Raiders vs. Falcons, Week 6: Ray Edwards' playing time reduced

Atlanta Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff hasn't whiffed on much in his five years at the head of the team's front office, but his 2011 free agent signing of defensive end Ray Edwards from the Minnesota Vikings has yet to yield much by way of on-field results.

Edwards, as Pat Yasinkas of ESPN.com writes, is still listed as the team's starting defensive tackle opposite stalwart John Abraham.

However, he's started only three of the undefeated Falcons' first five games while Kroy Biermann has started two, and Biermann has seen much more time on the field than Edwards -- 215 plays for Biermann, 122 for Edwards. And Edwards was on the field for only 13 plays in last weekend's win over the Washington Redskins, compared with 36 for Biermann.

The results back up the coaches' faith in Biermann, who has 20 tackles and a sack compared with the six tackles and no sacks produced by Edwards, who is making far more money.

Yasinkas concludes that, obviously, the Falcons are simply playing who gives them better production and not just the player who takes up more of their salary cap.