Former Falcons LB LaRoy Reynolds signs with Eagles

Well, another former Falcon has landed in a new nest.

This time, it’s linebacker LaRoy Reynolds.

Reynolds played occasionally on defense, but made his primary money with the Falcons as a key special teams contributor and as a tone setter in the locker room. Fox 5 Sports reporter Justin Felder notes something I’ve mentioned about Reynolds before and his ability to get a team going emotionally.

Guys like Reynolds are replaceable for what they give you on the field—ultimately, Foye Oluokun will be expected to do just that—but are hard to replicate for what they give you off of it. The Falcons will find a guy to back up Deion Jones, make no mistake. But, Reynolds was a heck of a motivator and a quality player, and the team is going to need another guy or two to step up and lead there. This is where bringing Sean Weatherspoon back would make a ton of sense, for what it’s worth, even though what he gives you on the field at this point appears to be limited.

Of guys already on the roster, it’s harder to pick the person who could fill the void, but someone will need to. Quiet leadership is a powerful force to get a team where they want to be, but you’ve got to have vocal leadership as well, particularly on game day. The team is going to miss Reynolds helping set the tone. Let’s hope they get that role taken care of with in-house options, or they sign veteran help at the linebacker spot willing to step into that vacuum.

And, of course, we wish him well with the Eagles. He was a good Falcon. And, hey, what do you know, he’ll join former Falcon Paul Worrilow in helping Philly man down the depth at LB. Small world, huh?