Falcons sign DT Abdullah Anderson, place Vincent Taylor on IR

The Atlanta Falcons have had some back luck on the defensive line to start training camp. First, veteran free agent signing Eddie Goldman elected to retire just days before camp kicked off. Next, veteran Vincent Taylor—who had been working with the starters in pass-rush packages—ruptured his Achilles during the first week of camp. On Saturday, we saw UDFA Bryce Rodgers carted off with what appeared to be a knee injury. We’ve yet to learn the severity of that injury, so we’ll continue to hope it’s minor for Rodgers.

That meant the Falcons would be down two defensive linemen from the start of camp, and it was only a matter of time until a move was made. On Sunday, the team added the expected reinforcements to the defensive interior, signing Abdullah Anderson. In a corresponding move, Atlanta placed Vincent Taylor on IR.

Abdullah, 26, has ten NFL games under his belt and spent the 2021 season bouncing between the Green Bay Packers and Tennessee Titans. He was originally signed as a UDFA out of Bucknell in the 2018 NFL Draft by the Chicago Bears, where he spent the 2018-2019 seasons. He also spent some time with the Minnesota Vikings in 2020.

While he’s only played 165 NFL snaps, Abdullah has shown some flashes. In 6 games, he had 4 total tackles (3 solo), 1.0 TFL, 3 pressures, and 1.0 sack in 2019, his most NFL productive season. Since then, Abdullah has appeared in just four games over two years and played only 59 snaps on defense.

Abdullah now comes to Atlanta, where he’ll get a solid shot at competing for the roster and practice squad on a suddenly-thin depth chart.