Cold Hard Facts: Four noteworthy Falcons with "Writing on the Wall"

Clint Goss

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Cold Hard Facts: Four noteworthy Falcons with "Writing on the Wall" image

#4 Taylor Heinicke - QB

  • Final Year of Contract
  • Cut Would Save $1.21M in cap space for 2024
  • Age: 31
  • Heinicke has already taken a major pay cut ($4.47M) to stay on the team. 

“Yeah, I kind of see the writing on the wall,” Heinicke said when asked about his role on the team last week, adding “It’s nothing that I haven’t been through before. So, I accept my role in any case.” 

Cold Hard Facts: 

  • Signed a 2-year, $20 Million deal to come back up Desmond Ridder.
  • Heinicke is the remainder of a QB room featuring Ridder that Owner Arthur Blank described last year as “clearly deficient.” 
  • 74-136 (54.4%), 890 passing yards, 5 TDs, 4 INTs in 5 Games Played. 
  • QB Kirk Cousins has a 4-year, $180M deal with $100M guaranteed. 
  • QB Michael Penix Jr. (8th pick) has a 4-year, $22.8M deal.   

The team’s release of rookie QB John Paddock and subsequent signing of 2022 Most Outstanding Canadian QB Nathan Rourke has Terry Fontenot catching a flight on Air Canada for a potential QB3.

#35 Avery Williams - PR/KR/RB

  • Final Year of Rookie Contract
  • Cut Would Save $1.055M in cap space for 2024
  • Age: 26

Red Hot Numbers:

  • 5.0 rushing yards per carry as RB3 in 2022.
  • NFL Leading 16.2 yards per punt return in 2022. 2nd place was 13.2 yards. 
  • The Atlanta Falcons averaged 7.2 yards per punt return last season, the third worst in the NFL. 

Cold Hard Facts: 

No one in Falcons media has spoken higher of Williams in his time here as a 5th round hit (Just the one year of NFL-leading punt returning alone was a hit on Day 3), but this could fearfully be a case of Not For Long in Atlanta. 

#87 John Fitzpatrick - TE 

  • Year 3 of Rookie Contract
  • Cut Would Save $985,000 in cap space for 2024, $1.1M for 2025
  • Age: 24

Two-Year Stat Line:

  • 1 catch, 12 yards 
  • 4 tackles 

Meet Ross Dwelley, the Falcons' offseason acquisition from the San Francisco 49ers. 

Cold Hard Facts:

  • 6 seasons, 84 games, & 17 starts for the 49ers.
  • 44 catches, 518 yards, & 5 TDs of production
  • Carries a $1.13M cap hit for 2024 on a 1-year deal.

“He’s a good blocker” won’t be enough for Fitz with the additions of Charlie Woerner and Dwelley from the West Coast. Reports of blacksmith-handed drops at Training Camp extinguishes Fitz’s Magic. 

#95 Ta’Quon Graham - 3T 

  • Final Year of Rookie Contract
  • Cut Would Save $1.055M in cap space for 2024
  • Age: 25 (26 by season's end)

Cold Hard Facts:

  • 15 GPs, 23 tackles, 1 sack, 1 FF in 2023 
  • MCL tear in Week 11 of 2022. 

With invigorated youth like Ruke Orhorhoro (22), Zach Harrison (22), and Brandon Dorlus (23) beefing up this 3-4 defensive end rotation, Graham has to be better than his serviceable body to make this team.

Clint Goss

Clint Goss Photo

Clint Goss is a Falcons and NFL writer, as well as the the on-air co-host of The Falcon Fade radio show at 99.1 WDJY and lead NFL Draft Analyst for Stadium Rant. He is a Rhetoric graduate of Georgia College & State University. A Roswell resident, find Clint at Mercedes-Benz Stadium every Sunday. You can follow Clint actively on Twitter/X @NFLDraftDome.