John Cominsky arrived in Atlanta as an interesting defender with athleticism to spare, one who figured to be a bit of a project but certainly one with real upside. He exits Atlanta a few years later with much the same profile, but Cominsky will have to wait until his next team to prove himself as a capable NFL starter.
After a year where the Falcons shifted him back from defensive tackle to outside linebacker and he received just 13 defensive snaps, the team has cut Cominsky.
The Falcons released DE John Cominsky.
— Michael Rothstein (@mikerothstein) May 26, 2022
Releasing Cominsky saves the Falcons $965,000 against the salary cap.
Cominsky played 27 games for Atlanta with 41 tackles and 1.5 sacks.
Cominsky’s role to a roster spot was not clear this summer, especially after the team drafted both Arnold Ebiketie and DeAngelo Malone and signed Lorenzo Carter, but given that they held on to him throughout 2021 and during their cap-starved stretches of the offseason, it was fair to assume he’d get a shot. Instead, the Falcons have cut him on the same day they signed running back Jeremy McNichols, likely clearing a roster spot. As Rothstein notes above, they’ll save close to $1 million against the cap by doing so.
Cominsky had flashes in Atlanta when he did get to play, most notably in 2020 when he had his only career sack to this point and delivered some solid work as a defender against the run. He seemed to be on his way to becoming a fixture on the defensive line as a reserve under Dan Quinn and even Raheem Morris, but the new regime liked his chances better as a pass rusher working outside and took the time to convert Cominsky last season. That work may pay off for Cominsky yet, as he’ll have the chance to land with another pass rush-starved team willing to take a closer look at his upside in that role, but the move obviously didn’t pan out in Atlanta.
I doubt Cominsky will wait long to find a new home, given that he’s still just 26 years old and still offers an interesting blend of strength and athleticism, and we’ll wish him well wherever he lands. The Falcons will move forward with Quinton Bell, Jordan Brailford, rookie Kuony Deng and others competing for what’s likely to be one roster spot in this group.
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