Falcons officially add linebacker Jack Lynn, waive fullback Soma Vainuku

The Atlanta Falcons made the signing of linebacker Jack Lynn official yesterday evening, and as anticipated, a player got the axe to make room for him. It just wasn’t a player I was necessarily expecting.

Let’s back up. Lynn, who will be 24 in August, is a college teammate of De’Vondre Campbell’s who offers solid size, tackling ability, and athleticism. He can certainly compete for a practice squad spot, though the team’s group of linebackers seems pretty set, and perhaps he’ll surprise and hang on for a bit. At the very least, he’s good enough to hang around for the summer, get some preseason time, and hopefully catch the eye of the coaching staff. We want to congratulate him on signing with the Falcons.

The other half of that equation is that the Falcons have trimmed their linebacker competition from three dudes to two dudes. They didn’t cut Citadel UDFA Tyler Renew, either.

I’m obviously surprised because I had Vainuku potentially pulling off an upset and snagging the Falcons’ fullback job. Derrick Coleman was an average or better starter at the position for the Seahawks not that long ago, but he didn’t play in the NFL last year and doesn’t offer the athletic upside Vainuku appeared to have. After a short look at him, though, the Falcons’ coaching staff decided he wasn’t going to pull off the upset, and off the former Texan goes. We wish him well.

That leaves Coleman to face off against Renew, a solid runner and physical blocker who had a very good college career. Coleman is the prohibitive favorite at this point, but I wouldn’t count the rookie out.