By Jordan Long
The Atlanta Falcons opened up training camp yesterday. They are hoping to improve on their 7-9 record last season. The Falcons will have to do it without safety J.J. Wilcox who tore his ACL.
Wilcox is in his 1st season with the Atlanta Falcons. He agreed to a 1-year deal with the Falcons on April 22nd after splitting time with the Indianapolis Colts and the New York Jets last season. Wilcox has been a solid safety. He has 16 passes deflected, 223 tackles, and 6 interceptions in his career.
The Falcons wanted to add depth to the safety position. They were hoping he would be the veteran presence at safety behind Keanu Neal and Ricardo Allen. Wilcox’s role on the team was going to be determined during training camp and preseason games. His season didn’t even last a practice.
With Wilcox’s injury, the Falcons have players on the roster to replace him, Chris Cooper and Sharrod Neasman. Cooper is a rookie who has yet to play in an NFL game. Neasman is the better of the two because he has appeared in 26 games over the course of 3 years. In those games he totaled 49 tackles and 4 passes deflected. It is possible if the Falcons don’t like those two options, they could also find a free agent safety.
The Falcons are hoping they don’t have any more players hurt which happened last year when six starters went down and onto injured reserve. Those were offensive guards Andy Levitre and Brandon Fusco, linebacker Deion Jones, running back Devonta Freeman, and safeties Keanu Neal and Ricardo Allen. The only one who came back and saw time was Jones.
The Falcons have time to decide who replaces Wilcox. Hopefully for them, they won’t have any more key starters go down before week 1. If they do, it could be a long season for the Falcons
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