DALLAS — When the Atlanta Falcons began their final week of preseason preparations, Raheem Morris said the third preseason game in Dallas would be singularly focused on the players fighting for a roster spot.
"This is the make-the-roster game," Morris said Monday. "This is where guys solidify themselves on the 53-man roster, or that practice squad ... trying to finalize who you keep."
With roster cuts coming over the weekend and through Tuesday, which is the deadline for when teams have to solidify their initial 53-man rosters, there were a number of players who were moving and shaking across the roster. Whose stock rose? Let's discuss.
Movin' on up
Nick Nash
The Falcons' 2025 UDFA class got fans excited back in the spring, for good reason. It included some interesting names. One of which was Nash, and he showed flashes as to why fans were excited in the first place. He was a favorite target of Easton Stick's throughout much of Friday's game. Of Stick's 20 completions for 198 yards, Nash made up six of those catches for 87 yards.
Unfortunately for Nash, the receiver room is deep. Very deep. Potentially-seven-receivers-on-the-roster deep. I don't know if Nash has a spot on this 53-man roster. However, he absolutely convinced me with his performance Friday that he is very valuable for the Falcons' practice squad. What's funny is that while we're talking about the Falcons carrying seven receivers on the roster, we're also talking about keeping three more on the practice squad. Chris Blair, Dylan Drummond and Nash have all done well as reserves for Atlanta this preseason. If they clear waivers following cuts, I would expect to see them back in Falcons' red and black sooner rather than later.
Dee Alford
It was never out of the question that Alford would make this roster. He's been taking majority of the first-team reps at nickel. However, the Falcons did something Friday they haven't done before that adds even more value to Alford on this roster. Majority of his snaps in the first half Friday were taken outside.
The slot has been where Alford roamed all throughout the preseason. Off the top of my head, I can't recall a time when Alford took outside reps in practice. And yet, outside is where the Falcons saw fit to play him Friday, and he played well against the Cowboys' reserves. This is not to say that Alford is moving there permanently. Rather, the Falcons are giving him live reps to cross train in the event depth dwindles in the secondary. It's just good to do, good to have a handful of players who can play throughout the secondary should the need arise.
Elijah Dotson
Last week was the Nathan Carter show. This week, eyes were on Dotson bringing the ball out of the backfield. Dotson got a bit more runway to work with this Friday night than previously, particularly in the second half. And what he did with the opportunity was notable, to the tune of 12 carries for 74 yards and a 6.2 yards per carry average.
Dotson had a chance to get in the endzone a couple times in the waning minutes of the game but the Falcons couldn't punch it in. Still, Morris said in his postgame interview on the field that he was pleased with Dotson's performance specifically, helping the Falcons to 147 rushing yards as a team.
"I was really fired up with that," Morris said.
The Falcons — at most — have one roster spot available for a running back that isn't named Bijan Robinson or Tyler Allgeier. Did someone like Dotson, or Carter last week, do enough to earn the spot? Or will the Falcons hold it for Carlos Washington Jr. despite Washington being unavailable with a hamstring injury for much of the preseason? We will know soon.
Needs a shake up
Younghoe Koo
I didn't know if we would see Koo in the final preseason game. I didn't know if we needed to, particularly after Morris spoke about the affinity he has for Koo earlier this week. Still, I decided if we did see Koo Friday, he needed to leave no doubt that any whisper of a competition at kicker was silence. After he missed a 51-yard field goal in the first half, the whispers weren't silenced. I would argue they grew in volume.
On Friday night, if given the chance, Koo needed to do something to give fans the same sense of confidence in him that coaches seem to have. Did he do that? It's difficult to say yes.
Now, do I think this means Koo doesn't make the 53-man roster? No. No I do not. However, it does bring me up short in my original belief that Koo's kicking issues in 2024 stemmed solely from the injury that landed him on IR. I have reservations about the Falcons' kicking game, and Koo's miss from 51 yards out Friday night didn't dull those reservations.
Jamal Agnew
This is tough because I am pointing out a player who didn't even suit up on Friday night; who hasn't suited up at all and who we have barely seen at practice of late. Agnew has been dealing with an oblique injury that has kept him from being 100%, while also making it difficult for me to continue to pencil him in on the 53-man roster.
Agnew was brought in as a return specialist this offseason to replace Avery Williams after his rookie contract expired. He also had some upside as a receiver, too. But here we are, with roster cuts looming, having seen very little of what Agnew can truly do. All the while other players — particularly receivers — are making their presence known and adding value to the offense.
It begs the question: Do the Falcons need Agnew? Truly I am curious. Because if the priority of Agnew is as a return man, the Falcons have options there already. Ray-Ray McCloud, Dee Alford and Mike Hughes can all return kicks. Heck, Natrone Brooks can, too, and did well doing so when given the chance in preseason action. Those four players? They feel like locks on the roster at this point. So, again, with spots so slim this season, do you need to spend a spot on a player who's primary skill can be taken care of by others?
I do not know the answer. But it is something that has been on my mind pretty heavily since this week began and Morris provided more information on why we haven't seen Agnew on the field the last couple weeks. Is Agnew someone the Falcons need? Or want? Because those two words could mean the difference in a roster spot.
Tackles, tackles, tackles
Friday gave me few — if any — answers as to where the Falcons' tackle depth goes from here. Morris did confirm that McGary will miss "significant time" for Atlanta after he was carted off the field during Wednesday's practice. While a return-to-play timeline is something Morris is holding close to the vest, he did say an injured reserve designation is very possible for McGary as roster decisions loom.
Behind McGary, the Falcons cannot rely on Storm Norton, who reportedly underwent ankle surgery the day before McGary's injury. He is expected to miss six-to-eight weeks. So, where does that leave Atlanta's tackle depth? Well, it's shaky.
One could argue Elijah Wilkinson now moves up the roster as he is the one who slotted into McGary's vacant spot in practice Wednesday. Not only that, the Falcons chose not to play Wilkinson Friday because of the injuries sustained to the tackles on the roster already. That left Jack Nelson and Brandon Parker as the team's tackles for much of the Dallas game. And while they were... fine, that's not going to cut it against pro starters come the start of the regular season.
As it stands, the Falcons are at a crossroad. Do they stick with Wilkinson, plug and play him at right tackle and be patient in McGary and Norton's recoveries? Or do they make a move? Acquire someone who falls off another 53-man roster, or find a way to package something together to get a backup off another team? When asked about Wilkinson and tackle depth, Morris left the door open for either scenario to take place.
"Elijah has played a lot of football in the National Football League," Morris said when asked about holding Wilkinson out Friday. "He's played a lot for us. He's been here with us throughout the course of the last year, throughout the course of this year, and we are fired up to get those guys out there and watch those guys play and compete to see who's going to be able to go out there vs. Tampa."
