Subscribe
Follow Us
The Atlanta Falcons announced their initial 53-man roster on Tuesday.
Quarterbacks Desmond Ridder, Logan Woodside and Taylor Heinicke were all listed on Atlanta's initial roster. They would be joined by running backs Bijan Robinson, Cordarrelle Patterson, Keith Smith and Tyler Allgeier. Ridder, a former third-round selection in the 2022 NFL Draft, played and started in four games for the Falcons last season. Robinson was selected with the No. 8 pick in the 2023 NFL draft after finishing the 2022 season with 1,580 rushing yards and 18 rushing touchdowns.
The Falcons announced their additions to their practice squad on Wednesday. Defensive back Micah Abernathy, defensive lineman LaCale London and offensive lineman Tyler Vrabel made up a few of the options on the practice squad. Offensive lineman Josh Miles and receiver C.J. Saunders would join the practice squad and Thursday.
Who is one sneaky roster cut survivor who could impact the Falcons in 2023?
DeMarcco Hellams
Hellams was taken with the 224th pick in the 2023 NFL Draft. He finished his final season at Alabama with 108 total tackles, seven pass deflections, one sack, one forced fumble and one interception. He recorded a season-high 13 tackles during Alabama's win over Kansas State in the Sugar Bowl, a game that saw Crimson Tide quarterback Bryce Young throw for 321 yards and five touchdowns in the 45-20 win at Caesars Superdome.
Hellams played in three games and a total of 167 snaps during the 2023 NFL preseason, according to Pro Football Focus. He earned five tackles during a 13-13 tie with the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 2 of the preseason. He played in 71% of the team's defensive snaps during the Mercedes-Benz Stadium matchup, Falcons Content Producer Tori McElhaney wrote in an August article.
Article Continues Below
“He shows up when the lights are on, just like he did at Alabama,” Falcons head coach Arthur Smith said after the Falcons-Bengals tie, via McElhaney. “He continues to find the football. He's a good football player, and we're going to continue to work on some other things, but it's a good pattern to have two weeks in a row (where he's) going and getting the ball.”
Hellams intercepted a pass during the team's 19-3 preseason win over the Miami Dolphins.
“I think if you brought that up, he played well in the preseason but it's not just about that,” Smith said, via SB Nation Editor Jeremy Brener. “Sometimes you take that – it's a good evaluation but then there's a lot of other things that can go on in the preseason and sometimes it's who you're going against. Sometimes, it's you can tell some teams are being as generic as they can be. It's part of evaluation.
“But then it's also what he's done on the practice field and the day-to-day. The way he's trending, hopefully, he keeps it; he's going to be hard to keep off the field. Hopefully that continues to stay at the right trend, so he earned it.”
A total of 10 defensive backs were listed on the Falcons' initial 53-man roster. Defensive backs Richie Grant and Jaylinn Hawkins took up the two starting safety spots on the Falcons' depth chart. Darren Hall and A.J. Terrell took the two starting cornerback spots. Grant, a third-year safety out of UCF, took second place on Atlanta's roster with 123 total tackles in 2022.
Hellams will need to carry over the work ethic and preseason success that earned him a spot on the Falcons' roster. If he can, he can play an important role on a Falcons defense that took 25th place in the league with 3,942 passing yards allowed, according to NFL.com.
