Every team in the NFL has the constant worry during the preseason about injuries. A ton of starters don't even touch the field anymore in the exhibitions for fear of just that. Saturday, Atlanta Falcons backup quarterback A.J. McCarron suffered a scary non-contact knee injury against the Miami Dolphins.
After the game, Falcons head coach Arthur Smith didn't sound optimistic about what had happened to McCarron.
Falcons HC Arthur Smith said he’s “heartbroken” for QB AJ McCarron. He noted that it was a non-contact knee injury that “didn’t look good.” They did quick evaluation on the field but Smith notes they’ll have to confirm with the MRI.
— Cameron Wolfe (@CameronWolfe) August 22, 2021
McCarron was in line to be Matt Ryan's backup for the Falcons this season before the injury on Saturday. As Smith noted, they'll have to confirm the actual injury and the damage to his knee with an MRI but it sounds as thought Atlanta knows, or is at least convinced that the results won't yield anything good.
If McCarron misses the year, it leaves only rookie Felipe Franke out of Florida on the roster at quarterback. One would imagine that the Falcons would address the spot by bringing in at least one other name to either compete with Franks for the backup spot, or leapfrog him altogether.
It'll be an interesting year for Atlanta. Arthur Smith is entering his first year as head coach and Julio Jones was traded in the offseason to the Tennessee Titans. The Falcons still have the emerging Calvin Ridley at wideout and they drafted Franks' Gators teammate Kyle Pitts with their first round pick. Pitts is set to play all over the place on offense and not just at tight end.
Expectations aren't overly high externally for the Falcons this year but they do have some real nice weapons on the offensive side of the ball.
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