The Falcons completed their first round of cuts Sunday, trimming their roster down to 75 players before the 4 P.M. deadline on Monday. While important, these aren't typically the sort of cuts that see familiar names go, and this was mostly the case for the Falcons.
All in all, the team cut QB John Parker Wilson, RB Richard Medlin, FB Lee Meisner, WR Kenny Stafford, TE Chase Coffman, TE Aron White, DE Louis Nzegwu, LB Max Gruder, CB Darrin Walls, and K Erik Folk.
This came in addition to Will Svitek being placed on IR and Corey Peters being added to the PUP list. But how does this fit in to the big picture?
The most important move on this list is easily the addition of Peters to the PUP, which means that the earliest he can rejoin the team will be after week six of the regular season.
We knew the Peters recovery was coming along slowly, but with this move the coaching staff is literally spelling out that the team's No. 2 defensive tackle is missing significant time this year.
In the meantime, the Falcons will be leaning heavily on former first-round pick Peria Jerry, who's had a nice preseason. But moreover, this leaves the Falcons pretty thin at the position, thin enough that someone like UDFA Micanor Regis has a real shot at making the team.
Beyond Peters, many folks breathed a sigh of relief when Wilson's name showed up on this list, if only because it means fan-favorite Dominique Davis has one more week to battle incumbent Chris Redman for the backup QB job. At worst, expect the team to keep Davis as a third QB or on the practice squad.
The injury settlement with Walls was a less fortunate cut. He showed some real upside and athleticism at cornerback, but hurt players can't play. His release means that Dominique Franks and Chris Owens have a much improved shot at staying on the team.
The battle for third-string tight end also got tighter with this cut, with Tommy Gallarda and converted wideout LaMark Brown duking it out for a roster spot in this final week of the preseason.
But seriously. Final week of the preseason. Thank God.
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