Falcons add K Matthew Wright to practice squad with Younghoe Koo uncertain for Sunday

The veteran kicker will be insurance for the Saints game.

The most alarming news of the week for the Atlanta Falcons was the unwelcome report that Younghoe Koo was dealing with a back injury. One of the most reliable kickers in the NFL, Koo is an essential player for the Falcons, who settle for more field goals than we’d like and are always confident that Koo will nail them.

If Koo can’t go Sunday—and we just don’t know yet—the Falcons will need an alternative. They chose that player on Thanksgiving, adding veteran Matthew Wright.

Wright, 27, has made 87% of his kicks over the course of his career. He has had stops in Pittsburgh, Jacksonville, and Kansas City, and hit 15 of 18 attempts between stints with the Chiefs and Steelers in 2022. He was a perfect 2/2 from beyond 50 yards last season, including a 59 yarder, so Wright has the leg to hit ‘em if the Falcons stall out. He’s a solid enough kicker to stand in for a week should Atlanta need him to.

The hope, of course, is that they don’t need that in a crucial divisional matchup against the New Orleans Saints on Sunday. Koo is among the league leaders in field goal percentage and has single-leggedly kept this team in some games this season. Going without him even for a week is not an ideal scenario for a team that badly needs all hands (and feet) on deck to salvage an increasingly lost season.

We’ll hope for the best for Koo, but if he can’t go, let’s hope Wright is excellent on Sunday.