindley measured in at 6-foot-3 and 1/4 inches tall and weighed in at 337 pounds.

Since 2017, Kindley started 10 games at right guard and 26 at left guard.

Kindley left Georgia with one year of eligibility remaining.