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Did you wake up with heartburn, headache, and stinking of Irish whiskey? Perfect — me too. It’s typically how I find myself early on Monday mornings after Atlanta Falcons game day, so things are in proper order.
It’s been a busy week for the Falcons, with a number of free agency additions. Let’s ease our collective hangovers and dive in to that and more with today’s Falcoholinks.
Welcoming Stocker and Barner
The Falcons overhauled their offensive line by bringing in guards Jamon Brown and James Carpenter, and they continued their action in free agency by signing tight end Luke Stocker and running back/returner Kenjon Barner.
For Luke Stocker, it’s a two-year deal, while Kenjon Barner was inked to a one-year contract.
To that end, the Falcons also elected to bring back blocking tight end Logan Paulsen.
The Coming Cap Situation
The Falcons have drafted very well of late, and the obvious downside to having solid, young players is that they’re all about to get extremely expensive. The team has already hit star defender Grady Jarrett with the franchise tag, and Deion Jones, Keanu Neal, and Austin Hooper are nearing the end of their rookie contracts.
With the money being tossed around in free agency, things are about to get very pricey for the Atlanta Falcons. The Falcoholic’s David Walker is out with a bit of an explainer as to what we can expect for the team’s cap situation over the next couple of seasons.
Departures
While the Falcons added to their personnel this week, they also bid farewell to a couple of players. Wide receiver/returner Marvin Hall is headed to the Bears, special teamer and backup corner Justin Bethel received a contract from the Ravens, and cornerback Brian Poole secured a $3.5 million deal from the Jets.
There’s nothing official yet, but offensive guard Andy Levitre announced on Instagram that he would not be returning to Atlanta.