FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — Building a 53-man roster is no easy feat.
For starters, it technically doesn't even have to include 53 men. The Atlanta Falcons' didn't. Not on Tuesday when their initial roster was released. It featured 52 players.
And that's OK.
Because an NFL team's roster is forever a penciled-in list. Nobody writes in pen. Definitely not in permanent marker.
Tuesday's reduction deadline was just that — a deadline. The league simply needed every club to settle on a max of 53 players, marking the official transition from preseason to regular season. Who those players is bound to change. Heck, some did as soon as Wednesday.
Nonetheless, it's interesting to compare gut reactions and spot early differences among all 32 teams. That's why I combed through all of their initial rosters and broke them down by position. The following guidelines were established for simplicity sake:
- The Falcons' roster set the tone for defense. All defensive linemen are interior players, while defensive ends and outside linebackers are considered edge rushers. Inside linebackers then have their own category.
- Any defensive back who wasn't labeled a cornerback or safety became a tally under the cornerback category. Turns out, multiple teams lumped an undefined defensive back with cornerbacks. Stuck with that theme here.
- A fullback counted as a tight end. Again, multiple teams lumped these two together. Therefore, one category.
With that settled, time to dive in.
Below is a table of how every NFL teams' initial 53-man roster broke down by position. You can also view this graphic through this link.
Some highlights from the league-wide table:
— The Falcons weren't the only team to not fill all 53 spots. Neither did the Detroit Lions. They left three open.
— Thirteen teams kept at least three quarterbacks. That's the same number of teams as in 2023, when the emergency third quarterback rule was implemented, and 2024. It's one more than the amount in 2022.
The Falcons kept only two this year, which they also did in 2022. It's a departure from what they did in 2023 and 2024, when they kept three.
As a reminder, the emergency quarterback rule allows teams to dress a third quarterback from the 53-man roster on game day without him counting toward the 48-player active list. The emergency third quarterback can only enter the game if the starter and backup are injured and/or disqualified. Hence, emergency.
— The Seattle Seahawks kept an NFL-high 27 offensive players and, therefore, an NFL-low 23 defensive players. The Jacksonville Jaguars tipped their scales the opposite way, with a league-low 23 offensive players and a league-high 27 defensive players.
The Lions matched the Seahawks with 23 defensive players, but Detroit's 24 offensive players prevented it from hitting both ends of the spectrum.
The Arizona Cardinals, Miami Dolphins and Los Angeles Chargers matched the Jaguars with 27 defensive players, but they all kept 24 offensive players and only two special teams players to avoid full skew.
— Five teams did not keep three special teams players. The Dolphins were missing a kicker, the San Francisco 49ers were missing a punter, and the Cardinals, Chargers and Philadelphia Eagles were missing a long snapper.
Below is a smaller table that summarizes the big one above, focusing solely on how the Falcons compared to the averages at each position. It also includes the highs and lows.
| POSITION | ATL vs. AVG | HIGH | LOW |
|---|---|---|---|
| QB | 2 < 2.4 | 4 (PIT) | 2 (19 TEAMS) |
| RB | 3 < 3.6 | 5 (2 TEAMS) | 2 (CLE) |
| WR | 7 > 5.9 | 8 (2 TEAMS) | 5 (10 TEAMS) |
| TE | 4 > 3.7 | 6 (SEA) | 2 (HOU) |
| OL | 8 < 9.2 | 11 (2 TEAMS) | 8 (5 TEAMS) |
| DL | 5 < 5.5 | 7 (3 TEAMS) | 4 (2 TEAMS) |
| EDGE | 6 > 4.9 | 6 (5 TEAMS) | 3 (2 TEAMS) |
| ILB | 4 < 4.8 | 7 (WAS) | 3 (SEA) |
| CB | 7 > 5.7 | 8 (LAC) | 4 (2 TEAMS) |
| S | 3 < 4.3 | 6 (2 TEAMS) | 3 (5 TEAMS) |
| OFFENSE | 24 < 24.8 | 27 (SEA) | 23 (JAX) |
| DEFENSE | 25 < 25.2 | 27 (4 TEAMS) | 2 (2 TEAMS) |
The biggest discrepancies on offense appear to be at wide receiver and offensive line. Defensively, the notable differences are at edge rusher and both defensive back positions.
The Falcons kept seven wide receivers, two more than they did last season. Darnell Mooney, however, missed most of training camp due to a shoulder injury. Although he's on the initial roster, Atlanta could have boosted their ranks at the position just in case Mooney isn't ready for Week 1. Jamal Agnew is also categorized as a wide receiver, but he is primarily on the team as a return specialist.
The offensive line is thin. Those numbers make sense. The Falcons lost their starting right tackle, Kaleb McGary, to season-ending injured reserve because of a leg injury. They also placed backup swing tackle Storm Norton on injured reserve, with a designation to return. Those injuries left Atlanta down two bodies, making offensive line a position the team could add to in the future.
Atlanta tied for the most edge rushers on any roster and exceeded the league average, which tracks with their offseason mission: improve the pass rush. They got a mad boost in this category by drafting not one but two first rounders in Jalon Walker and James Pearce Jr. They're a pair of checkmarks right away.
Natrone Brooks is the reason the cornerback room's count is a bit high. He had such a good training camp the Falcons couldn't not include him. Same with Mike Ford Jr., who is a core member of special teams. Their presence on the roster might explain why the safety room went from the likely four of Jessie Bates III, Xavier Watts, DeMarcco Hellams and Jordan Fuller to just the first three there.
The conversations that were held in the lead-up to Tuesday will continue as the regular season begins. Some players will stay in Atlanta. Others will come and go. That's why it's so difficult — no, impossible — to believe this is the Falcons' roster for 2025. It's adamantly described as initial for a reason.
