Falcons reveal depth chart for 2021 opener vs. Eagles

The preseason is officially over, and now it’s nearly time for the moment we have long waited for. On Sunday at 1 p.m. the Atlanta Falcons will host the Philadelphia Eagles, kicking off not only the regular season for both teams, but also the new regime of head coach Arthur Smith and general manager Terry Fontenot.

With the game only days away, the Falcons have revealed the depth chart for the season opener, which you can view below.

Offense

QB: Matt Ryan, Feleipe Franks or Josh Rosen

RB: Mike Davis, Cordarrelle Patterson, Wayne Gallman

WR: Calvin Ridley, Tajae Sharpe or Christian Blake

WR: Russell Gage, Olamide Zaccheaus, Frank Darby

TE: Kyle Pitts, Lee Smith

TE: Hayden Hurst, Keith Smith

LT: Jake Matthews, Jason Spriggs

LG: Jalen Mayfield, Colby Gossett

C: Matt Hennessy, Drew Dalman

RG: Chris Lindstrom, Drew Dalman

RT: Kaleb McGary, Jason Spriggs

Defense

DL: Grady Jarrett, Marlon Davidson

DL: Tyeler Davison, Ta’Quon Graham

DL: Jonathan Bullard, John Cominsky

OLB: Steven Means, Brandon Copeland or Jacob Tuioti-Mariner

LB: Deion Jones, Mykal Walker

LB: Foyesade Oluokun, Dorian Etheridge

OLB: Dante Fowler Jr., Adetokunbo Ogundeji

CB: A.J. Terrell, T.J. Green, Darren Hall or Avery Williams

CB: Fabian Moreau, Isaiah Oliver, Kendall Sheffield

S: Erik Harris, Jaylinn Hawkins

S: Duron Harmon, Richie Grant

Special Teams

K: Younghoe Koo

P: Cameron Nizialek

LS: Josh Harris

H: Cameron Nizialek

PR: Avery Williams

KOR: Cordarrelle Patterson

After weeks of saying “this depth chart doesn’t really matter” during the preseason, this is one that finally does matter. We can see from the chart listed above that the offense is in a slightly different format than we’re used to seeing. Although he’s listed as a tight end, Keith Smith will continue to play fullback when the formation calls for it. Jason Spriggs will serve as the team’s swing tackle as he’s the only backup tackle on the roster. You may notice Drew Dalman will also play backup to two different positions, center and right guard.

It will be baptism by fire for rookie Jalen Mayfield, who will serve as the starting left guard on Sunday. It’s unclear if this was the plan all along or if Josh Andrews’ broken hand injury played into this. Recently claimed left guard Colby Gossett will be behind him in case the team decides to make a change.

On the defensive side of things, no huge surprises. It’s good to see Jonathan Bullard listed as a starter on the defensive line as he flashed often during the preseason in limited snaps. T.J. Green, who was listed as a safety during much of the offseason, will serve as a backup corner to A.J. Terrell.

As I said, not many surprises here, but hopefully this roster is able to come away from Week 1 with a win.