FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. -- The Atlanta Falcons open the 2021 regular season against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sept. 12 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The Falcons finished 2020 with a 4-12 record, last in the NFC South.
A week before the final roster cutdown, head coach Arthur Smith said he was comfortable with a little more than a third of the roster they have -- not a total surprise considering it's his first year with the team and the amount of new faces they have. It's a team with high-end top-level guys such as Matt Ryan, Calvin Ridley and Grady Jarrett, but a combination of a new regime and salary cap issues have hamstrung Atlanta's depth. Much of the season depends on those high-level players getting through healthy and Smith and general manager Terry Fontenot making the right calls on players both with this cutdown and moves they make following it.
The roster will be cut to 53 players by 4 p.m. ET on Tuesday. Here is a projection:
QUARTERBACK (3): Matt Ryan, Josh Rosen, Feleipe Franks
AJ McCarron's torn right ACL complicated matters here and potentially means the Falcons would keep three quarterbacks heading into Week 1 to have more assurances Rosen -- or another quarterback if the team makes a post-cutdown move -- has time to learn more of the playbook. Franks has shown potential, but it's the unknown that keeps him on the roster for now. Rosen came into Sunday with less than a week on the Falcons. Arthur Smith gave him the whole second half to show himself and he might have given Smith enough to give him a longer look. But after the preseason, it's possible the No. 2 quarterback is yet to be on the roster.