Falcons bubble watch: Who is on the edge after Week 3 of preseason

As always, there were performances last night that may have moved the needle for Falcons who were already on the bubble, and ones that may have put new faces on the roster bubble. Here’s a look at a few players who are firmly on the bubble now, in our opinions.

CB Deji Olatoye

C.J. Goodwin and Deji Olatoye each got beat for a touchdown last night, but Olatoye also had a missed tackle a week after he picked up a pass interference call against the Steelers. I think Olatoye has the talent to be the fifth cornerback on this roster, but Jarnor Jones and Akeem King have at least been in the mix and I still believe Goodwin is a lock to make it, so he is certainly on the bubble. I’m hopeful he’ll finish with a strong fourth game, lock up a spot, and contribute early.

RB Brian Hill

An every week fixture here, for a combination of reasons he can control and reasons he can’t. Terron Ward has outplayed him throughout preseason, and while Hill looked better in his action last night (particularly with the first team), he just hasn’t had the benefit of good blocking in front of him to make his case. Now he’s dealing with an ankle injury, severity unknown, which further complicates the picture.

Hill should be a long-term asset for the Falcons—assuming the team doesn’t lose him on waivers, if it comes to that—but Ward still looks like the favorite if the team is only keeping three backs.

If the Falcons keep four backs, Hill will make it. If they don’t, he’s still not on solid ground just yet.

LB Josh Keyes

Keyes and Jermaine Grace are competing for one spot that may or may not exist. We’re not clear how many linebackers the Falcons are going to keep just yet.

Keyes hasn’t hurt his case in any way to this point, showing solid performances on special teams and making a ton of timely tackles last night against the Cardinals. The problem is that there may not be a spot for him, and he’s competing with Grace, who in his limited run has looked athletic and impressive. We’ll see what the Falcons do.

QB Alek Torgersen

I’d say the writing is more or less on the wall for Torgersen, who needs to get significant run against the Jaguars and do something with it to even have a tiny chance of sticking around as the team’s third quarterback. I like Torgersen’s toolkit, but he hasn’t done a lot in his limited chances, and the Falcons have given a ton of snaps to Matt Simms. Welcome to the bubble, buddy.