FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — No two initial 53-man rosters in the NFL are the same. Not even on the most basic level of position breakdown.
Like one of 32 fingertips across the league, the Atlanta Falcons are unique with their combination of three quarterbacks, four running backs, five wide receivers, three tight ends, nine offensive linemen, nine defensive linemen, eight linebackers, nine defensive backs, one kicker, one punter and one long snapper. Hard numbers can prove this fact. And they do.
Before diving into the proof, there are a few things to keep in mind. First off, all 32 team numbers were pulled by hand Tuesday after the 4 p.m. ET deadline, they have not been changed since. This is a snapshot not an ongoing reflection of team numbers. Secondly, each team grouped positions differently, especially on the defense. Therefore, the following guidelines were implemented for simplicity sake:
- Only general titles were taken into consideration. For example, safeties and cornerbacks were lumped together as defensive backs. Same thing for inside and outside linebackers as just linebackers. Defensive ends and tackles were all defensive linemen.
- Linebackers and defensive linemen still got tricky. Teams label player positions depending on the base defensive scheme it runs. So, a 3-4 team may make the distinction between an outside and inside linebacker but lump all defensive linemen together, whereas a 4-3 defense may do the opposite, defining a defensive tackle and defensive end but listing a single linebacker group.
- Whenever a team had a player listed as EDGE on their roster, that player was looked further into and ultimately placed as either a linebacker or defensive lineman.
Now, enjoy.
Below is a table of how every NFL teams' initial 53-man roster broke down by position. Another way to view this graphic (with even more on it) is through this link.
Some highlights from the league-wide table:
— Thirteen teams, including the Falcons, chose to keep at least three quarterbacks on their initial 53-man rosters. That's the same number of teams as in 2023, when the emergency third quarterback rule was implemented, and one more than the amount in 2022. The Falcons kept three in 2023 and two in 2022, so they changed with the introduction of an emergency third quarterback.
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 Cleveland Browns kept four quarterbacks but only two running backs on their initial 53-man roster.
— The Miami Dolphins did not keep a long snapper, making them the only team to have two designated special teams players on their initial 53-man roster. That extra spot went to the defense, which lists one more body than Miami's offense. Notably, the Dolphins only had four wide receivers on their first roster, joining the Detroit Lions as teams with the lowest number in that column.
— The Philadelphia Eagles kept an NFL-high 28 defensive players and, therefore an NFL-low, 22 offensive players. The Falcons kept 26 and 24, respectively, and were one of seven teams with that specific combination.
— The Lions and Tennessee Titans only had 52 players on their initial 53-man rosters.
Below is a smaller table that summarizes the big one in a way that shows how the Falcons compared to the 2024 league average at each position, along with the highs and lows from across the NFL.
| POSITION | ATL VS. AVG | HIGH | LOW |
|---|---|---|---|
| QB | 3 > 2.4 | 4 (CLE) | 2 (19 TEAMS) |
| RB | 4 > 3.6 | 5 (4 TEAMS) | 2 (CLE) |
| WR | 5 < 5.9 | 7 (7 TEAMS) | 4 (2 TEAMS) |
| TE | 3 < 3.3 | 5 (2 TEAMS) | 2 (4 TEAMS) |
| OL | 9 < 9.4 | 11 (SEA) | 8 (2 TEAMS) |
| DL | 9 > 7.9 | 11 (2 TEAMS) | 4 (TEN) |
| LB | 8 > 7.3 | 11 (2 TEAMS) | 5 (8 TEAMS) |
| DB | 9 < 10.3 | 12 (NWE) | 9 (7 TEAMS) |
| K | 1 = 1 | 1 (ALL) | 1 (ALL) |
| P | 1 = 1 | 1 (ALL) | 1 (ALL) |
| LS | 1 = 1 | 1 (31 TEAMS) | 0 (MIA) |
| OFFENSE | 24 < 24.6 | 26 (5 TEAMS) | 22 (PHI) |
| DEFENSE | 26 > 25.4 | 28 (PHI) | 24 (6 TEAMS) |
| SPECIAL TEAMS | 3 = 3 | 3 (3 TEAMS) | 2 (MIA) |
Enough about the competition.
When it comes to initial 53-man rosters, it's not exactly fair to compare the Falcons' 2024 edition to previous years. From general manager Terry Fontenot joining in 2021 and head coach Raheem Morris being hired just this year, there has been too much change in positions of power as of late. That means the before, during and after periods each saw different offensive and defensive schemes, and each had different requirements.
However, it's still interesting to check out Atlanta's recent history.
Below is another table that looks back on initial 53-man rosters from the five most recent seasons and compares them to the present-day version.
| ATL | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| QB | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 |
| RB | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
| WR | 5 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| TE | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| OL | 9 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 9 |
| DL | 9 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 10 | 9 |
| LB | 8 | 8 | 10 | 8 | 5 | 5 |
| DB | 9 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 10 | 10 |
| K | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| P | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| LS | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| OFFENSE | 24 | 25 | 25 | 24 | 25 | 26 |
| DEFENSE | 26 | 25 | 25 | 26 | 25 | 24 |
| SPECIAL TEAMS | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
Nothing too dramatic worth noting. To be fair, the numbers can only shake out so many ways. That detail, unlike personnel, hasn't remained constant over the years.
Of course, it's also important to remember all this research is centered around Tuesday's initial 53-man rosters. Initial being the key word. All, some or none of these stats could very well look different by the end of Wednesday — less than 24 hours after their unveiling.
The initial roster was just the first of many, many dominoes to tumble. And another key step toward the start of the season.
