It looks like Patrick Kerney's going to opt out of the remainder of his two year, $13.8 million deal and head into the world of free agency. But not so fast--he may very well get the ol' franchise tag. Kerney may be deliberately stalling on his ceremonial shredding of the contract to keep the team from doing that, however. My gut says if he voids the contract, the Falcons skip out on re-signing him. I love Kerney and I wish he'd be a Falcon for the rest of his career, but realistically the team can get more use out of that $10 million in salary cap than an extremely talented but slowly declining defensive end. If he left, however, it would probably come down to Chauncey "Zidane" Davis, who I think could be a very servicable end but is really better known for his accidental headbutt, or a draft pick. If that's the case, the Falcons probably have to reach high, and I'm not sure that's their greatest need. I'm not optimistic, but the Falcons should definitely try to re-sign him.
And in the story (and because I don't want to put up three separate posts when two would do) it mentions that Mike Zimmer is not heading to San Diego. I have to admit, I wasn't too scared about that. But it's good to know he'll be here hopefully bringing some improved planning to the D.