Falcons announce flurry of moves, including cutting RB Javian Hawkins and signing QB Josh Rosen
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By: David J Walker
The battle for the backup QB officially has a new entrant.
With Falcons players off today, it seemed likely that the front office would make moves to get their roster down to the required 80 while also adding depth back to the QB room with the loss of A.J. McCarron to a torn ACL.
Well, the team made those moves and confirmed reports that QB Josh Rosen would come in to compete for the backup QB position. A couple of the cuts were unexpected.
We have made several transactions.
Placed on IR: AJ McCarron
Signed: Josh Rosen
Released: Willie Wright, Austin Trammell, Javian Hawkins, Olive Sagapolu, Shareef Millerhttps://t.co/1m34zhT8WW
— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) August 24, 2021
The signing of Rosen is no big surprise, but with the signing official and A.J. McCarron going to IR, the game this weekend has become that much more interesting. The team has made it clear that they may not be done evaluating quarterbacks, so Rosen is no lock for the 53-man roster come September. He will have to prove he has the capacity to serve as a capable backup first. The team also officially put A.J. McCarron on IR, which was expected, and now Rosen will compete with undrafted free agent Feleipe Franks in the game against the Browns.
The team also announced cuts including some intriguing players. Willie Wright, Austin Trammell, Javian Hawkins, Olive Sagapolu and Shareef Miller are all now free agents, and the roster now stands at 80 players.
Hawkins is someone many of us thought had a chance at making the 53, but Caleb Huntley has looked better throughout the preseason and was strong in camp. Apparently he, Qadree Ollison and D’Onta Foreman’s efforts on Saturday night were impressive enough to make the Falcons feel comfortable cutting the speedy undrafted free agent. Barring any significant changes, it looks like Huntley will be the last running back on the 53-man roster.
Likewise, Austin Trammell was impressive early on in camp, but an injury set him back and it looks like he has not been able to regain his footing. Sagapolu is also a bit of an unexpected cut, given a solid camp, while Miller had a sack late in the first preseason game. Wright fell behind in the competition along the offensive line, probably owing partially to a stint on the reserve/COVID-19 list.
What are your thoughts on the signing of Rosen and the cuts made by the team?
